I totally agree and think that even if these awards aren't going to the "right" people it is still a worthwhile process for all of those involved. I was nominat

I totally agree and think that even if these awards aren't going to the "right" people it is still a worthwhile process for all of those involved. I was nominated by my school for the Goldwater scholarship and also applied to the NSF Graduate Fellowship and found both to be incredibly worthwhile. It wasn't until I wrote (and rewrote) my Goldwater essays that I had a good grasp of what I really wanted to do with life. Sure, at that point I had been doing 'research' and other creative activities, but I had never forced myself to really self-reflect and figure out how my interests come together.