My Watson Fellowship to study lake-monster culture is one of 48 such fellowships this year, each a distinct and personally-selected project that range from chasing the origins of chess to learning bagpipes in Scotland. Here is the official line:

THE THOMAS J. WATSON FOUNDATION inaugurated the Thomas J. Watson Fellowship in 1968 to give college graduates of unusual promise the freedom to engage in a year of independent study and travel abroad following their graduation. The University of Puget Sound has participated in the Watson Fellowship program since the 1993-94 academic year.

The Foundation provides Fellows an opportunity for a focused and disciplined Wanderjahr of their own devising--a period in which they can have some surcease from the lockstep of prescribed educational and career patterns in order to explore with thoroughness a particular interest. During their year abroad, Fellows have an unusual, sustained, and demanding opportunity to take stock of themselves, to test their aspirations and abilities, to view their lives and American society in greater perspective, and, concomitantly, to develop a more informed sense of international concern.

In selecting Watson Fellows, we are most concerned with holistically identifying individuals who demonstrate integrity, imagination, strong ethical character, intelligence, the capacity for vision and leadership, the promise of creative achievement and excellence within a chosen field, and the potential for humane and effective participation in the world community. A candidate's academic record, while not of primary importance, is also considered, together with those extracurricular activities which reflect both initiative and serious dedication.

The proposed project should reflect a candidate's genuine interest in, and long-standing commitment to, a specific concern, whether or not this interest is evident in a formal course of study.

The project must be one that can be pursued with great independence and adaptability, and it cannot involve formal study at a foreign institution. It must involve travel to areas where the student has not previously lived or studied for a significant length of time. Fellows are not intended to return home at any time during their Fellowship year. In short, the project should be personally significant, imaginative, and feasible.

Administered in cooperation with fifty outstanding private colleges and universities throughout the United States, the Watson Fellowship provides a grant of $22,000 to each recipient. (Fellows whose spouse or dependent child will accompany them may be eligible for a grant of $31,000.) (Figures are for the 2001-2002 Fellows) In addition, the Foundation will supply, as a supplement to the Fellow's stipend, an amount equal to twelve-months' payment of outstanding federally guaranteed student loans (based on 120 months of repayment). The purpose of the loan program is to ease the financial burden of Watson Fellows during their fellowship year, and to provide encouragement for all students, regardless of student loan debt, to apply for Watson Fellowships.

All Fellows are required to maintain contact with the Foundation during their year abroad. In addition to quarterly progress reports, they must submit a final evaluation of the Fellowship year together with an accounting of the expenditure of Fellowship funds. The Fellowship is taxable and must be reported by recipients as income. Taxes are not withheld by the Foundation.

The Watson Foundation welcomes applicants from a diverse range of backgrounds and academic disciplines. All graduating seniors at participating institutions are eligible for nomination by their institution.

You can learn more about the Watson Fellowship at www.watsonfellowship.org.

Note: You can read press releases from various colleges and universities which announce this year's winners. With much thanks to Ari Berland, here is a relatively comprehensive list:

University of Puget Sound

Whitman College #1
Whitman College #2
Bryn Mawr College
Bates College
Davidson College
Washington and Lee University
Bowdoin College
Wellesley College
Ursinus College
Hamilton College
Union College
Scripps College
Connecticut College
Wesleyan College
Carleton College
Middlebury College
College of the Holy Cross
Swarthmore College
Amherst College
Rhodes College
Reed College

A few more new ones:
Earlham College
Oberlin College
Rice University
Rice University - Zeff Fellowship provided to Watson nominee
Bard College
Sarah Lawrence College

If you want me to list any others that I may have missed, give me an email.