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Sophomore Opportunities

Sophomore year presents you with a wide range of options. This page describes a few that you should explore. They may help you discover new mentors, research areas, and intellectual passions; or they may help you deepen your relations with existing ones. All have the potential to help you develop your network—and the liberal education you are in the process of constructing—both at and beyond Brown.

Fellowships for Sophomores

Sophomores at Brown are eligible for a number of fellowships for the first time. Three important Brown-sponsored fellowships, the Royce Fellowship, the CV Starr Fellowship, and Undergraduate Teaching and Research Awards (UTRA), fund both traditional and non-traditional research projects. Visit the Swearer Center and Dean of the College websites to learn more about each of these programs.

Three national fellowships available to sophomores are the Udall Scholarship, the Barry Goldwater Scholarship, and the Mellon Mays Undergraduate Fellowship. The Udall funds students who have demonstrated a commitment to the environment; the Barry Goldwater Scholarship recognizes young scholars committed to research careers in math, science, or engineering; and the Mellon Mays Fellowship helps students from underrepresented minority groups, or students with a demonstrated commitment to eradicating racial disparities in higher education, to pursue careers in the academy. For more information visit our Fellowships website. Dean Linda Dunleavy, who advises on fellowships, holds weekly open office hours each week. She is also available by appointment.

Center for Careers and Life After Brown

Brown’s Center for Careers and Life After Brown, also known as CareerLAB, helps students explore careers, access internships, and learn about job opportunities. CareerLAB hosts alumni speakers and panels and provides a number of online tools that will help you build a network beyond Brown. Schedule an individual appointment with a CareerLAB advisor, who can help you clarify your goals and help you plan for life after college. For more information, visit www.brown.edu/careerlab.

The Swearer Center for Public Service

The Howard R. Swearer Center for Public Service supports Brown students and faculty who are interested in community participation, activism, and action as key components of a liberal education. Among the center’s initiatives are language and literacy programs, youth development programs in Providence schools, housing and hunger programs, oral history projects, and community health programs. For more information, visit the Swearer Center website.

Study Away from Brown

Most Brown students who choose to go elsewhere to study for a term or a year do so during their junior year. The time to plan for that time away is now, during your sophomore year. To explore study abroad options, start with the website of the Office of International Programs. You can make an appointment to talk to the many counselors and staff at OIP, or stop in to speak with students who have returned from studying in another country. For study elsewhere in the U.S., visit http://www.brown.edu/college/courses/study_away.php.