Payette Sho-Ping Chin Memorial Academic Scholarship

Name: Payette Sho-Ping Chin Memorial Academic Scholarship

Award Amount: $10,000

Information and Eligibility:
The Payette Sho-Ping Chin Memorial Academic Scholarship honors the legacy of Sho‑Ping Chin, FAIA, a pioneering architect and long-time principal at the firm Payette who focused her career on healthcare design, equity in architecture, and mentoring women in the profession. In recognition of her influence and commitment to design excellence, the Architects Foundation has partnered with Payette to offer this award to a woman enrolled in or advancing toward a professional architecture degree. The scholarship both provides substantial financial support and pairs the recipient with a senior mentor at Payette for the scholarship year, helping bridge the gap between academic achievement and professional practice.

This scholarship is tailored to support female architecture students who exhibit leadership, design innovation, and dedication to improving the human experience through architecture. Beyond the monetary award, recipients become part of a network of emerging women designers championed by the Architects Foundation and Payette. The mentorship component gives scholars a chance to gain real-world insight, build professional connections, and deepen their design philosophy in alignment with Sho-Ping Chin’s ideals of inclusive process, design for communities in need, and collaborative leadership.

Eligibility criteria include:

• Gender: Applicants must identify as a woman.
• Citizenship: Must be a U.S. citizen.
• Enrollment Status: Must be a rising third- or fourth-year undergraduate student in a NAAB-accredited architecture program, or a graduate student in such a program.
• Academic Standing: Must have a minimum GPA of 3.0 or equivalent.
• Contact Replicability: Previous recipients are eligible to reapply in subsequent years, provided they meet the eligibility requirements.

Application Requirements:

• A professional résumé showcasing academic achievements, leadership roles, design or research involvement, and any relevant extracurriculars or professional experience.
• Two letters of recommendation from academic or professional mentors who can speak to the applicant’s design talent, innovation, leadership potential, and alignment with the scholarship’s mission.
• A design portfolio containing 5-15 works demonstrating creativity, conceptual clarity, skillful execution, and relevance to architectural design as a medium for human and community betterment.
• An essay of approximately 1,200 words that explores how architecture and architects can improve the human condition and quality of life. The essay should reflect on the applicant’s design philosophy, ambition to contribute to the profession, and how she embodies Sho-Ping Chin’s legacy of mentorship and equity.

Selection Criteria:

• Academic performance and demonstrated progress in a NAAB-accredited architecture degree program.
• Quality and depth of design portfolio reflecting the applicant’s conceptual thinking, technical ability, and design innovation.
• Strength of essay in articulating vision for architecture’s role in improving community well-being, equity, and human experience.
• Leadership potential and commitment to mentoring, diversity, and positive contribution to the architecture profession.

Additional Details:

• The award is paid directly toward educational expenses such as tuition, fees, and materials for recipients enrolled in architecture programs.
• Mentorship through Payette provides professional guidance, exposure to practice environments, networking opportunities, and career development tailored to architecture students.
• Applicants are encouraged to reflect on the profession’s broader impact, especially the empowerment of underrepresented voices in architecture, in their portfolio and essay.

Deadline:

• Application Period: Opens in November and closes in January.
• Award Announcement: Recipients are notified following selection committee review in the spring.

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