The Graduate School Funding Handbook [Third Edition] 9780812207071

Table of contents :
Contents
Preface to the Third Edition
1. Graduate Degrees and Institutional Financial Aid
2. External Funding
3. Training Fellowships
4. Study, Research, and Teaching Abroad
5. Research Grants
6. Dissertation Fellowships and Grants
7. Postdoctoral Opportunities

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The Graduate School Funding Handbook Third Edition

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The Graduate School Funding Handbook Third Edition

April Vahle Hamel, Ph.D., and Jennifer S. Furlong, Ph.D.

U N I V E R S I T Y O F P E N N S Y LVA N I A P R E S S PHILADELPHIA

Copyright © 2012 April Vahle Hamel All rights reserved. Except for brief quotations used for purposes of review or scholarly citation, none of this book may be reproduced in any form by any means without written permission from the publisher. Published by University of Pennsylvania Press Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104-4112 www.upenn.edu/pennpress Printed in the United States of America on acid-free paper 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Hamel, April Vahle. The graduate school funding handbook / April Vahle Hamel and Jennifer S. Furlong. — 3rd ed. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references. ISBN 978-0-8122-2169-5 (pbk. : alk. paper) 1. Universities and colleges—United States—Graduate work—Finance. 2. Graduate students—Scholars LB2371.4.H35 2012 378.3'30973—dc23 2011025252

Contents

Preface to the Third Edition

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1 Graduate Degrees and Institutional Financial Aid 1 Types of Graduate Degrees 1 Master’s Degrees 1 Doctoral Degrees 2 Combined Degree Programs 3 Certificates 3 Degree Program Enrollment, Time to Degree, Career Status, Cost 3 Institutional Financial Aid 5 Types of University Financial Aid 6 External Fellowships and Grants 11 Resources 12 2 External Funding 13 Questions to Ask When Considering a Fellowship Application 14 Where Should You Look to Find Information About Fellowships and Grants? 15 Types of External Funding 19 Individual Training Fellowships 19 Study, Teaching, or Research-Abroad Fellowships 19 Small Research Grants 19 Dissertation Fellowships 20 Postdoctoral Fellowships 20 Grant and Fellowship Application Tips 21 Proposal Writing Advice 23

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How to Get Good References 26 Resources 27

3 Training Fellowships 28 General Information 29 General Application Advice 29 Specific Fellowship Opportunities 31 American Association of University Women (AAUW) International Fellowships and Selected Professions Fellowships 31 Ford Foundation Predoctoral Fellowships 35 Graduate Degrees for Minorities in Engineering and Science (GEM) Fellowships 37 Hertz Foundation Applied Science Fellowships 39 Hispanic Scholarship Fund General College Scholarships 41 Jacob K. Javits Fellowships for the Arts, Humanities, Social Sciences 42 NASA Graduate Student Researchers Program Fellowships 45 National Defense Science Engineering Graduate (NDSEG) Fellowships 46 National Physical Science Consortium (NPSC) Graduate Fellowships in the Physical Sciences 48 National Science Foundation (NSF) Graduate Research Fellowships in Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics (STEM) 50 Paul and Daisy Soros Fellowships for New Americans 52 U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science (SC) Science Graduate Fellowships (SCGF) 54 U.S. Department of State Thomas R. Pickering Graduate Foreign Affairs Fellowships 56 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Star Graduate Fellowships in Environmental Studies 57 4

Study, Research, and Teaching Abroad 60 General Information 61 Application Advice 61 Specific Fellowship Opportunities 63 British Marshall Scholarships 64 Deutscher Akademischer Austausch Dienst (DAAD) 66 Fulbright (IIE) Grants for Graduate Study, Graduate Research, English Teaching Worldwide 69 Fulbright-Hays Doctoral Dissertation Research Abroad 73 Institute of Turkish Studies Summer Language Study Grants for Graduate Students in Social Sciences or Humanities 75

Contents

National Security Education Program (NSEP) David L. Boren Fellowships for International Language and Research 77 Organization of American States (OAS) Graduate Academic Scholarships 79 Rhodes Scholarships for Study at Oxford University 82 Rotary Foundation Ambassadorial Scholarships 84 Other Study-Abroad Fellowship Programs and Goals 86

5 Research Grants 88 General Information 89 Application Advice 90 Specific Grant Opportunities 91 American Bar Association Janet D. Steiger Fellowships 91 American Museum of Natural History (AMNH) Research Grants 92 American Philosophical Society Lewis and Clark Fund for Exploration and Field Research, Exploration and Field Research in Astrobiology 94 Charles A. and Anne Morrow Lindbergh Foundation Grants 96 Deutscher Akademischer Austausch Dienst (DAAD) Research Grants 98 Explorers Club Exploration Fund Grants 99 Geological Society of America (GSA) Graduate Student Research Grants 101 Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) Research Training Fellowships for Medical, Dental, Veterinary Students 102 Sigma Xi Grants-in-Aid of Research 104 White House and Presidential Libraries Travel and Research Grants 105 6 Dissertation Fellowships and Grants 121 General Information 122 Application Advice 123 Specific Grant Opportunities 124 American Association of University Women (AAUW) American Dissertation Fellowships 125 American Education Research Association (AERA) Minority Dissertation Fellowships in Education Research 126 American Council of Learned Societies (ACLS) Dissertation Fellowships 128 Andrew Mellon Dissertation Completion 128 East European Studies 129 Henry Luce American Art 130 Ford Foundation Dissertation Fellowships 132

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Foundation for Jewish Culture Maurice and Marilyn Cohen Fund for Doctoral Dissertation Fellowships in Jewish Studies 133 Harry Frank Guggenheim Foundation Dissertation Fellowships for Research in the Areas of Violence, Aggression, and Dominance 135 Kress Foundation History of Art Dissertation Research Travel Fellowships 136 National Science Foundation (NSF) Doctoral Dissertation Research Improvement Grants 138 Social Science Research Council (SSRC) International Dissertation Research Fellowships (IDRF) 140 Spencer Foundation Dissertation Year Fellowships for Improvement of Education 141 U.S. Institute of Peace Jennings Randolph Peace Scholarship Dissertation Program 143 Wenner-Gren Dissertation Fieldwork Grants for Anthropology 144 Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation Charlotte W. Newcombe Doctoral Dissertation Year Fellowships in Ethical and Religious Values 146 Other Dissertation Fellowships and Goals 147

7 Postdoctoral Opportunities 154 Jennifer S. Furlong General Information 155 General Application Advice 157 The Curriculum Vitae 159 Recommendations 159 Other Written Materials 160 Evaluating Opportunities 161 The Bottom Line 162 Specific Postdoctoral Opportunities 162 Specific Postdoctoral Opportunities in Science and Engineering 163 National Science Foundation Postdoctoral Programs 164 Arctic Research Opportunities 165 Astronomy and Astrophysics Postdoctoral Fellowships (AAPF) 165 International Research Fellowship Program 165 Earth Sciences Postdoctoral Fellowships (EAR-PF) 165 Mathematical Sciences Postdoctoral Research Fellowships 166 Minority Postdoctoral Research Fellowships and Follow-up Research Starter Grants (MPRF) 166 NSF Fellowships for Transformative Computational Science Using CyberInfrastructure (CI TraCS) 166 Postdoctoral Research Fellowships in Biology (PRFB) 166 Postdoctoral Fellowships Polar Regions Research 166

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Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award (NRSA) Individual Postdoctoral Fellowships (F32) 167 Medical Informatics Research Training 169 Mentored Research Scientist Development Award (K01) 169 National Cancer Institute (NCI) Career Development Grants 170 Research Supplements for Underrepresented Minority Individuals in Postdoctoral Training 170 Supplements to Promote Reentry into Biomedical and Behavioral Research Careers 170 AAAS Science and Engineering Fellowship Program 170 Cancer Research Award—Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation 172 Helen Hay Whitney Foundation Postdoctoral Research Fellowships 174 Irvington Institute Fellowship Program 176 Jane Coffin Childs Memorial Fund for Medical Research Fellowship 177 NRC Research Associateship Program 179 Specific Postdoctoral Opportunities in the Social Sciences and Humanities 181 U.S. Fulbright Scholar Program 182 Mellon Postdoctoral Fellowships in the Humanities 184 Individual Advanced Research Opportunities for U.S. Scholars in Central and Eastern Europe 185 National Academy of Education Spencer Postdoctoral Fellowship 186 Smithsonian Postdoctoral Fellowships 187 Postdoctoral Fellowships and Advanced Research Grants—Social Science Research Council 189 ACLS Fellowships 190 Ford Foundation Postdoctoral Fellowships for Minorities 192 American Fellowships, Postdoctoral Research Leave Fellowships—American Association of University Women 194 National Humanities Center 195 Postdoctoral Fellowship in Academic Libraries—Council on Library and Information Resources 197 Kluge Fellowships—Library of Congress 199

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Preface to the Third Edition

This third edition of The Graduate School Funding Handbook contains new and updated information. All the grants, fellowships, and scholarships offered by the government and private institutions have been thoroughly researched, revised, and brought up to date. Some funding opportunities listed in the first and second editions have been removed because they are no longer offered, while others have been reviewed and rewritten. Information on new awards has been added.

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Chapter 1

Graduate Degrees and Institutional Financial Aid

Types of Graduate Degrees In 2009, more than 1.75 million students were enrolled in graduate certificate, education specialist, master’s, and doctoral programs in the arts and sciences within the United States. In addition, another 190,000 students were in M.B.A. and other related business programs; 65,000 were in medical school; and 150,000 were busy pursuing law-school degrees. Of currently enrolled students, 90 percent can be found in traditional, on-campus programs at established master’s and doctoral degree-granting universities, while the rest participate in some form of distance learning over the Internet or by mail. Graduate programs have been classified into general categories described below.

Master’s Degrees Applied/Professional Master’s Programs

Applied/professional master’s programs require one to three years of course work and are meant to prepare people for careers in such professions as business (M.B.A.), teaching (M.A.T.), and social work (M.S.W.). Many professional master’s programs require an internship or other hands-on experience as part of the curriculum. Experience after college and

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before graduate school is highly desirable, which means scholars in these disciplines may be older, returning students. Research Master’s Programs

Research master’s programs require one to two years of course work and are designed to enhance research experience begun in undergraduate school. Some programs require a long research paper called a thesis, and most expect successful completion of written or oral examinations. Most research master’s programs (M.A., M.S.) in the arts and sciences fall into this category. Creative Master’s Programs

Creative master’s programs last two to three years and are intended to expand on creative work started in undergraduate school or through experience. Painters, musicians, poets, and artists of all sorts are attracted to programs in fine arts (M.F.A.), music (M.M.), writing and poetry (M.F.A.W.), and others. Creative master’s programs usually require a special project, such as a book of poetry, a recital, or an exhibition, as part of the curriculum.

Doctoral Degrees Applied/Professional Doctoral Programs

Applied/professional doctoral programs, such as those found in business (D.B.A.), medicine (M.D., O.D.), law (J.D.), and education (Ed.D.), like their master’s counterparts, are designed to develop a corps of new professionals who apply their skills in a hands-on style. While some may teach or do research in college or university settings, most intend to practice outside an academic setting. The length of study ranges from three to five years and usually requires postdoctoral experience or passing a national or state licensing examination, or both. Research Doctoral Programs

Research doctoral programs culminate in the awarding of the Ph.D. or Sc.D. degree. Most research doctoral degrees are awarded in arts and sciences and in engineering, but they are also available in business, social work, and other professional areas. Students enrolled in these programs usually intend to do research in higher education, industry, or government, or they aim to teach and do research at the college or university level.

Graduate Degrees and Institutional Financial Aid 3

Combined Degree Programs Combining an applied with a research degree program is common. A medical student may also pursue a Ph.D. in a biomedical area or a law student a master’s in an arts and sciences field. Usually, applications are submitted to both programs simultaneously, and the applicant must be accepted to both.

Certificates Certificates may be required to satisfy state or other agency requirements. Teachers in public education need certificates to teach, do counseling, and administrate. Other certificates may not lead to licensing or a degree but may be a university’s way of recognizing the acquisition of a skill set or information in a particular area.

Degree Program Enrollment, Time to Degree, Career Status, Cost Everyone interested in enrolling in a graduate program should investigate four areas. The first is degree program enrollment. The number of openings in graduate-school programs rises and falls from year to year and decade to decade. In 2008, the American Association of Medical Colleges projected that the available slots in medical schools will increase 21 percent by 2012. That is an increase of 3,400 students per year. Since the passage of the 2010 federal health-care bill, it would not be surprising to see that percentage go even higher. This increase means that the chances of getting into medical school currently and in the near future have improved over previous years. The second important consideration in looking at graduate programs is time to degree. How long will it take to get a degree? While most professional programs have standard lengths of time that almost all students adhere to, such as three years of law school and four of medical school, time to degree in other programs is not so clearly defined. A 2010 article in the New York Times Education section reported the following: “The median age of a recipient of a humanities doctorate is 35, with an average education-related debt of $23,315.”

