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Scholarships

THE SWAMIDAS K. CHARAN (JOHN) PUNWANI MEMORIAL UNDERGRADUATE STUDENT SCHOLARSHIP FUND

John Punwani was dedicated to the success of the ASME Rail Transporta- Scholarship requirements are as follows:
tion Division (RTD). His commitment was reflected in his extensive service
as he fulfilled different capacities to include: the ASME Executive Commit- • The student must be enrolled full-time and attending a U.S. college or
tee 1998-2003, the RTD Division Chair 2002-03, the ASME RTD General university.
Committee as the Freight Car Committee chair, the ASME RTD Advisory
• The student must be enrolled in an undergraduate engineering
Committee 2004-2008, the Committee Chair 2004-2005, and served as
program at their university, college, or technical college.
the ASME representative on the Elmer A. Sperry Board of Award. In
addition, he was also appointed as an Honorary Member of the RTD • The student must be of junior or senior status.
Advisory Committee in 2008. He also authored and coauthored over 20
ASME technical papers. • The student must submit a minimum 250-word essay outlining why
they should be selected to attend the conference and what they
The Swamidas K. Charan (John) Punwani Memorial Undergraduate hope to gain through attendance (or what the student could contrib-
Student Scholarship is awarded annually to deserving undergraduate ute to the rail industry). Or, alternatively, a minimum 250-word essay
students in the amount of $850.00. can be submitted that suggests a solution to a real-world rail industry
problem. Note: If you are an undergraduate student who has
For additional details on the scholarship application process and require-
submitted an ASME technical paper for the conference, you are not
ments, please reference the conference website. The ASME RTD Graduate
required to submit an essay, but you are required to submit the under-
and Undergraduate Student Conference Scholarships along with the awards
graduate application to be considered for the undergraduate
for the ‘Best Student Technical Paper’ and ‘Best Undergraduate Student
scholarship. If your technical paper is accepted and you are awarded
Essay’ will be presented at the JRC banquet on Thursday night.
the scholarship, the award will be in the amount of $850.00 USD.
Purpose: Fund travel, lodging, and conference registration expenses for
• The student must complete and return the ASME RTD Undergraduate
scholarship awardees selected to attend the ASME Joint Rail Conference (JRC).
Student Scholarship application and essay to rtdscholar@gmail.com
Each year, the Rail Transportation Division of The American Society of by the deadline specified.
Mechanical Engineers (ASME RTD) hosts the Joint Rail Conference (JRC),
• The student must receive written notification from the ASME RTD
the world’s premier rail transportation technology conference. This event
Scholarship Committee indicating award of the scholarship.
gives rail industry stakeholders the opportunity to exchange ideas and
publish peer-reviewed technical publications addressing some of the most • In order to be issued the scholarship, the student must be registered
critical rail transportation challenges currently facing the industry. for the full conference as a student and must provide a completed
Request for Taxpayer Identification Number and Certification Form
Award Amount: $850.00 USD
(W-9) in PDF format for his/her college/university. The completion of
Application Deadline: January 2017 the form is required for tax purposes and will need to be returned to
the Scholarship Program Chair by the deadline specified. Note: W-9
Forms are not requested until after the scholarship award notifica-
tions have been sent to the students. The completed W-9 form
should indicate tax information for the college/university, not the
student. In addition, only one W-9 Form should be submitted per
college/university. Please also note that immediately following the
JRC conference, lump sum scholarship checks will be mailed to the
college/university, not the students. The college/university will then
be responsible for distributing the scholarship funds accordingly.

In addition to the $850.00 USD undergraduate scholarship award for
reimbursement of travel-related expenses to attend the conference, one
undergraduate student will be selected to receive an additional award for
“Best Essay” based on the quality of his or her essay. Details of the award
will be provided during the conference banquet where the award will be
presented.

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