The Promising Scholar Award recognizes the scholarship of junior faculty and bestows upon the recipient the title “Promising Scholar” for the year following receipt of the award. The award consists of a $1,500 honorarium and a plaque to be presented, typically, at University Day.

List of Previous Recipients

Nominees must meet these criteria to be eligible:

  • Be tenured/tenure-track or research track faculty at OSU, within 10 years of receiving an advanced degree and with at least 3 years at OSU at the time of nomination.
  • Achievement of a high level of accomplishment in a relatively short period of time at OSU, and who is also expected to continue his/her extraordinary work

Award Criteria

To qualify for the title of “Promising Scholar,” an OSU faculty member must meet at least one of the following two criteria. Under each criterion are examples of evidence that could be used to demonstrate the contribution to be significant. 

  • Outstanding scholarly activity that represents significant intellectual work validated and communicated through peer review, such as:
    • Published articles (e.g., peer-reviewed journal articles, technical reports, book chapters, and essays) contributing to a body of knowledge
    • Books (e.g., original works and textbooks, researched compilations, edited books)
    • Grant support (e.g., competitive, peer-reviewed research grants, foundation grants)
  • Outstanding creative activity that has been validated and communicated through peer review and scholarly critique, such as:
    • Production, exhibition, or performance of creative work (e.g., visual or performing art, or literature presented in the form of peer-reviewed publications, juried exhibits, noteworthy performances, readings or recordings, solo exhibits)
    • Commissioned or collected works (e.g., commissions for creative work, works collected by public and private museums and galleries)
    • Development of new technologies, materials, methods, or educational approaches (e.g., patents, inventions, new statistical techniques)

Nomination Process and Submission

Following the instructions completely will ensure consideration of the nomination.

The nominator shall submit the Cover Sheet, Nomination Form and the complete submission packet in one PDF via the Qualtrics Submission Form. Do not begin entering information on the Qualtrics form unless you are ready to submit the nomination – the form CANNOT be saved and finished at a later time. The submission packet will include evidence that the nominee meets the criteria, as well as (1) position description indicating breakdown of FTE allocation; (2) evidence of the candidate's achievements with specific attention to the award criteria for a promising scholar; (3) three letters of support*; (4) copies of selected evidence of excellence relevant to the nomination and (5) the nominee’s vita.

* Two letters of support shall be written by the unit heads/leaders (e.g., dean, chair, supervisor, director, unit administrator). The third letter shall be from a referee who is not associated with the University, but who can comment on the nominee's qualifications with respect to the promising scholar award criteria. The letters of support each shall not exceed two single-sided pages using at least 12 pitch and 1" margins. Signatures on the letters must be included.

The award criteria can be addressed on separate pages for each criteria or within the letters of support. Please be certain that the nomination materials, particularly the three letters, address the criteria.

To maintain objectivity in the selection process, the nominator must declare special relationships with the nominee that might create real or apparent bias in the process, including personal as well as professional relationships such as those with former advisees and collaborators. Because the nominator completes the nomination form, the nominator is not eligible to submit a letter of support.

The outside referee must not have had any direct personal and/or professional relationships with the nominee (e.g., former advisors; collaborators on degrees, projects, grants, publications).

When organizing the PDF for submission, please ensure that the cover sheet is on the first page, with the nomination form as the second page. Evidence of supporting criteria (if provided on separate pages) and letters of support must be attached in the order indicated above.

Additional information submitted with the nomination will not be considered; please include only requested information and refer to the guidelines when organizing submission packets.

Selection Process

Nominations will be reviewed and selected by the Faculty Recognition and Awards Committee and a member of the Research Council. Committee recommendations will be made on the basis of the information submitted; the committee does not solicit additional information.

Nomination packets are due by Noon on April 12, 2023.