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Average Time to Completion (Doctoral Degree) in Each Field, 2008 Engineering Physical Sciences Life Sciences Social Sciences Humanities Other Fields Education

6.7 years 6.7 years 6.9 years 7.7 years 9.3 years 9.3 years 12.7 years

Source: Patricia Cohen, “The Long-Haul Degree,” New York Times, Education Life, April 18, 2010, 28–29.

Taking a long time to get a doctoral degree is understandable in certain fields. Anthropology students usually spend years in foreign countries doing research, while education students tend to get their degrees while attending school part-time. But how do you explain nine years or more to finish a doctoral degree in English? Make sure to check the time to degree in your chosen field. Ask how long it takes people to graduate in specific programs at specific universities. Then ask yourself whether it makes sense for you. The third consideration for prospective graduate students is career status. How many jobs are out there in your chosen profession? Can you expect employment as soon as you graduate? Will you have to secure a postdoctoral position before entry into a permanent position? While we can predict more positions for doctors in family practice based on current data and the passage of health-care reform, other fields do not have such a rosy outlook. Humanities is one such area. The Modern Language Association (2010), a professional organization, projects that next year there will be fewer jobs for those with doctorates in English or foreign language than in any of the past thirty-five years. Full-time academic jobs in English have been hard to find before this prediction. Cost is the last ingredient. The next section goes into detail about financial aid, stipends, loans, and other ways of paying for graduate school. When analyzed along with time to degree and career status, cost should predict the amount of loans accrued over the length of the degree, how quickly a job can be gotten, and what the loan payment schedule will be. You do the math. Graduate school requires a significant investment of time and money. No matter how committed you may be to a field, be informed and be realistic about whether it makes sense for you.

Graduate Degrees and Institutional Financial Aid 5

Institutional Financial Aid Money offered to graduate students from the universities they attend is allocated based on merit, need, or a combination of the two. In general, most graduate students qualify according to need because they normally do not own property, are emancipated from (no longer dependents of) their parents, and have low or nonexistent incomes. Professional schools like law, medicine, and business offer financial aid based on need usually in the form of loans. Some merit-based fellowship money is given to the top recruits. Arts and sciences master’s and doctoral programs offer merit- and needbased fellowships and loans. Master’s and doctoral students can expect tuition waivers and fellowship stipends, with a greater share of the support going to doctoral students. Within a university, it is not unusual for programs to have different tuition costs and a variety of funding programs. At Washington University in St. Louis in 2010–11, for example, tuition is $43,420 in the law school, $31,440 in social work, and $39,400 in the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. Be sure to carefully investigate the financial-aid programs of all schools before applying, after offers have been made, and before accepting admission. In general, state universities have lower tuition costs, while private universities have higher tuition costs. When coming to a public school from outside the state, second-year tuition is usually lower than the first year because residency has been established. Tuition cost at Harvard in 2010–11 is $34,976; at the University of California, Berkeley, in 2010–11 first-year nonresident tuition and fees are $14,025 more than resident tuition and fees. Cost of living, like tuition, can vary from town to town. Harvard and the University of California, for example, give a clear picture of what the total expenses are in Cambridge and Berkeley, respectively, including food, housing, books, health insurance, and miscellaneous. If a program does not make those figures readily available, a call should be made to the dean’s office. No one should go to graduate school without a solid idea of complete expenses over the total course of a degree program. An idea of total costs of a degree program should be weighed against passion for a subject area, ability to afford school in terms of both time and money, pursuing a field of study, and the potential contribution the degree will make to career goals. For most people, graduate school is a ticket to a

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desired employment path. The career destination must be thoroughly investigated for financial feasibility and personal satisfaction before enrollment.

Types of University Financial Aid Tuition Waivers Tuition waivers (tuition remission or tuition scholarships) reduce the amount of tuition a student has to pay. No money changes hands, and there is no payback expected. Be sure to inquire about tuition waivers in all programs and all fields.

Fellowships Fellowships are actual dollars paid to students in addition to tuition waivers. They are given to support housing, food, books, and supplies, and are often called stipends. There is no payback requirement, nor is there a work requirement. Most fellowships come from within the university but may also be awarded through individual student application to an outside agency, such as the National Science Foundation (NSF). These external fellowships are portable and may be used at most universities in the United States (see Chapter 2). Many graduate schools give fellowships for the first year of study and, for doctoral students, the first and last or dissertation year. After the first year, students are supported through assistantships that require work within the university setting. Fellowships stipends are not standardized and vary from university to university. At the University of California, Berkeley, fellowships for 2010–11 ranged from $18,600 to $26,000 for the academic year.

Assistantships Assistantships require some performance of duties in exchange for a stipend. The stipend is usually larger than would ordinarily be paid for the type of work done. There are three forms of assistantships: teaching, research, and graduate. They are found in the greatest numbers in engineering and arts and sciences

Graduate Degrees and Institutional Financial Aid 7

programs but exist in other fields as well. Depending on the department and discipline, both master’s and doctoral students may be eligible for this funding.

Teaching Assistantships Teaching assistantships (TAs) are usually offered after the completion of the first year of graduate study. Depending on the program, a student may work from five to twenty hours a week assisting a professor with classes or independently teaching a course or course section. The former is more common than the latter. TAs supervise undergraduate laboratory sections, run discussion groups, assign and grade assignments, proctor and grade examinations, drill language students, tutor, and lecture. In many public and some private universities, TAs handle a great deal of the instructional load, especially in large public institutions with serious financial constraints. The use of large numbers of TAs has been the object of intense criticism, and charges of overworking and exploiting graduate students are common. What Is the Purpose of the TA Experience?

In the best programs, students receive valuable teacher training and experience, essential skills for those heading toward a career in education. In the worst scenarios, little instruction is offered, not much about teaching is learned, and the TA is simply a grunt for the department. How Much Time Is Spent Being a TA?

This is a question every potential graduate student should ask if that is the educational trajectory. The answer is not simple and is highly programmatic. In many areas, some of the sciences, for example, the TA experience is fleeting, involving perhaps a semester or a year, five to seven hours a week. In the humanities and social sciences, the years and hours per week spent as a TA tend to be much higher. English, history, and foreign-language students may put in twelve to twenty hours a week as teaching assistants for two or three years. Talking to current TAs while interviewing for admission to a graduate program is very important. TAs: Employees, Union Members, or Students?

In some state and private universities, TAs are considered employees first and students second and may be unionized. In the 1960s and early

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1970s, efforts to unionize graduate-student assistants first happened at public universities in the eastern United States. The movement spread to other, primarily public, universities throughout the country. After a National Labor Relations Board ruling in the 1970s, few unions were formed until the 1990s. In the late 1990s, the TAs in the University of California system unionized, with the last group of graduate TAs joining in 2006 at the University of California, Merced, campus. When TAs see themselves as overworked, underpaid lackeys without benefits, they may unionize, strike, or demonstrate for improved working conditions, better teacher training, benefits, and respect. It is important to know how TAs are viewed when applying to graduate school. Every prospective student should check to see whether there is serious TA unrest before accepting an offer of admission. These can be distracting issues that poison an atmosphere and discourage collegiality. TA Training

Not so long ago, TAs were untrained and at the mercy of their faculty leaders. Happily, serious TA training has become the rule rather than the exception at reputable universities. Training programs vary and can include pre-registration orientations and workshops, ongoing seminars, videotaped practice lecturing, handbooks, and much more. Departments have also devised programs to improve TA capabilities. This is another important area to investigate when applying to graduate programs. What Are the Pros and Cons of Being a TA?

Many observers believe that the TA experience is a beneficial, intellectual segment that adds important socialization and skill-building components to graduate-student life. TAs can feel more integrated into the department, more comfortable with faculty, and more respected by undergraduates. In addition, a well-trained TA is potentially a better future professor. However, when TAs are overworked, bullied, and disrespected, the time to degree can be longer. Unrelenting teaching duties year in and year out can result in several detrimental outcomes. First, balancing study with teaching obligations can be difficult. Second, tired, discouraged students can do poor work or no work toward their degree. Third, they can become angry with the department or administration and distracted from their personal, educational goals. The ideal situation for a doctoral student is a work-free fellowship the first

Graduate Degrees and Institutional Financial Aid 9

year, a reasonable teaching assistantship the next two years, and a work-free dissertation fellowship to degree completion.

Research Assistantships Research assistantships are found primarily in departments where faculty members have research grants that include support for master’s and doctoral students, postdoctoral scholars, and research associates. Research assistantships are more common in the natural sciences, engineering, and social sciences. Grants from the National Institutes of Health, National Science Foundation, Department of Education, and other large entities fund laboratory studies and other forms of research that in turn employ research assistants. Research assistants work in labs in numerous capacities, participate in social-science research, and are involved in collaborative projects with faculty and postdoctoral scholars. Time to degree is generally fairly short in most of these fields, and in many cases the assistantship experience affords students time to focus on their own research interests, thus facilitating rather than impeding the march to graduation.

Graduate Assistantship The graduate assistantship is a generic term for students who are assigned to perform all sorts of tasks that do not readily fit into the TA or researchassistantship category. Graduate assistants may spend time working in the graduate-school office compiling admission statistics, collating external funding information, or assisting in policy development. In the best of all worlds, a graduate assistant works in an area that enhances his or her academic activities. A creative-writing student might work on a literary newsletter, or a psychology student might assist in the student-counseling center.

College Work-Study Program The federal government’s College Work-Study Program funds are available to graduate students as well as undergraduates. Wages can be no lower than current federal minimum-wage requirements. Employment is not necessarily

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related to a student’s academic interest or curriculum. Money is often available to departments where graduate students may be found doing clerical jobs. Demonstrated financial need, possession of a social security number, U.S. citizenship, permanent residence, or eligible non-citizen status, such as that from the Republic of the Marshall Islands or the Federated States of Micronesia, for example, are eligibility requirements. Eligible students not offered fellowships or assistantships should always inquire about work-study opportunities.

Loans Loans are more readily available to U.S. citizens and permanent residents. Money can be borrowed under various federal programs. Getting a loan, like getting college work-study, requires completing forms. Loan forgiveness and repayment programs are available in many professional degree programs. Harvard Law School, for example, has a Low-Income Protection Plan that offers loan repayment assistance to graduates who “devote their careers to public service work as government attorneys, human rights activists, champions of civil rights, and advocates for traditionally underserved populations.” The idea is to help those who want to enter low-salary, community-service professions but who incur large graduate-school debt. Prospective graduate students should spend serious time calculating their undergraduate debt and pending graduate-school expenses against their postgraduate earning potential. There is nothing more discouraging than a debt of $200,000 or more set against a low-earning career. Students interested in academic jobs, such as those in college or university Englishliterature, philosophy, history, and foreign-language departments, can expect in 2011 to earn average beginning annual salaries in the mid-$50,000 range, with eventual promotion to full professor in the $80,000 range (see the Chronicle of Higher Education Faculty Data). According to the National Association for Law Placement, median-level annual salaries for lawyers entering public civil legal services is $40,000, and only $50,000 with eleven to fifteen years of experience. In 2008, law-school graduates who entered law firms employing 101 lawyers or more earned $115,000 their first year. There are salary schedules for every profession. Be sure to consult the career earnings statistics for your field.

Graduate Degrees and Institutional Financial Aid 11

Financial Checklist A financial checklist can help determine whether graduate school makes economic sense now or in the future. Here are questions to consider: How much debt have I accumulated from undergraduate school? Would it be prudent to work for a time and reduce that debt load? How long is it going to take to get a graduate degree? What will it cost? Will the university provide tuition waivers, fellowships, or assistantships? How much money will I need to borrow? Will going to a public university reduce my costs? Will the company for which I work contribute tuition money? Will the government pick up some of the costs with a work trade-off? Is the postgraduate job market strong? Can I make enough money after graduation to comfortably pay off debts? Will family help with financial support? Can I work part-time or full-time and go to school? Finding the answers to these questions is time-consuming but really worthwhile. There is no right answer, only your answer.

External Fellowships and Grants External funding comes from outside the university and is awarded to individual students. Fellowships and grants come from federal and state government agencies and private foundations. Sometimes the award money is paid directly to the student; in other instances, it is funneled through the university. Under this system, the student gets an application, usually from the agency or foundation, fills it out, and submits it directly to the agency (sometimes the graduate school will facilitate the process). In most cases, the agency or foundation directly notifies the student about the award. Since many awards are portable, they can be used at a variety of schools or for study, research, and teaching abroad.

