AECOM Academic Scholarship

About this scholarship

The AECOM Academic Scholarship is a $5,000 American Water Works Association Water Equation award for a graduate engineering student developing innovative solutions to improve drinking water in urban communities. The 2027-2028 competition is open now through November 6, 2026. The award is designed for a student whose graduate work connects engineering with the practical drinking-water challenges faced by cities and the water sector. Applicants do not need to be AWWA members, but they must be permanent residents of the United States, Canada, or Mexico under the program-wide eligibility rule. AWWA describes its academic scholarships as competitive and merit based, with GPA carrying weight in review. The portal also requires any recommendation to be received before the closing deadline; academic or professional recommenders who know the applicant’s work are appropriate, while family and personal-friend recommendations are not recognized. Scholarship funds are sent directly to the student’s school by ACH. They may be used for tuition, books, laboratory fees, laboratory equipment, and conference registration, but not for rent, a stipend, or per diem expenses. Applicants create or use an AWWA account and complete the scholarship matching process in the official AwardSpring portal. Incomplete or late files are not sent to the selection committee, and the committee’s final decision cannot be reconsidered.

Eligibility

• Be a graduate student pursuing an engineering degree
• Focus academic or research work on innovative solutions that improve drinking water in urban communities
• Be a permanent resident of the United States, Canada, or Mexico
• Submit a competitive merit-based application with the academic record requested in the AWWA portal
• Arrange for every required recommendation to be submitted by an academic or professional recommender before the deadline
• Complete the matched AECOM scholarship application in AwardSpring by November 6, 2026