In receiving a scholarship, you have been recognized for your hard work and dedication to improving your practice and study as a Human Ecology graduate student. Your award has been made possible through the generous support of friends and alumni of the School of Human Ecology at the University of Wisconsin- Madison.
A thank you letter helps donors to see just how impactful their contributions are to our students’ education, research, and career goals. A nicely written thank you lets donors know their gifts are meaningful and displays the full effect of their contributions
Letter vs Note
When a letter is necessary
Some graduate student scholarships are funded by one generous individual or family’s contributions to the School. These awards have a named donor or donors or other family member(s) who can receive formal letters of gratitude. For these awards, recipients are required to compose thank-you letters to the donor(s) or family member(s)
For a list of awards requiring a thank-you letter, please see this Google Document
When a note is necessary
Other scholarships are funded not by one donor but by accounts with countless contributors over the years. For these scholarships that don’t have a specific donor or donors or specific family member(s) who can receive a letter, it makes the most sense to express gratitude to a more general audience. As such, writing a thank-you note is the best way to go.
For a list of awards requiring a thank-you note, please see this Google Document
Thank-You Letter Deadlines
Fall Semester – January 1st
For any scholarship received during the fall semester that requires the submission of a thank-you letter, letters must be submitted by January 1st. If a student fails to submit their thank you letter(s) by January 1st, they will be ineligible for any Human Ecology scholarships until it has been received.
Spring Semester – June 1st
For any scholarship received during the spring semester that requires the submission of a thank-you letter, letters must be submitted by June 1st. If a student fails to submit their thank you letter(s) by June 1st, they will be ineligible for any Human Ecology scholarships until it has been received.
Thank-You Letters
Accept the Award
- Click the link in your award notification email from WiSH OR go directly to the site at www.scholarships.wisc.edu to log in and accept your award.
- In the award email or offer letter, it will tell you the donor who made possible the scholarship or fellowship
View Donor Biographies
- There are donor information pages about each of our donors that can be found in this BOX folder.
- If you are having trouble figuring out which donor funded your award, see this Google Doc.
- Identify the donor(s) of your scholarships or fellowship and read more about them and their gift to the School of Human Ecology.
- Note that some awards require letters to multiple recipients; please carefully review the biographies to determine if this is the case for your award and act accordingly.
- Use the information so that you can adequately thank them and/or their designee(s) for their gift.
Write Your Thank-You Letter
- The following guidance has been prepared for you as you write your thank you note:
- Be sure to indicate the impact that the scholarship or fellowship has had on your graduate career.
- Be mindful to properly address the thank you to the correct person(s), as it may not be the donor or who the scholarship or fellowship is named after.
- You may need to write more than one thank you letter. Should you have questions about this, please contact graduate program administration at gradprog@sohe.wisc.edu.
- Additional guidelines from the UW Writing Center: Advice for Students Writing Thank You Notes to Donors.
Upload Your Note To Box
- All thank you notes can be uploaded to this BOX folder.
- The thank you notes will be sent directly to the donor and/or designee once they are uploaded to BOX.
- A cover letter from the School of Human Ecology may be added as needed.
Thank-You Notes
If your offer note on WiSH indicates that you have received one of these awards, please complete this short Google Form to show your thanks. A photo of the work which the award has allowed you to pursue and a few sentences about the impact it has had on your career is ideal.
At the end of each academic year, graduate program administration will compile your responses into a special-edition newsletter and social post to share with donors and the broader community to demonstrate the impact of donations on supporting student research, scholarship, and professional development. Your contributions to this effort are incredibly important to ensuring that our programs continue to receive funding for these awards year after year, so thank you in advance for your cooperation.