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Beginning in the second semester of junior year, undergraduates who have an interest in studying abroad or in graduate school should contact an adviser on campus, visit the career library, and search online for fellowships and grants. First, determination should be made whether there is funding for the study area. The NSF offers hundreds of three-year fellowships for study in engineering, science, and social science. This fellowship pays the student’s tuition plus an annual stipend. Students in their last year of college and first year of graduate school are eligible to apply. Underrepresented groups are encouraged to enter graduate programs through fellowships offered by the Ford Foundation, the Hispanic Scholarship Fund, NASA, and others. Members of minority groups and women in underrepresented fields should be alert to these opportunities. In some cases, money is available through a parent’s employer. Some universities give tuition benefits to faculty and staff children, although this is more common for undergraduate study. Chapter 2 examines the various types of external types of funding available for graduate study; study, research, and teaching abroad; and postdoctoral work. Chapters 3 through 7 examine in detail specific fellowships and grants from the federal government and private foundations and agencies.

Resources Federal Work-Study Program. Available online at http://www2.ed.gov/ programs/fws/. Free Application for Federal Student Aid. 2010. Available online at www .fafsa.com. Gourman, Jack, The Gourman Report: A Rating of Graduate and Professional Programs in American and International Universities. National Education Standards, 1996. Graduate School Tips. 2011. Available online at GradSchoolTips.com. PhDs.org. 2011. Available online at phds.org. U.S. News and World Report. Best Graduate Schools 2012: www.usnews .com. U.S. News and World Report. Online reports for Business Schools, Education Schools, Engineering Schools, Health Schools, Law Schools, Medical Schools, Social Science and Humanities Schools, Science Schools.

Chapter 2

External Funding

Graduate students receive most of their funding from the institutions in which they enroll. Internal funding is financial aid offered to applicants or enrolled students by or through a university to which they are applying or in which they have enrolled. In Chapter 1, we discussed various forms of internal, university funding in detail. Monies from outside the university are called external funds and include support from government agencies, private industry, and nonprofits. The distinction between internal and external funds is not always clear. For example, training grants from the Department of Education called Graduate Assistance in the Areas of National Need (GAANN) are awarded directly to an academic department. A biomedical department, for example, then recruits students who receive GAANN stipends. The money is external, but it is filtered through the department. Because the student did not apply as an individual to the Department of Education but was the recipient of a departmentally initiated effort, the funding is classified as internal. For our purposes, external funds are those grants or fellowships that require you to fill out an application that is sent directly to a government agency, private corporation, or nonprofit organization. The university may facilitate the process and sign off on the application, but the student is the prime mover. Students in the sciences apply for National Science Foundation (NSF) or GEM (National Consortium for Graduate Degrees for Minorities in Engineering and Science) fellowships, while those in the social sciences, arts,

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and humanities pursue the Javits and a cross-section of undergraduate and graduate students submit funding requests for Rhodes, Marshall, and Boren study-abroad scholarships.

Questions to Ask When Considering a Fellowship Application Why Should I Bother to Apply for External Funding if University Stipends Are Available? This question is certainly the most asked. Why should you bother spending valuable time pursuing a Javits, NSF, or other external opportunity if your university is going to give you a tuition waiver and a stipend, or both, or if your parents are willing to fund your experience abroad? First, for those applying to graduate school, winning an award like an NSF fellowship is practically a guaranteed admission ticket to the university and program of your choice. Nothing is absolute, but this comes close. Second, getting the first external fellowship or grant bodes well for winning future such awards. For those heading for doctoral degrees, grants may be an important part of career success. Third, when writing a thesis or dissertation, the application process can help define the project. And an external dissertation grant is likely to be matched by the university for a second year of research or writing. The more outside money you get, the more inside money you are likely to get. Fourth, there is no better career credential no matter what professional path is taken. The cachet obtained from a year abroad with a Fulbright grant or study supported by an NSF fellowship is golden for a lifetime.

Should You Apply for a Fellowship or Grant? Find out whether it is the accepted practice in your field. In medicine, for example, there are few training grants available. But for those combining an M.D. with a Ph.D., tuition waivers and stipend support are the rule. Next, look at your academic credentials. Some fellowships are driven by undergraduate grades and test scores. Javits, Rhodes, Marshall, and some other scholarships are not worth spending time on without a superior record. As a student progresses through graduate school, however, grades are

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important, but research quality, writing skills, and faculty support become more important. If a postgraduate career path is enhanced or determined by the ability to secure external funding, then the sooner the first award is won, the better. In the field of anthropology in particular, outside money to conduct research around the world is an important ingredient to research and professional success.

Should Every Ph.D. Student in All Fields Investigate External Money? Clearly, some fields are more dependent on a continuous flow of funding from outside the university, and have a greater number of financial resources. Nonetheless, money is available in all fields. English and history students can secure travel grants to do research either abroad or in libraries across the United States. Numerous research awards are available to science, social science, medical, and law students. In my own case, as a second-year doctoral student in American studies, I won a sizable state grant to study nineteenth-century German-American rural architecture. My eventual dissertation project centered on the description and political-cultural analysis of an urban area where historical buildings had been removed and an enormous monument constructed. So the year I spent recording German rural building styles for the state was beneficial both academically and financially.

Where Should You Look to Find Information About Fellowships and Grants? In the past decade, the availability of information has shifted from paper brochures and notices to online information. Online searching can make it much easier to find specific information quickly, but it is important to remain on guard against outdated postings and be meticulous and thorough in your research.

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Publications Books, pamphlets, and brochures are not as abundant as they once were. Peterson’s Guides, for example, which used to dominate bookstore shelves, have been redone and allocated to subscription websites.

Online Searching This is the primary source used by students to locate and review funding opportunities. Beyond going to a generic search engine, such as Google, and entering words and phrases, two subscription searching tools are available to most people looking for funding from governments, private enterprise, or nonprofit organizations. The first is called IRIS and is a grant-fellowship website based at the University of Illinois. Started in the 1980s, this site is an especially good place to hunt for research grants. Most large universities subscribe to IRIS, and searching is usually available to students. Information found on this website is limited, but it provides enough information to determine which specific funding sites to pursue. The second online subscription site is that provided by the Foundation Center. In the past, the Foundation Center disseminated information via publications. While some books are still available, most information is now accessed through the center’s website. A college or university may or may not subscribe to Foundation Center information. Local libraries, however, do subscribe. Even in remote places, Foundation Center information is available, and, in some libraries, a tutorial is provided by the staff. Be sure to get this training if available. There are five Foundation Centers in the United States, and they are listed in the resource section at the end of this chapter. The Chronicle of Higher Education web page has a forum where people trade information about finding fellowships and grants. It is a good resource for free information. The Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance is the federal government’s compendium of information for all grants and fellowships offered to citizens, nonprofit organizations, and corporations in the United States. Access to the web catalog is free of charge, and, although the website requires some navigation, all federal government information is located here. The websites for funding sources, such as that for the National Science Foundation and the Woodrow Wilson Foundation, are founts of reliable

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information. Here you will find deadline, eligibility, and funding status along with other information, including applications for a specific fellowship or grant. While some sites are well organized and extremely helpful, some are less user friendly. On-campus resources abound and should be used. First and most important to a funding search is faculty. In departments where grants are a constant source of money, faculty can be counted on to know the most relevant fellowships and grants available in their disciplines. As students progress through graduate school into the postdoctoral years, advice from professors is essential. Department administrators are also great sources of grant and fellowship information. Often a departmental staff member has responsibility for all external funding and is an excellent resource for students. Sigma Xi fellowship information, for example, is often located in a department office, such as chemistry. Undergraduate, graduate school, library, career center, and study-abroad offices usually have people with whom to consult when looking for funding. Undergraduate deans frequently have responsibility for such study-abroad grants as the Rhodes and the Marshall. Graduate-school staff may administrate fellowships like the Fulbright-Hays. Libraries may contain online databases for grants, such as IRIS, or other grant resources, such as book collections. Career centers may have specialists who concentrate on postgraduate opportunities for graduate students. Columbia University, the University of Pennsylvania, and Harvard University all have career-center staff with expertise in academic careers and postdoctoral positions. Many colleges and universities have a study-abroad office where counselors help students negotiate Fulbright, Rotary, and Boren fellowships. It is very important to exhaust every funding-information resource on your campus. Administrators and faculty as well as students who have been awarded external monies are usually willing to share funding information and application-writing advice.

Up-to-Date Information and Deadlines The most current information is found on websites, in published fliers and brochures, and in application packets. For opportunities orchestrated on campus, such as the Rhodes, Fulbright, and Marshall scholarships, a campus administrator is the most informative. Some information found in books,

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such as deadlines, must be double-checked. Online information must be checked as well to make sure the information is not old. When in doubt, call the funding agency. Some fellowships and grants change administrative agencies from time to time, so again make sure you are not looking at last year’s data. Some fellowships change their subject or geographical interest. Deadlines are also best obtained from the website, an on-campus administrator, or the flier. Deadlines change from year to year and must be doublechecked, especially if you are browsing information early with application intentions a year or so in the future. If a deadline is coming up and you are having trouble getting an application, call the agency. Not every website works well, and some applications are actual paper copies that are distributed not online but by snail mail. If the process is not going well, ask an administrator for help.

Application Forms Downloading application forms from the website is the standard method, although some forms must be obtained through a department or university office. Be very sure that the application form you get is current. If you are looking at an application after the deadline has passed but before the new application is posted online, try to find an outdated one somewhere on campus to get an idea of what is involved. Sometimes you have to register online for a copy of an application and then wait for an email allowing you to access the document. Some applications are very simple, while others are complex and demanding. It is always beneficial to read the application form as soon as possible in order to evaluate the time required to complete it, the number of people who might be needed as references, the essential pieces of information wanted, and the scope of the project you might have to describe. One look at the requirements could mean that your application needs to be deferred for a year or more, or indicate that the fellowship would not be right for you. For competitions processed by the college or university, applications may be available online but must pass through an evaluation and selection process on campus first. Your administrator will help you through that process.

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Types of External Funding Individual training fellowships, such as those offered by the National Science Foundation, the U.S. Department of Education, and the Mellon Foundation, are examples of scholarships offered to senior-level undergraduate students who intend to go to graduate school and to first-year graduate students. These awards usually cover tuition and include stipends for living expenses, books, health insurance, and transportation to campus. Such fellowships are portable, which means they can be used at any accredited university. Multiple years of support are often the rule with these awards, and they are prestigious for the student, the undergraduate college, and the graduate program in which they are used. Students with exceptional grades and test scores, students in underrepresented groups, and women are the focus. These fellowships are highly competitive, often with thousands of people applying for individual training awards. Students are generally interested in study, teaching, or research-abroad fellowships at three points in their academic careers. The first is during their undergraduate years when they go abroad for a summer, semester, or academic year. Second is the year after undergraduate graduation, and third is during graduate school, for language training and dissertation research. Many fellowships and grants are available for all those points of interest, starting with awards offered by the Explorers Club and continuing to the Fulbright, Rotary, Fulbright-Hays, Boren, and others. For any study-abroad funding, getting an early start is elemental. Almost all colleges and universities have information and advisers tuned to these opportunities. The potential of winning an award is good. While academic credentials drive some fellowships, interesting projects are the focus of others. Small research grants are awarded to students at all levels in all programs. While they are more likely to be found in the sciences and social sciences, it is possible to receive them in all fields. They fall into three categories: exploratory, ongoing research, and library research grants. Exploratory grants are meant to encourage the development of ideas. A research project in the embryonic stage that requires funds for preliminary surveys, laboratory research, or beginning fieldwork is the focus of this type of support. The grants are usually small, ranging from $1,000 to $5,000. Ongoing research grants are just what they sound like: they keep a project going. The initial work is done, but more money is needed for further research or fieldwork. Library research

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grants are offered by libraries and museums and encourage students to travel to collections for archival study. Most of the presidential libraries offer grants to travel to their collections. The American Museum of Natural History and the Smithsonian Institution also offer grants to travel to various sites, both within the United States and abroad. Dissertation fellowships are monies set aside to fund dissertation research and writing. The National Science Foundation offers dissertation improvement grants to students, as does the American Association of University Women. Dissertation grants have a large range of purposes, including support for living expenses while engaged in research or writing. The FulbrightHays award, for example, finances dissertation activities outside of the United States in such non-Western countries as Turkey. Dissertation grants are available for purchasing or renting equipment, copying and mailing surveys, collating information, and all sorts of other activities associated with doctoral dissertation work. In some cases, dissertation funding is offered to large groups of people who are, for example, members of underrepresented groups. The Ford Foundation Dissertation Fellowships is such a program. Other dissertation grants are subject oriented. The Harry Frank Guggenheim Fellowships, for example, support dissertation research in the areas of violence and aggression. Grants for underrepresented and specially defined groups are available to people of color and certain ethnic backgrounds, the disabled, and women in science. African Americans, Hispanics, Native Americans, and women are highly targeted groups within this category. Postdoctoral fellowships have become more prevalent in recent years. The postdoc is a transitional period wedged between graduate school and a permanent job. When the economy is weak and the number of permanent jobs is reduced, more postdoctoral opportunities may be available. People holding postdoctoral fellowships often complain they are neither student nor faculty. This limbo has led to the unionization of postdoctoral fellows on some campuses. In 2010, some three hundred postdoctoral researchers on three University of Massachusetts campuses joined the United Autoworkers Union. The UAW represents around 25,000 teaching assistants, research assistants, and other types of graduate-student workers in three states. As reported in the Boston Globe, “the move triggers a process that will require the university to negotiate wages, health insurance, job security, and other workplace issues.” Most postdoctoral fellowships are internally funded, while others are

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external and portable. The portable versions are usually for people who need to improve their career position. Maybe they need to complete a book in order to better their chances for tenure. A postdoctoral grant to do research abroad from the Social Science Research Council would fill that role.

