The Gonzaga Debate Program has an open membership policy for all GU undergraduates who meet the following critieria:
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Student must be an enrolled full time or degree seeking student in good standing with Gonzaga University.
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Attendance is mandatory at all scheduled practices and meeting.
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Adherence to all squad policies and regulations.
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A minimum GPA of 3.0
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HS debate experience
While membership is available to any undergraduate student meeting these qualifications, continued membership and travel opportunities are based on continuing coaches evaluation.
Students who are interested in debating should contact the team early in the admissions process. All students joining the team will be required to attend the squad retreat which generally begins 7-10 days before classes begin.
If you are interested in joining the team we encourage you to contact the Director of Debate at
Scholarship Opportunities
Each year the team awards incoming freshman partial scholarships to select frosh. These amounts of these vary, although it is generally between 2 and 5K. The division and extension of scholarship funds is at the discretion of the coaching staff with oversight provided by the Chair of the Department of Communication. Incoming students interested in applying for a scholarship must submit the following:
a) A letter (or email) introducing yourself, explaining your goals, your reasons for applying for a scholarship, and what you can bring to the squad.
b) A comprehensive list of all tournaments you attended in high school, including division you competed in, and results. Please only list debate accomplishments.
c) A list of debate institutes you've attended, including dates and lab instructors.
d) Video tape of a round you participated in. This not always necessary and depends on if our coaches have already had the opportunity to watch you or not.
e) Any letters of rec you'd like us to consider from teachers and/or coaches (doesn't have to be your own coach).
You can send these materials to . Tapes can be mailed to Director of Debate, AD Box 20, Gonzaga University, Spokane, Wa. 99258
Scholarship applications wont be accepted after March 15th. We usually make our first round of decisions on January 1st and the remainder on April 1st. Once a scholarship offer is extended you will be given an appropriate amount of time to make your decision.
The following policies and guidelines govern division and acceptance of scholarship funds.
1) Scholarships are merit based and offered based on a number of factors. These include: work ethic, quality of evidence production, team oriented attitude and willingness to learn, continued improvement, success at tournament and previous years record, exhibited qualities of leadership, community service.
2) Receiving a scholarship requires a year long commitment. This means if you fail to meet the criteria the scholarship was based upon, it may be revoked at any time.
3) Receiving a scholarship for a complete academic year does not guaranteed any scholarship at all to apply to the following academic year. At the conclusion of the debate season students must reapply for scholarships for the following year. This will consist of a 1-2 page statement requesting scholarship funds and explaining why the student should receive these. These statements will be due each year on April 15th.
4) Violation of any policy contained in the squad policies is sufficient grounds for revocation of a student’s scholarship. Determination of scholarship revocation is at the discretion of the coaching staff. Notification of this process will be given to the Chair of the Department of Communications and the Dean of Arts and Sciences prior to any decision being made.
