Skip to content

Eligibility

To apply for the McNair Program, you must meet the following eligibility criteria set by the U.S. Department of Education. UW McNair program is a federally funded TRIO program; these are strict requirements.

To be eligible, you must:

  • be a low-income student who is also a first-generation college student (for detailed definitions, click on the links).

    OR

  • be a member of a group that is underrepresented in graduate education as defined by the U.S. Department of Education:
    • African American
    • American Indian/Alaskan Native
    • Hispanic/Latino
    • Native Hawaiian/ Native Pacific Islander
  • be a U.S. citizen, permanent resident, or in the process of obtaining permanent residency.

U.S. Department of Education Definitions of Low-Income and First-Generation Students

Low-income

The term “low-income individual” means an individual whose family’s taxable income for the preceding year did not exceed 150 percent of the poverty level amount. Link to the U.S. Department of Education’s current year qualifying taxable income levels: Income Table

Important Note: The TRIO qualifying income level table uses Taxable income. Taxable income is the amount of income that the US Federal Government collects taxes on. This is not the same as Total Income or Adjusted Gross Income.

First-generation

An individual, neither of whose parents completed a baccalaureate degree;

or

An individual who, prior to the age of 18, regularly resided with and received support from only one parent and whose supporting parent did not complete a baccalaureate degree.

or

An individual who, prior to the age of 18, did not regularly reside with or receive support from a natural or adoptive parent.

If your parent(s) and/or guardian(s) attended college but do not have a bachelor’s degree (i.e., did not graduate), you are considered to be first-generation.

Additional eligibility requirements:

  • be currently enrolled as an undergraduate in a degree program or a pre-major at the UW1
  • have at least one year remaining before graduation (i.e., if you are graduating within this current academic year, you are not eligible for the program)
  • have a STRONG desire to attain a Ph.D.2

1Post-baccalaureate students and students with bachelor’s degrees are not eligible for the program.

2Students whose career goals include a medical (MD) or another professional degree (JD, MBA, PharmD, etc.) are not eligible for the program.

If you have any eligibility questions, use the contact form for the UW McNair program or call 206-543-6460.