Grant and Fellowship Application Tips Start early. An early start is essential for obtaining any grant or fellowship but especially important for study or research abroad. Since application deadlines fall up to ten months before implementation of the award, and because it takes months to research and write an application, it is vital to start the process far ahead of the deadline. Research and travel-to-collections grants do not need as much lead time, but getting a jump on the process never hurts. Really organized students map out a grant proposal plan that extends down the road two or three years, and they are usually the most successful at winning awards. Consult knowledgeable people on campus. Find anyone and everyone who has applied for grants, including faculty, more advanced students, campus administrators, and staff. There is good information out there if you hunt carefully. Be persistent, compulsive, and organized. Too often students give up the search quickly when information is not easy to find or when an application is rejected. Searching for money is like looking for a job; it takes time, diligence, and a system. Give the funding hunt its own space in your living quarters so it is easy to access. Keep a checklist of duties that can be used over and over for each application. The easier you make the process for those on whom you depend, like references, the more support you will get. If you are using faculty or staff, get material to them ahead of time. If they are not as efficient as you are, be a friendly pest. Do not count on one application. The more applications that are filed, the better the odds are of winning acceptance. Be aware that some agencies will let you accept only one award at a time, but it is nice to be able to choose. Be sure your credentials, study or research plan, or project fit the funding agency’s criteria and area of interest. It is important to read carefully the eligibility and field focus requirements. Sometimes the descriptions are unclear. Do not hesitate to call the agency for clarification. If a list of awardees and topics are available, scrutinize them.

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Permanent residents should be particularly alert to citizenship requirements: the federal government, for example, is inconsistent about including or excluding noncitizen permanent residents. Once you have decided what fellowships or grants to apply for, follow the directions scrupulously. There is no doubt that this is the biggest mistake students as well as faculty make when approaching an application. If an agency wants methodology first, you put it first. Reviewers are given evaluation criteria based on the application form. Beside each criterion is a numerical value. If methodology is worth 20 points and the evaluator has to search for methodology or it is not well explained, you lose up to 20 points. It is as simple as that. A grant application is not the place for subtle nuance that might be missed. Some agencies are helpful and provide tips: read them and follow them. If the application enumerates the criteria, your response should be structured exactly the same way. You dramatically improve your chances of an award by following directions; if you do not, your application may not even be read. Check to see whether deadlines are flexible. The more applications there are for a grant or fellowship, the less flexible the deadline is liable to be. That said, a surprising number of agencies bend a deadline rule if the submission date was missed by less than a week. Smaller grants for research may have a less stringent deadline. When in doubt, have a faculty mentor or university administrator call to inquire about and possibly influence closing date flexibility. Some agencies are so concerned about deadlines that if every piece of information—including transcripts, recommendations, tests scores, and so forth—is not in by the cut-off date, the entire application is rejected before it is read. Call to see whether you can add supplemental materials to the application after the deadline. With exceptions, most funding organizations will add new pieces of information beyond the basic requirements to an application before evaluation. If additions significantly strengthen an application, be sure to forward them for inclusion. Written confirmation of contacts abroad, for example, can be key to the success of a Fulbright-Hays application. Acceptance of an article or book for publication could help a research or postdoctoral grant application. Be sure the information reaches the agency before the assessment period. Do not be discouraged by rejection. After getting a rejection, ask yourself the following questions:

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Are my grades, test scores, and other credentials strong enough? Was my methodology clear? Did I follow directions? Was my presentation sloppy? Could my recommendations have been stronger? Did my project fit the agency’s criteria? Did I use too much jargon or was I too wordy? Would another funding organization be more interested in my work? Can the budget be reworked and is it reasonable? Can I get a copy of the evaluation from the agency? Can someone at the university review my application to see what went wrong? Can I apply again to the same agency? One student with whom I worked succeeded in winning a nationally prominent dissertation fellowship on the third try. Sometimes the research or project needs time to develop before it is of interest to a funding organization. Try to find out the ratio of applications to awards. We provide that information here for some grants, but, for other grants not listed, seeking out that statistic is a great way to determine the odds of success. Let’s say you are thinking about applying for a national fellowship. You discover there are 4,000 applicants for 80 grants, and grades and test scores are emphasized. If you have the credentials, then apply; if not, forget it, since the odds are against you. Some awards fall into a gray zone where it is not so apparent statistically whether an application has a reasonable chance. When in doubt, apply. If there is a weakness in the application of any sort, address it. Maybe you have a bad grade on your transcript. Explain what happened; do not dwell on it but clarify it. Perhaps you lack sufficient foreign-language skills. Explain how you will overcome that problem. Anything that might cause concern should be demystified in an honest and forthright manner.

Proposal Writing Advice Be sure your project, research area, or dissertation subject fits the agency’s need. As the Geological Society of America states so well, “the main purpose of

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your application is to convince GSA’s Committee on Research Grants that supporting your proposal would be a good use of GSA funds.” Use the funding agency’s terminology. A proposal sounds like it fits the agency’s criteria if its words (from either the online information or application) are appropriately used in the text. Using the same language is tantamount to both substantively and psychologically responding directly to the application and agency mission. The Guggenheim Fellowship, for example, wants proposals for projects that increase “the understanding of the causes, manifestations, and control of violence, aggression, and dominance.” The application should incorporate these words. This advice sounds simplistic, but so often an applicant will paste a previously written proposal to an application because it is faster and easier. Reviewers will spot this in an instant and are put off by the lack of effort taken in addressing a particular agency’s needs. Once you annoy a reviewer sufficiently, you lose the award. Do not use an excessive number of field-specific words and phrases: write clearly and simply and avoid excessive verbiage. The Fulbright booklet tells applicants to “avoid discipline-specific jargon.” People who review applications may not be from your particular area of study, or the agency may use readers from a variety of fields, say, broadly within science. This is especially true for fellowships with large numbers of awards, such as the Fulbright, Rotary, Javits, and Boren. As the Social Science Research Council notes, “applicants are expected to write in a clear, intelligible prose for a selection committee that is multi-disciplinary and cross-regional.” Do not beat around the bush. Fulbright points out that “the individuals reading your proposal prefer you get to the point about the ‘who, what, when, where, and how’ of the project.” Never, never go beyond the space, number of pages, or words specified in the application. Reviewers will only think you are incapable of organizing your thoughts. Put the research you describe within the context of the entire project. If you are seeking money for part but not all of the research, it is important to frame that area within the context of the entire project. Reviewers will better understand how essential the part is to the whole and why it is important to support. Indicate the contribution your proposal will make to the field. The National Science Foundation states: “The key is to be explicit in showing how the general theory explains the local situation, and in showing how the new knowledge from the local situation will advance the theory.” The most

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contributory research is the most likely to be funded, so be sure your proposal explains how your work will make a difference, no matter how small, within the field. Work closely with a campus adviser or faculty mentor when writing the proposal. If you are applying for a campus-administrated fellowship like the Rhodes or Marshall, pay close attention to what the fellowship counselor has to say. If you are engaged in research, work closely with your faculty mentor. Do not sound tentative. Do not use phrases like “I might be interested in,” “I think it is possible that,” or “there is a good chance that.” These words and phrases suggest a lack of confidence, confusion about direction, insufficient evidence, and indecisiveness. The Paul and Daisy Soros Fellowship for New Americans advises: “Stay away from qualifiers and imprecise words such as very, somewhat, rather, quite often, really, many.” Be crystal clear about methodology. Methodology is a plan of action, your approach to a problem to be solved or an area to be studied. It is the structure you will follow to get things done. For a training-fellowship applicant, it is the field selection, types of classes, and research interest that will lead to a degree. For the study or research-abroad applicant, methodology can include a list of contacts, research-study institutions, and archive locations, and how they will be used within a timeframe. For research and dissertation proposals, methodology should reflect accepted practices in your field. Every application requires an explanation of what and how things are to get done, even if the application directions do not explicitly demand it. Be willing to redraft your proposal three or four times or until you imagine the funding agency will recognize it as theirs. Patience and persistence produce effective proposals. From Sigma Xi, “take time with your research proposal. This is the most important part of your application.” Review the final product carefully. Have others read your proposal for content, methodology, mistakes, and style. Faculty or administrative advisers should read for content and methodology, while a stickler for spelling and grammar should check language structure and look for typos. Good advice from Howard Hughes Medical Institute Research Training Fellowships is to “proofread carefully, do not rely on spell check.” Make a photocopy of the completed application as well as an electronic backup. While most applications will be sent electronically, it is prudent to make a photocopy for quick reference, in case the computer file gets lost or the agency misplaces the application. A backup of your computer file also makes sense.

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How to Get Good References You should get recommendations from faculty who can write positively about the skills you have that are required by the funding agency. The application form will usually indicate what kind of references the agency is looking for. Do not stray from their recommendations. In most cases, letters should be written by faculty members, although there are times when an expert from outside academia is acceptable. Most agencies are not looking for character references unless they so specify. When getting faculty references, try to use full-time people with the rank of assistant, associate, or full professor. Their opinions carry more weight than part-time faculty, postdocs, or teaching assistants. Teaching assistants, especially, lack credibility because they are in training and are viewed as short on experience. Part-time instructors (often called adjuncts) are not usually the best option unless they are eminent in their field. Do not use credential file letters for fellowship and grant applications. Credential files are fine when you are applying for numerous jobs or to graduate school. You should be sure that letters in your file have been written for a purpose like a job or graduate school. That means you might have two types of letters in a file. The credential file letter is not good for fellowship and grant funding because reference letters should be tailored to the specific opportunity. A recommendation for a Fulbright scholarship does not work for a Rotary award. The Woodrow Wilson Foundation’s advice to applicants for the Doctoral Dissertation Fellowships in Women’s Studies follows: “In recent competitions, some recommenders have submitted generic letters, forwarded by services that retain and distribute such letters from participating faculty members. Such letters do not serve Women’s Studies applicants well.” A reference should know you and be willing to write supportively and enthusiastically. Weak or negative recommendations will kill an applicant’s prospects. Lukewarm praise is not much good either. Be sure to ask whether a reference is willing to write positively. If not, find someone who will. Give plenty of advance notice. People who write recommendations are usually besieged with requests. If you give someone at least a month to get a letter constructed and sent, the odds are it will be more carefully written and sent out in a timely fashion. Provide enough written data on which to base an informed recommendation.

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Give references information about the nature of the fellowship or grant. Provide a resume or vita and a list of the courses you have taken with the recommender. You want a person who may have many students a year in class to remember you. That might mean giving your reference a copy of a paper written for his or her class. If you are an advanced graduate student, then giving the recommender a copy of the grant or fellowship proposal is appropriate. Be sure he or she understands why winning the award is important, which means you should sit down and talk about your application. The more information you provide, the better the reference will be and the sooner it will be written. Check periodically to make sure the letter has been written and sent. Some people are very lax and notoriously absent-minded. It is important to be visible until the letter is sent. If you are having trouble, appeal to the department administrator to promote your case. If you are away from campus, a welltimed email or phone call can be effective.

Resources American Mathematical Society. Assistantships and Graduate Fellowships in the Mathematical Sciences. 2010. Available online at www.ams.org. Carlson, Mim, and Tori O’Neal-McElrath. Winning Grants Step by Step. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 2008. Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance. Annual. Washington, D.C.: GPO. Available online at www.cfda.gov. The Foundation Center’s Guide to Proposal Writing, 5th Edition. New York: Foundation Center. 2007. Available online at http://foundationcenter. org. The Foundation Center also operates library and learning centers in five locations: New York City; Washington, D.C.; Atlanta; Cleveland; and San Francisco. PEN American Center. 2011. Available online at www.pen.org. Peterson’s. Peterson’s Graduate Planner: Student Edition. Available online at www.petersons.com.

