Graduate Student Fellowships

Funding Sources

DFCAS Dissertation Completion Fellowship

To facilitate doctoral dissertation completion, the Dodge Family College of Arts and Sciences will award up to 10 Dissertation Completion Fellowships for the 2024-25 Academic year to doctoral students in the final year of their studies—but no later than their 6th year in the program. Applicants must have a current TA appointment within the Dodge Family College of Arts and Sciences, should be in good standing in their programs and must have defended their dissertation proposals or completed any equivalent processes existing in their departments. Students with grant funded GRA appointments may be nominated if their thesis advisor is experiencing or is anticipating a temporary disruption of external funding that will have a substantial adverse impact on the long-term viability of their research program. In such circumstances, applications can be submitted for student funding support for the gap period between the grant expiration date and the start of a confirmed new grant award.

In place of receiving a stipend, the fellowship will provide student funding equivalent to a semester’s pay at their normal rate. This will allow them to focus on dissertation research and writing without loss of revenue for a semester during their last year of study.

For the Dissertation Completion Fellowship awards, the application should include the following information:

A current copy of the applicant’s curriculum vitae including information about research, service, and outreach activities if applicable (maximum 2 single-spaced pages-or the application will be returned without review).
A short abstract of the dissertation (maximum 2 single-spaced pages) that explains the significance and impact of the work in terms accessible to those outside the discipline.
A bibliography containing a list of references that does not exceed one page
A one-page plan for completion which explains which elements of the dissertation are complete and offers a plan and schedule for completing the remaining elements during the academic year this award is made.
A letter of reference from the applicant’s major professor describing the scholarly significance and potential impact of the work. The letter should summarize the status of the project and provide a clear assessment of the applicant’s potential for completing the dissertation during the following academic year. The letter should also provide an estimate regarding the quality of the applicant’s project relative to their peers’ in the program.
An endorsement letter of the applicant’s graduate liaison or academic unit chair with the following content for GTA applications:
On behalf of the Department of ________________I endorse ____________’s application for the Dodge Family College of Arts and Sciences Dissertation Finishing Fellowship. Should _____________ receive the fellowship, the department will relieve them of their instructional duties as a graduate teaching assistant for the____________ semester.)
For GRA applications – A brief statement addressing the timing and cause of interruption of funding for the GRA as well as information on funding continuation.

Applications should be submitted in one PDF document through the online portal by the student's dissertation advisor or the Graduate liaison. The deadline for submissions is March 15, 2024.

Note that the selection committee consists of faculty who are not in the applicant’s department. The student and department must ensure that the application is written for a broader audience. The selection criteria used by the committee to evaluate these applications are as follows:

Basic criteria to consider regarding quality of application

Intellectual merit of proposed project/thesis
o Potential to advance knowledge and understanding within a discipline or across disciplines;
o Quality and appropriateness of the goals of the project.

Broader impact of the proposed activity
o   Benefits to society;
o   Potential for impact on the student (potential to accelerate time to completion, enhanced career development opportunities, potential to enhance quality of research);
o   Value to other scholars, general audiences, or both.

Apply here for the DFCAS Dissertation Completion Fellowship

DFCAS Dissertation Research Fellowships

In addition, to facilitate doctoral dissertation completion, the Dodge Family College of Arts and Sciences will award up to 15 Dissertation Research Fellowships to Ph.D. students in their 3rd, 4th, or 5th year of studies for the 2024-2025 Academic Year. These awards up to $5,000 can be used to support travel and accommodation expenses to conduct research, and purchases of data sets, software and other materials to facilitate research outcomes. Conference travel support is a low priority for this program and any requests should not exceed $1,000..

For the Dissertation Research Fellowships nomination materials must include:

A current copy of the Ph.D. candidate's curriculum vitae (maximum 2 single-spaced pages).
A one-to-two-page research statement prepared by the applicant. This statement should include a detailed description of the applicant's research plan. It should clearly identify the scholarly issues to be addressed and outline the tasks that will be performed to complete the research project as part of their dissertation. If applicable, it should include any early conclusions or preliminary findings.
A bibliography containing a list of references that does not exceed one page
A brief budget/financial statement indicating the proposed use of the professional development funds. The budget justification should provide clear information on how the resources will help facilitate the proposed research, and cost estimates for each necessary component of the budget.
A reference letter prepared by the applicant’s major professor. This letter should speak to the ability of the student to complete the proposed research and the current status of the project. It should also describe the scholarly significance and potential impact of the proposed project, as well as the expected time frame for the applicant to complete their Ph.D. degree.

Applications that exceed the page allocation described in the guidelines will be returned without review. Applications should be submitted in one PDF document through the online portal by the student or the student's dissertation advisor. The deadline for submissions is March 15, 2024..

Note that the selection committee consists of faculty who are not in the applicant’s department. The student and the department must ensure that the application is written for a broader audience. The selection criteria used by the committee to evaluate these applications are as follows:

Basic criteria to consider regarding quality of application

· Intellectual merit of proposed project/thesis

o Potential to advance knowledge and understanding within a discipline or across disciplines;
o Quality and appropriateness of the goals of the project.

· Broader impact of the proposed activity

o   Benefits to society;
o   Potential for impact on the student (potential to accelerate time to completion, enhanced career development opportunities, potential to enhance quality of research);
o   Value to other scholars, general audiences, or both.

· Other criteria
o Appropriateness of budget and justification of resources requested.

Apply for the DFCAS Dissertation Research Fellowship

DFCAS Recruitment Fellowships

To facilitate the recruitment of an excellent and diverse cohort of new graduate students, the Dodge Family College of Arts and Sciences will make about 20 fellowship awards to prospective doctoral students during the 2024 recruitment season. These awards will be in the amount of $5,000 per year per awardee and recipients will hold the title Dodge Family Graduate Fellow. This fellowship will be renewable for up to 5 years, contingent upon satisfactory performance and degree progress. The fellowship must accompany a 0.5 FTE GA position.

For the Recruitment Fellowships nomination materials must include:

1. A 200-250-word statement about the recruiting fellowship nominee that addresses potential for success in your program (based on student performance, research interests and faculty expertise).

2. The student's GPA (undergraduate and postgraduate if the student has completed a Master's degree);

3. A copy of the applicant’s curriculum vitae.

Applications should be submitted by the graduate liaison in one PDF document through the online portal below. The program has four deadlines: February 1^st, February 15^th, February 29^th, March 14^th

Apply for DFCAS Recruitment Fellowship