Chapter 3

Training Fellowships

This chapter presents general information and application advice for individual training fellowships. The following specific fellowship opportunities are also described: 1. American Association of University Women (AAUW) International Fellowships and Selected Professions Fellowships 2. Ford Foundation Predoctoral Fellowships 3. Graduate Degrees for Minorities in Engineering and Science (GEM) Fellowships 4. Hertz Foundation Applied Science Fellowships 5. Hispanic Scholarship Fund 6. Jacob K. Javits Fellowships for the Arts, Humanities, Social Sciences 7. NASA Graduate Student Researchers Program Fellowships 8. National Defense Science Engineering Graduate (NDSEG) Fellowships 9. National Physical Science Consortium (NPSC) Graduate Fellowships in the Physical Sciences 10. National Science Foundation (NSF) Graduate Research Fellowships in Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics (STEM) 11. Paul and Daisy Soros Fellowships for New Americans 12. U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science (SC) Science Graduate Fellowships (SCGF) 13. U.S. Department of State Thomas R. Pickering Graduate Foreign Affairs Fellowships

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14. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Star Graduate Fellowships in Environmental Studies

General Information Grants that provide money for tuition and fees and offer stipends for living expenses, books, and supplies for the first years of graduate education are training fellowships. Some training fellowships require an application from the university to the funding agency; others require that the prospective or enrolled student submit the application directly. Fellowships that are awarded through direct student application are the focus of this chapter. A considerable amount of money is offered through training fellowships. In 2010–11, the NSF gave two thousand awards and had twelve thousand applicants. The NSF award for that year was a $30,000 stipend with a tuition allowance of up to $10,500 for students doing graduate work in science, mathematics, social science, and engineering. The federal government is the single largest provider of trainingfellowship money but not the only source. Private organizations, such as the Soros Foundation and the Hispanic Scholarship Fund, also support students in the first years of their programs. If you want to apply for any training fellowships described in this chapter, be sure to check the funding agencies’ websites for the most current deadlines.

General Application Advice Spend a lot of time looking at the fellowship website. Many sites offer information about the volume of applications they receive or even post profiles of past winners. Check to see whether your credentials are in line with those of the former winners. Above all, make sure that you have completed every part of the application and that you are following all the directions. Begin your application well in advance, in case you run into trouble. If you need to consult with someone at the fellowship, you may need to do some digging before finding contact information for a real person, so allow yourself time for extra research. Searching for funding is not easy. Writing a fellowship application is not

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easy. Be prepared to spend a lot of time finding the best opportunities. Be prepared to spend a lot of time writing an application. Be prepared to spend a lot of time waiting to hear whether you have won an award. Read and reread the application and fellowship information again and again from beginning to end. Analyze the underlying purpose of why the fellowship was created. Try to understand what sort of student the organization wants to support. Become very clear about the application requirements. Make sure you are eligible to apply. If something is not clear on the application materials, find a campus representative or contact the agency for clarification. Some applications leave areas murky. Staff and faculty on campus who have worked with an agency are good sources for quick answers. The NSF, for example, provides a list of campus advisers on its website. Agencies offer the most reliable data. Agencies want the best applications possible, so they are very helpful to students at all stages of the process. Do not hesitate to call or email if you get flummoxed, but make sure that you are contacting a real person rather than a catch-all address or a main directory. Agencies are looking for academically focused individuals who they believe are committed to careers in which they will contribute to the betterment of the discipline and society in general. The Jacob K. Javits Fellowship, for example, is designed to draw the brightest students into academic research and teaching in the humanities, social sciences, and arts. Undergraduate applications often encourage cleverness and diversity of interest. The opposite is true for graduate school. Agencies are trying to select students who are committed to their field and enthusiastic in their pursuit of an advanced degree. Be sure to include the fellowship purpose in your proposal. It is very important to honestly respond to the award purpose somewhere in the application. It seems like simplistic advice, but it is amazing how many applicants do not respond to the stated purpose, leaving the evaluators unclear about study, research, and career goals. Every component of the application is important. All the fellowships in this category are competitive. Grades must be great, GREs impressive, statements written with thoughtful focus, and references glowing. Make sure your application is easy to read. Leave enough white space in the proposal and essay areas. Get to the point. Do not exceed the space or number of words required. Avoid jargon. Write clearly and confidently. Follow directions, follow directions, follow directions! This is, without a

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doubt, the biggest problem with applications. It is shocking how many applicants are rejected because they did not answer a question, forgot to send a required piece of information, were not eligible, or otherwise did not follow the instructions. When I ask reviewers and agency reps what they would recommend to applicants, it is almost always to follow the directions scrupulously. Get everything in before the deadline. This is second on the agency complaint list. If your transcripts arrive after the deadline, for example, your application gets thrown in the trash. If a letter of recommendation is late, too bad; you are out of the competition. Immediate rejection because of missing information is especially likely for fellowships where there are thousands of applications filed. When I had a conversation with the agency rep from the American Association of University Women he groaned about how many applicants do not read the directions and how often critical materials arrive after the deadline. Apply for everything that makes sense. Do not waste time on opportunities for which you are only marginally qualified, especially if you lack the grades or test scores, or are not a member of the underrepresented group for which the award is intended.

Specific Fellowship Opportunities The following fellowships include those that offer the largest number of awards and also represent a wide range of student interest from fine arts to engineering. All information herein, except the author’s advice, is taken from the actual sponsoring agency website, brochure, or application packet or from telephone calls or emails to the agencies. Every effort has been made to use the agency language or to paraphrase or summarize that language.

American Association of University Women (AAUW) International Fellowships and Selected Professions Fellowships Address: AAUW Dept. 60 301 ACT Drive Iowa City, IA 52243-4030

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Phone: 800-326-AAUW, 319-337-1716, ext. 60 Email: [email protected] Website: www.aauw.org/learn/fellows_directory International Fellowships

Award Purpose: To support women who are not U.S. citizens or permanent residents for graduate, postdoctoral study, and research full-time in the United States. “Preference is given to women who show prior commitment to the advancement of women and girls through civic, community, or professional work.” Deadline and Award Notification Date: Early December for submission; April for notification. Number of Awards Available: 36 Average Number of Applicants: 1,194 eligible applicants; 100 countries represented in applicant pool Award Amount: $18,000 for master’s/professional $20,000 for doctorate $30,000 for postdoctoral Application Form: Online Length of Award: One year Applicant Eligibility: Women who are not U.S. citizens or permanent residents and plan to devote full-time study during fellowship year; commitment to return to home country for professional career; acceptable TOEFL score. You will be directed in Step 3 to take an eligibility test. If you pass, you will be able to get an application. Application Requirements: Three letters of recommendation; proof of B.A. degree; proof of doctoral degree for postdoctoral fellowships; TOEFL score; filing fee; official transcripts; letter of admission.

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Application Comments and Advice: The AAUW representative told me that the number-one mistake made is not following the directions and number two is not getting all the necessary information in before the deadline. If one piece of information is not received, the application will not be read. The following are criteria for selection: • Academic and/or professional qualifications, 20 points • Commitment to the advancement of women and girls in home country, 15 points • Proposed time schedule, 10 points • Quality and feasibility of proposed plan of study or research, 10 points • Demonstrated evidence of previous community/civic service in home country, 15 points • Knowledge of home country’s knowledge or skill needs, 10 points • Financial need, 10 points • Motivation for graduate study or research, 10 points Read the directions completely. If you are having trouble, contact an AAUW representative. Your commitment to return to your home country and your future interest in helping women and girls are key to this award. If you cannot envision those two prospects, do not bother with this application. Selected Professions Fellowships

Address: AAUW Dept. 60 301 ACT Drive Iowa City, IA 52243-4030 Phone: 800-326-AAUW, 319-337-1716, ext. 60 Email: [email protected] Website: www.aauw.org/learn/fellows_directory Award Purpose: To support women who are U.S. citizens and permanent residents in master’s and professional degree programs in designated areas (see below); to support women of color in specific fields (see below).

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Deadline and Award Notification Date: Early January for submission; midApril for notification Number of Awards Available: 32 Average Number of Applicants: 78 Award Amount: $5,000 to $18,000 Application Form: Online Length of Award: One year Applicant Eligibility: Women who are U.S. citizens or permanent residents, and full-time students in one of the following programs: Architecture (M.Arch., M.S.Arch.) Computer/Information Sciences (M.S.) Mathematics/Statistics (M.S.) full-time student of color in one of the following programs: Business Administration (M.B.A.) Law (J.D.) Medicine (M.D., D.O.) Application Requirements: Fellowship project proposal outlining area of interest; academic/professional background; career plans and professional goals; narrative biography; budget; three letters of recommendation; official transcripts; for architecture students, a set of design projects; for law students, a writing sample. Application Comments and Advice: This fellowship is seriously underapplied for. You have an almost 50/50 chance of winning an award. The AAUW representative told me that the number-one mistake made is not following the directions and number two is not getting all the necessary information in before the deadline. If one piece of information is not received, the application will not be read. The following criteria are used to judge the applicants: • Professional promise and personal attributes, including: potential as a practicing professional and promise as a role model in new and

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innovative or nontraditional fields of study, research, or practice; and intent to contribute (through chosen profession) to societal well-being and commitment to the advancement of women (50 percent). • Academic excellence and related academic success indicators (40 percent). • Financial need (10 percent).

Ford Foundation Predoctoral Fellowships Address: The National Academies Fellowship Office 500 Fifth Street, NW, K576 Washington, DC 20001 Phone: 202-334-2872 Email: [email protected] Website: http://national-academies.org/fellowships Award Purpose: To increase diversity in the nation’s college and university faculties by increasing their ethnic and racial makeup. You need not be a member of a minority to apply, but you must be committed to teaching minorities and encouraging these students to seek careers in higher education. Deadline and Award Notification Date: Early November for submission; April for notification Number of Awards Available: 40 Average Number of Applicants: 1,000 Award Amount: $20,000 annual stipend; tuition award to university of $2,000. Expenses for travel to Ford Fellows Conference. Application Form: Online Length of Award: Three years

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Applicant Eligibility: U.S. citizenship before application deadline or U.S. national; superior academic achievement; commitment to college/university teaching/research; no previous doctorate in any field; commitment to enroll in an eligible Ph.D./Sc.D. program the fall following the application deadline or current enrollment in graduate school with three years of full-time coursework left. Application Requirements: Transcripts; letters of recommendation; GRE scores; previous research summary; graduate study/research plan; commitment to diversity teaching statement; membership in one or more of the following groups is a criterion, but you need not be a member of one of these groups to be eligible for a fellowship: Alaska Natives Black/African Americans Mexicans Mexican Americans, Chicanas, Chicanos Native American Indians Native Pacific Islanders Puerto Ricans Application Comments and Advice: Be sure to check the website to make sure your field is eligible. Professional doctoral programs, such as the education Ed.D. or the psychology Psy.D, are not eligible. Undiminished enthusiasm for college or university teaching and scholarship and commitment to the academic encouragement and education of underrepresented groups are the ultimate and unshakable goals. Helping other underrepresented minorities become interested in academic careers is a goal, and you must be willing to take on that responsibility. “Sustained personal engagement with communities that are underrepresented in the academy” is a criterion for the award and suggests that documented, previous experience and commitment is important. Ford is seeking to establish a pipeline of diverse faculty for colleges and universities, and winners are expected to facilitate that process. You should make a tie between the programs you have applied to or in which you are currently enrolled and your graduate-study plan. All parts should make a whole; everything should work together. Visit the website; go to the “How to Apply” section. Read the directions and recommendations carefully.

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Graduate Degrees for Minorities (GEM) M.S. and Ph.D. Fellowships for Minorities in Engineering and Science Address: The National GEM Consortium 1430 Duke Street Alexandria, VA 22314 Phone: 703-562-3647 Email: [email protected] Website: www.gemfellowship.org Award Purpose: The master’s program fellowship is dedicated to professional development of minorities for careers in the engineering and science industries. The doctoral fellowship encourages minorities in master’s programs to go on for a doctoral degree. Practical summer work experience is part of both fellowships. Deadline and Award Notification Date: July 15 to November 15, students apply to three GEM universities; October 1, application submitted with unofficial transcript; November 15, all materials must be received; May for notification Number of Awards Available: 130 Average Number of Applicants: 1,200 Award Amount: Master of Science = $10,000 stipend for three semesters or four quarters; two paid summer internships; tuition scholarship from the university. Ph.D. = $14,000 the first year, with two to five years’ support after that from the university, one paid internship; tuition scholarship from the university. Application Form: Online Length of Award: M.S. = three semesters or four quarters; Ph.D. = up to five years.

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Applicant Eligibility: U.S. citizen or U.S. permanent resident at time of application; member of underrepresented group in science and engineering, including American Indian/Native, African American/Black, Hispanic American/Latino. Admission to a GEM member university. For an M.S., you must be enrolled in or a graduate of an accredited undergraduate engineering or computer-science program and have a GPA of 2.8 or better out of 4.0. For a Ph.D., you must be enrolled in or a graduate of an accredited undergraduate engineering or applied-science program at time of application and have a cumulative GPA of 3.0/4.0. Eligible Disciplines (not limited to, but including) Aeronautical Engineering Industrial Engineering Aerospace Information Systems Agricultural Engineering Inorganic Chemistry Analytical Chemistry Manufacturing Engineering Anatomy Materials Engineering Automotive Materials Science Biochemistry Mathematics Bioengineering Mechanical Engineering Biology Metallurgical Engineering Biomedical Engineering Nuclear Engineering Chemical Engineering Operations Research Chemistry Organic Chemistry Civil Engineering Petroleum Engineering Computer Science Pharmacology Electrical Engineering Physics Environmental Engineering Physiology Environmental Science Research and Development Genetics Structural Engineering Systems Engineering Application Requirements: GRE scores; employment and educational histories; unofficial and official transcripts; three letters of recommendation; statement of purpose outlining academic, research, or career goals; application to at least three GEM member universities Application Comments and Advice: The application is relatively modest in requirements, although there are specific deadlines to meet and specific

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universities acceptable to GEM. These schools are found on the GEM website. All students must intern with a GEM consortium member, such as IBM, DuPont, Google, General Mills, and fifty other top corporations. The list is located on the website. Become familiar with the list. Your statement of purpose should reflect how your academic study and research lead to your career goals. That means you must project yourself into the future job market and explain how study at a GEM member university will put you in the best position to realize your goals. Imagine and then describe how the internships will help your career goals and include those goals. Remember the goal of GEM is to diversify the engineering and science workforce. Know the percentages of your particular minority group in your projected field. Knowledge is important: it shows you know the demographics. GEM states: “Fellows are elected based on potential for leadership in research, professional employment or teaching and capacity to complete a rigorous program of graduate study.” Address all those criteria specifically in your statement. Give specific examples of your leadership, explain why you will be terrific in your chosen career, and clearly define what makes you a successful student.

Hertz Foundation Applied Science Fellowships Address: Fannie and John Hertz Foundation 2456 Research Drive Livermore, CA 94550 Phone: 925-373-1642 Email: [email protected] Website: www.hertzfoundation.org Award Purpose: To support Ph.D. students in the applied sciences in biology and engineering. Awardees must be willing to make their skills available to the United States in a national emergency. John Hertz immigrated to the United States to escape oppression in central Europe. This fellowship is an act of gratitude to America for his refuge and success. Hertz fellows are innovators in their fields and contribute to the betterment of the world. Hertz

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fellows have founded more than 68 start-up companies and won over 149 important awards, including the Nobel Prize. Deadline and Award Notification Date: Late October for submission; early April for notification Number of Awards Available: 15 to 20 Average Number of Applicants: 600 Award Amount: Up to $36,000 stipend for academic year; full tuition Application Form: Online Length of Award: Five years Applicant Eligibility: U.S. citizen or U.S. permanent resident; senior undergraduate or currently enrolled graduate student; exceptional technical intelligence; commitment to the physical sciences; highly motivated with moral and ethical values; acceptance or enrollment in a Hertz-approved university; intention to enroll or current enrollment in one of the following fields: Aeronautics/Astronautics Applied Mathematics and Statistics Applied Physics and Astronomy Chemistry and Chemical Engineering Computer Science and Engineering Earth and Geo Sciences Electrical, Mechanical, Civil, and Nuclear Engineering Materials Science Quantitative Biology and Bioengineering Application Requirements: GRE scores; a November interview for 25 percent of applicants in Boston, Los Angeles, or San Francisco (cost to interview paid by Hertz); the interview lasts up to an hour and can include the performance of calculations, your research, demonstration of breadth and depth of technical knowledge; transcripts; four brief 300-word essays about field choice and future expectations, proposed field of study, choice of graduate school;

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chronological resume; honors; previous research list with a short discussion of two of the most creative projects; additional information section is for such personal information as extracurricular and leisure activities since high school. Application Comments and Advice: In the 2010–11 award announcement, the foundation states that “the Hertz Foundation welcomes the fifteen new Hertz Fellows to this community of leaders whose creativity and risk-taking are producing advances in science, technology, business, academia and government that address and attack the most important national and global problems.” Take a look at the “In-School Fellows” section on the web page. You will get a sense of where current fellows are enrolled and what they study along with a short fellow statement. Consider that the four short essays are four puzzle pieces that form a whole. Hertz is searching for the most creative risk takers in the applied sciences. These are patriotic Americans who are willing to drop everything to help their country in an emergency. So the best field choice and career future description is one in which the United States and its populace benefit. Try to get as innovative as possible within the 300-word limit; that can say a lot about your ability to be brilliant and concise. Energy and enthusiasm and a positive personality need to come through your work. Hertz is looking for the next Nobel Prize winner or a nascent Steven Jobs.

Hispanic Scholarship Fund (HSF) General College Scholarships Address: Hispanic Scholarship Fund Headquarters 55 Second Street, Suite 1500 San Francisco, CA 94105 Phone: 877-HSF-INFO Email: [email protected] Website: www.hsf.net Award Purpose: To support Hispanic Americans in college and graduate school.

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Deadline and Award Notification Date: Mid-December for submission; fall of following year for notification Award Amount: $1,000 to $5,000 Application Form: Online Length of Award: One year. Applicant Eligibility: Hispanic heritage; have a minimum 3.0 cumulative GPA on a 4.0 scale (or the equivalent); be a U.S. citizen or legal permanent resident with a valid permanent-resident card or passport stamped I-551; be pursuing or planning to pursue your first undergraduate or graduate degree; apply for federal financial aid; be enrolled or plan to enroll full-time as an undergraduate or graduate student in a degree-seeking program at a U.S.-accredited institution in the United States, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, or Guam. Application Requirements: Four-step process begins with submission of an academic profile. If you qualify at this stage, the HSF will provide access to steps 2 through 4. Application Comments and Advice: Selection is based on academic achievement, financial need, personal strengths, and leadership.

Jacob K. Javits Fellowships for the Arts, Humanities, Social Sciences Address: U.S. Department of Education, OPE Teacher and Student Development Programs Service Jacob K. Javits Fellowships Program 1990 K Street, NW, 6th Floor Washington, DC 20006-8524 Phone: 202-502-7542 Email: [email protected] Website: www2.ed.gov/programs/jacobjavits

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Award Purpose: To support exceptional doctoral and M.F.A. students in selected fields of the arts, humanities, and social sciences Deadline and Award Notification Date: Late September for submission; spring for notification Number of New Awards Available: Varies from year to year depending on Congressional budget (in 2009, 70 awards; in 2010, 27 awards). In the past, there have been up to 90 new fellowships. Average Number of Applicants: 2,500 to 3,000 Award Amount: $30,000 maximum stipend and $13, 755 to the university for tuition and fees Application Form: Online Length of Award: Up to four years Applicant Eligibility: Senior undergraduate students or first-year graduate students in specified programs; U.S. citizens, nationals, or permanent residents, or citizens of the Freely Associated States; intention to enroll in a program recognized by the Secretary of the Department of Higher Education; demonstrated financial need. Application Requirements: GRE scores for all Ph.D. and some M.F.A. applicants; transcripts; three letters of recommendation; statement of purpose; skill demonstration materials for M.F.A.; intention to study or enrollment in one of the following fields: Arts Creative Writing Music Performance, Theory, Composition, and Literature Studio Arts (including Photography) Television, Film, and Cinematography Theater Arts, Playwriting, Screenwriting, Acting, and Dance Humanities Archaeology Area Studies

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Classics Comparative Literature English Language and Literature Folklore, Folklife Foreign Languages and Literatures History Linguistics Philosophy Religion* Speech, Rhetoric, and Debate Art History Social Sciences Anthropology Communications and Media Economics Ethnic and Cultural Studies Geography Political Science Psychology* Public Policy and Public Administration Sociology* Application Comments and Advice: 20 percent of awards to social sciences; 20 percent to the arts; 60 percent to humanities. Since there are only 30 to 70 new awards offered each year, scrutinize the fields, look at your record, and then decide whether this fellowship is worth applying for. The Javits information contains a section explaining how the 400 review points are awarded. I was a reader for this fellowship and can tell you that because of the volume of applications, you will most likely need a score that is near 400 to win an award. Realistically, in the doctoral section, you need almost perfect grades and top of the top GRE scores to have any success. If grades and test scores are a real weakness, do not bother with this application. In the arts application review, however, there is less emphasis on grades and more emphasis on creativity. Everything counts. This application needs lots of time and care in * Fellowships cannot be used for students studying for a religious vocation or for study for a master’s degree or Ph.D. in clinical psychology or social work.

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preparation. References must be terrific and should be from full-time, highranking faculty who know your work best.

NASA Graduate Student Researchers Program Fellowships (GSRP) Address: Jet Propulsion Laboratory GSRP Coordinator Pasadena, CA 91109-8099 Phone: 818-354-3274 Email: [email protected] or check website Website: http://fellowships.hq.nasa.gov Award Purpose: To cultivate NASA and academic community ties and increase the number of highly trained scientists and engineers in space-related disciplines. Underrepresented groups in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics are encouraged to apply. Deadline and Award Notification Date: Early February for submission; early April for notification Number of Awards Available: 180 depending on Congressional budget Average Number of Applicants: 1,000 Award Amount: $30,000 stipend to cover tuition, room, board, books, and other expenses Application Form: Online Length of Award: One year for master’s; two years for Ph.D.; three years maximum Applicant Eligibility: U.S. citizen (not permanent residents); application before receiving undergraduate degree or during graduate program; acceptance

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or enrollment at accredited graduate program in the United States; a faculty sponsor; must not have another concurrent federal fellowship. Application Requirements: A 100-word summary of proposed research and how it ties to NASA mission; budget; which NASA and university facilities will be used in research; five-page statement describing proposed research; a biographical sketch of faculty adviser; transcripts; letter of recommendation from faculty adviser; contact with NASA technical adviser located at a NASA Center. Application Comments and Advice: The application has exacting sequences for providing information. The proposal/project description is to be five pages and must have a statement of the problem, a hypothesis, an approach, predicted outcomes, a proposed timeline, a conclusion, and references. Follow the plan scrupulously. Label each section with the GSRP wording. Space science/engineering is defined by organization; economy of words; complete understanding of methodological thinking; creative research. This section is a test. Work closely with your faculty adviser; you will need his or her endorsement and support to win and keep this fellowship. A NASA application is a lot of work; a university faculty adviser must be found; a NASA Center technical adviser must be consulted; NASA facilities have to be analyzed to find a research fit, and then the proposal or project has to integrate all that information. Read and reread the online instructions, and use the NASA Center technical adviser for any questions. Most important, a serious desire to study and do research in aeronautical engineering or space science is fundamental.

National Defense Science Engineering Graduate Fellowships (NDSEG) Address: American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE) 1818 N Street, NW, Suite 600 Washington, DC 20036 Phone: 202-649-3831 Email: [email protected] Website: http://ndseg.asee.org

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Award Purpose: To increase the number of U.S. citizens and nationals (native of a U.S. possession, such as American Samoa) with doctoral degrees in science and engineering fields of military importance and interest. The Department of Defense (DoD) sponsors this fellowship. Each fellow is sponsored by a branch of the military within the DoD. Deadline and Award Notification Date: Mid-December for submission; April for notification Number of Awards Available: 200 Average Number of Applicants: 2,000; 10 percent of applicants receive awards, although that percentage varies within fields of study. For example, in the last nine years, 19 percent of those applying in aeronautical and astronautical engineering received awards, while 7 percent of those in computer and computational sciences were funded. Award Amount: $30,500 stipend first year; $31,000 second year; $31,500 third year. DoD will pay full tuition and fees, and medical insurance up to $1,000 a year. Application Form: Online Length of Award: Three years Applicant Eligibility: U.S. citizen or national; undergraduate senior through second-year graduate student or not currently a student; pursuing a Ph.D. or M.D./Ph.D. degree in one of the following fields: Aeronautical and Astronautical Engineering Biosciences Chemical Engineering Chemistry Civil Engineering Cognitive, Neural, and Behavioral Sciences Computer and Computational Sciences

Electrical Engineering Geosciences Materials Science and Engineering Mathematics Mechanical Engineering Naval Architecture and Ocean Engineering Oceanography Physics

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Application Requirements: GRE scores; official transcripts; three reference contacts; summary of goals; leadership and teamwork experiences; scientific and research experiences; community and volunteer work experiences; publications, presentations, patent information. Application Comments and Advice: NDSEG is looking for independent, creative thinkers who can present their educational goals and objectives thoughtfully within a 3,000-character (including the spaces) statement. The educational plan should be specific, focused, and concise, much like a compelling research project. Give careful attention to the online instructions listed under the heading “Summary of Goals.” Watch the character count; do not exceed the requirement. Remember this fellowship is being funded by the Department of Defense, and they are searching for future professionals whose work and research has a military benefit. Your stated goals must reflect that all-important criterion.

National Physical Science Consortium (NPSC) Graduate Fellowships in the Physical Sciences Address: USC-RAN 3716 S. Hope Street, Suite 348 Los Angeles, CA 90007-4344 Phone: 800-854-NPSC or 213-743-2409 Email: [email protected]. Website: www.npsc.org Award Purpose: To increase the number of U.S.-citizen Ph.D.s in the physical sciences and related engineering fields, with emphasis on recruiting women and underrepresented minorities. Deadline and Award Notification Date: November for submission; March at the latest for notification Number of Awards Available: 12

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Average Number of Applicants: 250 Award Amount: $20,000 stipend; student’s university agrees to tuition/fee remission; two years of paid summer employment; NPSC staff support Application Form: Online in late August Length of Award: Two years guaranteed, with a possibility of up to six years Applicant Eligibility: U.S. citizen; 3.0 out of a 4.0 GPA; application to or enrollment in a graduate program in one of the following fields: astronomy, chemistry, computer science, geology, materials science, mathematical sciences, physics, and their subdisciplines, and the related engineering fields of chemical, computer, electrical, environmental, or mechanical at an NPSC-affiliated university (be sure to check the online list of NPSC universities). Some sponsoring agencies within the consortium, such as the National Security Agency and Sandia National Laboratories, may require passage of a background investigation. All U.S. citizens are eligible to apply, but preference is given to women and underrepresented minorities. Application Requirements: Three to five letters of recommendation from people familiar with your work; GRE scores; transcripts; employment history; list of honors and awards; research experience; personal statement; list of courses currently enrolled in, if applicable. Application Comments and Advice: Awards are based on the likelihood the applicant will earn a Ph.D. with distinction. NPSC is especially concerned with GPAs, research experience, letters of recommendation, GRE scores. The applications are given to the Academic Screening Committee and the Employers Selection Committee. Applicants are reviewed for their academic potential and as potential summer interns at one of the employers’ facilities (Lawrence Livermore National Laboratories in California, Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico, National Security Agency in Maryland, or Sandia National Laboratories in California and New Mexico). Proximity of the student’s university and the employer’s facility can influence the decision. You should research all the employers and understand what sort of fit your area of research has with one or more of the laboratories or agencies.

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The more you know, the more you can address your statement to the employers’ needs. You need to be appealing to one of the five sponsoring employers.

National Science Foundation (NSF) Graduate Research Fellowships in Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics (STEM) Address: NSF 1818 N. Street, NW Washington, DC 20036-2479 Phone: 866-673-4737 Email: [email protected] Website: www.nsfgrfp.org or www.fastlane.nsf.gov/grfp (this site has a complete list of awardees) Award Purpose: To develop a corps of research experts in a wide range of fields within science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. Since 1952, NSF has awarded 46,600 Graduate Research Fellowships from more than 500,000 applicants. More than 30 awards have gone to future Nobel Prize winners, with 440 becoming members of the National Academy of Sciences. Deadline and Award Notification Date: Early through mid-November depending on field for submission; March for notification Number of Awards Available: 2,051, depending on Congressional budget Average Number of Applicants: Success rate is around 10 percent, with another 17 percent receiving honorable mention. There are additional awards for women in engineering and computer and information science. Award Amount: $30,000 annual stipend; $10,500 tuition/fees allowance; $1,000 travel allowance; access to supercomputer Application Form: Online Length of Award: Three years of support, which may be used over five years

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Applicant Eligibility: U.S. citizen, U.S. national, U.S. permanent-resident alien; senior in college or first-year graduate student; aim toward a master’s or doctoral decree in an NSF-supported field of study (see NSF page listing appropriate fields of study) at a U.S. or foreign university. The NSF especially encourages those in underrepresented groups in science, ethnic minorities, people with disabilities, and students of all geographic and economic backgrounds to apply. Application Requirements: GRE scores not accepted; official transcripts; three letters of reference; proposal. Application Comments and Advice: The NSF is looking for students who will become experts in their fields. For “Intellectual Merit,” applicants must demonstrate knowledge in their own field or interdisciplinary research; qualifications to do proposed research; organization; originality; access to resources. In addition, for “Broader Impacts,” the proposal should enhance participation of underrepresented groups (e.g., gender, ethnicity, disability, geography) by building networks and partnerships. There is a section online that is titled “Merit Review Broader Impacts Criterion: Representative Activities.” If you are having trouble with the “Broader Impacts” section, look carefully at this document. For example, this section suggests you could develop materials that could be used in elementary and secondary libraries. Or you could work with students at a historically black non-graduate science-degree-granting college to help direct them toward a STEM graduate program. If you were attending Washington University in St. Louis, for example, you could develop a program with faculty at Harris-Stowe State University (a historically black university that features teacher education) to help students develop lesson plans that use science and technology theories and methodology. The directions are very clear. The NSF is looking for high-level problem solvers who have ideas that will benefit society. Weakness in the “Broader Impacts” statement is a common reason for failure to win an award, as is a weak personal statement and poor references. Also make sure your university is the best suited to your proposal. If you apply for this award in your senior year and are not selected, you are encouraged to apply again during your first year of graduate school. Many students have a greater sense of focus and better research skills after time in graduate school. There is a “Tips for Applying” section that should be read carefully.

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Awardees suggest starting early; writing with simplicity; making clear, concise statements; and having strong recommendations. Reviewers suggest getting involved in leadership roles, paying attention to the “Broad Impacts” section, reading directions carefully, and showing passion and motivation. This application takes time and analysis and should not be rushed.

Paul and Daisy Soros Fellowships for New Americans Address: 400 West 59th Street New York, NY 10019 Phone: 212-547-6926 Email: [email protected] Website: www.pdsoros.org Award Purpose: To provide new Americans with educational and leadership opportunities. Fellows may pursue graduate degrees at U.S. universities in almost any field, including the fine and performing arts. Deadline and Award Notification Date: November 1 for submission; 84 finalists will be asked to appear for interviews in Los Angeles or New York; February for notification Number of Awards Available: 30 Average Number of Applicants: 900 Award Amount: Stipend of $25,000; tuition grant up to $20,000 Application Form: Online or downloaded and mailed Length of Award: Up to two years Applicant Eligibility: Naturalized citizen or U.S. permanent resident, or the child of a naturalized parent (the other parent may not be a U.S. citizen); not

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older than age 30 by application deadline; a senior in college or a currently enrolled graduate student with some restrictions. Application Requirements: Eight parts include proof of citizenship or greencard status; family history; educational history; list of universities applied to; essays; exhibits, including any publications, community service done, etc.; three letters of recommendation; transcripts; any relevant test scores, such as MCAT, GRE, LSAT. The finalists are interviewed and are provided funding for travel and accommodations. Application Comments and Advice: While undergraduate success is important, it is much more important to be creative and accomplished, to demonstrate initiative, and to be committed to the principles of the U.S. Constitution and the Bill of Rights. The selection criteria require you to address those areas as does one of the essays. The first 1,000-word essay revolves around your experience as a New American, including how your family and other institutions shaped you and what you have done that is creative and accomplished and reflects a commitment to the U.S. Constitution and the Bill of Rights. The second 1,000-word essay is about career goals and how graduate school will help you accomplish those. This application has a clear theme: your commitment as a New American to the principles enumerated in the founding documents. Read, study, and analyze the Constitution and the Bill of Rights and apply them specifically to your ethics, experience, educational goals, and career aims, as well as your commitment to your country to practice, apply, and live those principles. How specifically are you going to do that? You need a real, tangible plan that reflects your background, your present, and your future. Perhaps previous experiences in another country (described) are important in your appreciation of the First Amendment guarantee of freedom of religion and are the basis for your commitment now and in the future (described) to that standard. This fellowship is all about loyalty and new patriotism. Not only that, you need to be committed to a future that reflects this appreciation through action. If you are to stand out among the other 900 applicants, this is where to do it. Have someone facile with English-language structure proofread your entire application. Soros is not appreciative of misspelled or misused words. Be sure to read and reread the application tips under the headings “What

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Characterizes a Good Essay,” and, if you are invited for an interview, “What Are the Interviews Like” section. They also have a section called “Tips for Recommenders” that you should print out and give to anyone writing a reference. All this information is on the website under “Fellowship FAQs” and is full of good material for any fellowship to which you might apply.

U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science (SC) Science Graduate Fellowships (SCGF) Address: U.S. Department of Energy 1000 Independence Ave., SW Washington, DC 20585 Phone: 202-586-5430 Email: [email protected] Website: www.scied.science.doe.gov Award Purpose: This fellowship began in the 2010–11 academic year and was initially supported by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. Funding is on a year-to-year basis, so be sure to check the website to see whether federal appropriations for this program have been finalized. To support outstanding graduate students in basic research in physics, chemistry, mathematics, engineering, and computational and environmental sciences. Deadline and Award Notification Date: End of November for submission; mid-April for award notification Number of Awards Available: 80 Average Number of Applicants: New program in 2010. Application numbers will be unsettled for a few years. Award Amount: $35,000 stipend; up to $10,500 toward tuition and fees; $5,000 for research. Travel to annual DOE SCGF Research Conference.

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Application Form: Online Length of Award: Three years Applicant Eligibility: U.S. citizen; senior majoring in funded fields or first-year graduate student in master’s or Ph.D. program at a U.S. university; full-time enrollment at time of application; undergraduate cumulative GPA of 3.30 on a 4.0 scale; master’s program must have a research thesis or dissertation; master’s students must intend to pursue a doctorate. Application Requirements: Transcripts; three letters of reference; two essay questions; list of academic awards, honors, publications; personal profile. Application Comments and Advice: The first essay is a personal statement in which your academic field background is described with a focus on preparation for graduate research. Examples of independent activities as well as teamwork are important. Career goals should focus on your future research path and how graduate study and research will make those goals possible. Remember that the mission of this fellowship is to prepare people for careers in research. Read the DOE statement called “About the Office of Science” to understand what sort of research they support. The second essay asks you to write a proposed plan of research that involves one of the DOE’s Office of Science research areas, which include Advanced Scientific Computing; Basic Energy Sciences; Biological and Environmental Research; Fusion Energy Sciences; High Energy and Nuclear Physics (found on the “About the Office of Science” web page). Tie essays one and two together: essay one is the preparation and demonstrated field interest, with essay two the specific research plan. Get to know the Office of Science and their research goals. The “Application Evaluation” section offers a good checklist for your application. Follow the directions; be clear, concise, and original. Use your mentor for ideas and criticism of the proposed research plan. There is a lot of information to absorb and thinking to do before starting this application, so get going early!

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U.S. Department of State Thomas R. Pickering Graduate Foreign Affairs Fellowships Address: Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation Pickering Foreign Affairs Fellowship Program P.O. Box 2437 Princeton, NJ 08543 Phone: 609-452-7007 Email: [email protected] Website: www.woodrow.org Award Purpose: To prepare awardees for a career in the U.S. Department of State Foreign Service. Women and members of minorities are encouraged to apply. This fellowship is designed to support a student enrolled in a two-year, full-time master’s degree program, such as public policy, international affairs, public administration, business, economics, political science, sociology, or foreign languages at a U.S. graduate institution. Deadline and Award Notification Date: Early February for submission; May for notification Number of Awards Available: 20, depending on available funding Average Number of Applicants: 450 Award Amount: Up to $40,000; tuition costs will be covered the first year. Application Form: Online Length of Award: Two years, including one domestic summer internship and one overseas internship Applicant Eligibility: U.S. citizen; GPA of 3.2 or higher out of 4.0; seeking full-time admission to a master’s program in public policy, international affairs, public administration, business, economics, political science, sociology, foreign languages.

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Application Requirements: Certification of U.S. citizenship; GRE scores; two letters of recommendation; official transcripts; two-page resume; financialaid information; fellows must pass the Department of State Foreign Service entry requirements. There is an obligatory three years of service as a Foreign Service officer. Failure to meet this requirement means repayment of Pickering award stipend. Application Comments and Advice: The key to this fellowship is the partnership with the U.S. State Department. There is a link to the State Department on the Pickering web page. Be sure to thoroughly familiarize yourself with the particulars of that government branch because that is your career objective and the reason for the Pickering. A complete commitment to foreign service is a requirement. Another web page defines the U.S. Foreign Service, and you must be clear about what is involved. This knowledge will shape your application. Thomas R. Pickering was an important career diplomat; know his story.

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Star Graduate Fellowships in Environmental Studies Address: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Ariel Rios Building 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW Washington, DC 20460 Phone: 800-490-9194 Email: [email protected] Website: www.epa.gov/ncer/rfa Award Purpose: To support master’s and doctoral students in environmental studies Deadline and Award Notification Date: Early November for submission (this date can change so be sure to check); all award notifications by June

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Number of Awards Available: Up to 105 (depends on Congressional budget, number of continuing students, and quality of applications) Average Number of Applicants: 1,450 to 2,000 Award Amount: Up to $42,000 a year, with $12,000 for tuition/fees; $25,000 stipend; $5,000 annual allowance Application Form: Online Length of Award: Two years for master’s; up to four years for doctoral study Applicant Eligibility: U.S. citizen; citizen of a U.S. possession; U.S. permanent resident; student/applicant to accredited U.S. university. Application Requirements: Congressional District designation; personal statement; academic proposal; three letters of recommendation; educational background; publications and presentations; application for federal assistance. Application Comments and Advice: The 4,500-word proposal is dictated by specific educational level. Entering master’s students describe a thesis or project, while doctoral students explain their dissertation interests and research. The scientific importance of your chosen field and how your thesis/project/ dissertation is relevant to the protection of human health and the environment and broader societal impacts are fundamental areas that must be covered in the proposal. Projects with the best possibility for funding are those that hew most closely to the EPA’s mission and programmatic interests. Those interests generally include protection of human health and the environment; potential to improve environmental management of complex environmental problems; and a focus on assessing future environmental risks. In addition, proposals that include conservation of water and energy and reduction of waste and toxics are more likely to be supported. When reviewing applications, the criteria for funding include demonstrated commitment to an environmental career, including potential for completing a degree, maturity, responsibility, and integrity; analysis of intellectual merit, including academic skills, scientific curiosity, creativity, acumen, and potential for success; and a candidate’s commitment to encouraging participation of underrepresented groups in the protection of human health and the environment.

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This is a long proposal with much territory to be covered. Keep referring back to the award notice for all the areas you are to include. Be sure to note all the “Graduate Fellowship Topics,” which include global change, clean air, drinking water, water quality, human health, ecosystem services, pesticides and toxic substances, land protection, science and technology for sustainability in three areas, and emerging environmental approaches. Your proposal must fit into one or more of these areas. All these areas are explained, so read about them on this site and then expand your EPA information by reading as much as possible in the area you choose. You need to present yourself as a budding expert, and demonstrated knowledge is key. Be sure to address the “broad societal impacts.” The EPA wants either a diverse applicant or an applicant who encourages diversity in science. Diversity includes ethnic and racial minorities, women, and people with disabilities. There are lots of things to put together. When you are finished with your 4,500-word proposal, everything should be covered. Work closely with a mentor. Find someone with EPA grant-writing experience.

Chapter 4

Study, Research, and Teaching Abroad

This chapter presents general information and application advice for fellowships for study, research, and teaching abroad. Also described are the following specific fellowship opportunities: 1. British Marshall Scholarships 2. Deutscher Akademischer Austausch Dienst (DAAD) Research/Study Grants for Ph.D.s and Postdocs Graduate Student Research Grants/German Language Study/ Scholarships for Fine Arts, Architecture, Music, Dance 3. Fulbright (IIE) Grants for Graduate Study, Graduate Research, English Teaching Worldwide 4. Fulbright-Hays Doctoral Dissertation Research Abroad Program 5. Institute of Turkish Studies Summer Language Study Grants for Graduate Students in Social Sciences or Humanities 6. National Security Education Program (NSEP) David L. Boren Fellowships for International Language and Research 7. Organization of American States (OAS) Graduate Academic Scholarships 8. Rhodes Scholarships for Study at Oxford University 9. Rotary Foundation Ambassadorial Scholarships

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General Information Undergraduate students are often interested in pursuing study, research, or teaching abroad after their senior year in college. Students in this category should start looking at Fulbright, Rotary, Marshall, Rhodes, and Boren scholarships during the spring semester of their junior year. Almost all colleges and universities have information on these programs readily accessible to interested students. The undergraduate dean’s office, the international study office, the study-abroad office, and the career center are excellent places to start looking for information. The potential for funding in this category is very good for students who have sufficient language skills and interesting study or research projects and who have made connections abroad. While truly exceptional academic credentials are required for Rhodes and Marshall scholarships, that is not necessarily the case for Rotary, Fulbright, and Boren awards, where good language skills, interest in a non-Western language, compelling projects, and assertiveness are more important. Rotary especially takes a very organized applicant who makes personal contact with a local club, is willing to go to Rotary lunches, and is willing to be an international ambassador for Rotary ideals. Schmoozing is one of the keys. Graduate students interested in research abroad should investigate the numerous grants and fellowships offered by Fulbright, Fulbright-Hays, Boren, IREX, OAS, and others. The chances of an award are promising for those with sufficient language skills and compelling projects and those interested in the foreign service.

Application Advice Start the application process very early. Applications for study, work, and research abroad take more time than you can possibly imagine. Starting eighteen months before your desired date of departure is not too soon. There are many reasons for starting early. Many competitions have two-stage procedures in which applications are reviewed first in the United States and then abroad; so the application deadline is always early. Some, like the Rotary, have a three-stage review process that starts at the local level, then goes regional and national. In addition, contacts abroad usually must be made before applying.

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Start hunting for contacts abroad early. Establishing contacts in your desired country can make or break an application. Even via the Internet, communications can be difficult. In more remote, Third World countries, Internet and phone service may be poor or nonexistent, with even snail mail unreliable. Graduate students should be especially careful to establish solid contacts sufficiently ahead of application deadlines. A letter or email from a contact confirming permission to study at an archive, for example, reassures the funding agency that time will not be wasted upon arrival in the country of destination. Or, if you intend to study a certain culture, then be sure to get confirmation from an expert in the field in the country, with assurances that such research is possible. Collaboration with faculty or researchers abroad must be verified in writing. If you wish to study at a foreign university, you should already be in contact with the program or, even better, have been admitted to a program. Become knowledgeable about the geographic area where you wish to study, carry out research, or teach. A surprising number of applicants know very little about the general culture in their chosen country. It is not enough to want to study physics at Oxford. You must understand the milieu, which includes the history, politics, interests, occupations, and mores of the area. Be sure to explain what it is that you can do in a foreign country that you cannot do at home. It is not enough to want to study history in England. Funding agencies must be convinced that you have a compelling reason to go overseas. If you can get the information in the United States or on the web, why should someone pay you to travel abroad? Analyzing the archaeological stratigraphy of Ithaka in search of Protogeometric period pottery can be done only in Greece and only on the island of Ithaka. That argument is much more compelling than a general desire to study archaeology in Greece that might otherwise reasonably be done through reading, sitting in U.S. classrooms, or cruising the Internet. Know your topic thoroughly. Nothing makes a review panel happier than to see that you know your topic top to bottom. As the unexamined life was not worth living to Socrates, so the unexamined topic is not worth supporting to a funding agency. For graduate students, this means demonstrating an intricate understanding of what others in the field have written about the topic, as well as detailing an acceptable methodology for approaching the research. Provide a reasonable timetable for accomplishing your study program or research plan. Creating a timetable is not always easy. If you have no previous experiences abroad, especially in research, it is hard to know what can

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or cannot be done within a semester, year, or summer term. Most applicants overstate potential outcomes and therefore sound unreasonable. Talk to someone in your field who has done related work, and get his or her input on what is doable within the proposed time constraints. Have language abilities sufficient to carry out your research or study program and to live successfully within the culture. If you do not have the language skills at application time, describe how you will get those skills before you leave to go abroad. Let’s say you want to study ancient religious texts in Italy. You would need to demonstrate superior facility in Latin or Greek and probably both. Agencies are more flexible when training in a language or dialect is difficult to obtain. In fact, some fellowships are for language training abroad in non-Western languages. Whatever the requirements, you must demonstrate a convincing plan to acquire the necessary language skills required by the fellowship. Be sure your references are 100 percent behind your proposal. Your references’ enthusiasm for your project and the impression you make abroad are very important. Your recommenders can assure application readers that your project is worthy and reasonable and that you will work well in a foreign setting. Since you will represent the funding organization abroad, they are especially dependent on the opinions of references regarding your character and ability. Communicate the importance of making a good impression abroad. The ambassadorial qualifications of applicants are crucial to all study-, research-, and teaching-abroad fellowships. Many programs, like the Fulbright, have been developed to expand goodwill among nations. Rotary is also very concerned about the diplomatic impressions its fellows make. Rotary fellows are required to mingle with Rotary members abroad as representatives of young America. Your understanding about how to be a congenial American needs to be in the application materials, perhaps in a statement of personal goals and objectives, as well as in the recommenders’ letters as stated above.

Specific Fellowship Opportunities The following fellowships include those that offer the largest number of awards and also represent a wide range of student interests. All information herein, except the authors’ advice, is taken from the actual sponsoring agency website, brochure, or application packet, or from telephone calls and emails

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to the agencies. Every effort has been made to use agency language or paraphrase or summarize that language.

British Marshall Scholarships Address: British Council USA 3100 Massachusetts Avenue, NW Washington, DC 20008-3600 Phone: 202-588-7844 Email: [email protected] Website: www.marshallscholarhip.org Award Purpose: To enable America’s future leaders to study in the United Kingdom and gain an understanding and appreciation of contemporary Britain. To build an ambassadorial cadre and strengthen U.S.-U.K. understanding, to advance knowledge, and to promote the personal and academic fulfillment of each scholar. Deadline and Award Notification Date: October 1 for submission; November interviews for shortlisted candidates Number of Awards Available: 40 for one to three years of study (8 of the 40 will be for one year of study) Average Number of Applicants: 900 Award Amount: 23,000 British pounds per year Application Form: Online Length of Award: One to two years for master’s, up to three years for a doctoral degree at a Marshall partner university Applicant Eligibility: U.S. citizen; college graduate by time scholarship takes effect; GPA of 3.7 or higher on a 4.0 scale; cannot have studied at or hold

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a degree from a British university. Awards are not made for a second B.A. or B.Sc. degree, M.B.A.s, M.F.E.s, medical degrees, degrees that require extended time away from the university or United Kingdom, research not leading to a degree, or M.Sc. Global Health Science degree. Applicants are encouraged to consider universities other than Oxford. Although most universities in the British Isles are acceptable for study, interest in Cambridge, the London School of Economics, and Marshall Partner universities is especially encouraged. Marshall Partner schools are University of Birmingham, University of Bristol, Cardiff University, Courtauld Institute of Art, Durham University, University of East Anglia, University of Edinburgh, University of Glasgow, Guildhall School of Music and Drama, Imperial College London, Keele University, University of Leeds, University of Liverpool, Newcastle University, University of Nottingham, Queen Mary University London, Queen’s University Belfast, University of Reading, Royal Academy of Music, Royal Holloway London, University of Sheffield, University of Southampton, University of Surrey, University of Sussex, University College London, University of Warwick, and University of York In addition the Marshall Commission has partnerships with the following Oxford and Cambridge colleges: Gonville and Caius College Cambridge, King’s College Cambridge, New College Oxford, Nuffield College Oxford, Oriel College Oxford, St. John’s College Cambridge. Application Requirements: Applicants apply through their undergraduate university. Usually there is an adviser in the undergraduate dean’s office, studyabroad office, or career center who directs a Marshall and Rhodes application program. Applicants apply online but must be endorsed by their educational institution. There are a few exceptions where a graduate-school dean or an employer may endorse an application. Other requirements are two preferred universities, transcripts, four letters of recommendation, an interview for selected applicants, and a degree selection that can be completed in two years (some third-year master’s extensions are possible). Application Comments and Advice: Most colleges and universities have a faculty adviser who will help you with this application. Find out as much as you can about which universities have programs in your desired academic area. You must indicate two choices of places to study on the application. In addition, a course of study, a research proposal, or both, must be described, and knowledge of institutional programs is essential.

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Those applying for doctoral programs are advised to contact a British faculty member and arrange a research plan along with gaining admission. Links to universities can be accessed through the website. When filling out the application, remember that the Marshall Committee will select potential leaders who are interested in making lifelong connections to the United Kingdom. Leadership skills should be emphasized, as should a keen interest in British culture. Be open to your university choices. More applicants will seek admission to Cambridge, the London School of Economics, and the Oxford Partnership program. If you are more receptive to other universities, you might enhance your chances. This is a scholarship for top academic, top leadership candidates who have personalities that are gregarious by nature and who are committed Anglophiles. If that defines you, be sure to apply for this scholarship as well as the Rhodes.

Deutscher Akademischer Austausch Dienst (DAAD) Research/Study Grants for Ph.D.s and Postdocs and Graduate Student Research Grants/German Language Study/Scholarships for Fine Arts, Architecture, Music, Dance Address: DAAD New York 871 United Nations Plaza New York, NY 10017 Phone: 212-758-3223 Email: [email protected] Website: www.daad.org Research/Study Grants for Ph.D.s and Postdocs

Award Purpose: To support Ph.D. candidates early in their careers at U.S. schools or to earn a doctoral degree in Germany. Also for postdoctoral research. Deadline and Award Notification Date: Mid-November for short- and longterm grants for submission; notification at end of March or beginning

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of April. Mid-May for short-term grants for submission; notification in mid-August. Number of Awards Available: 210 Average Number of Applicants: 20 to 25 percent of applicants win awards Award Amount: 1,000 Euros stipend with additional money for travel and health insurance Application Form: Online. The following are partner universities; there is a DAAD campus coordinator, and all materials should be submitted through that staff member: • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

University of Arizona Boston University Brandeis University Brown University California Institute of the Arts University of California–Berkeley University of California–Irvine University of California–Los Angeles University of California–San Diego University of Chicago Clark University Columbia University Cornell University Dartmouth College Duke University Emory University Georgetown University University of Georgia Harvard University University of Illinois–Chicago

• University of Illinois–Urbana-Champaign • Indiana University • University of Iowa • Johns Hopkins University • University of Kansas • University of Massachusetts–Amherst • University of Michigan–Ann Arbor • University of Minnesota–Twin Cities • University of Missouri–Columbia • Monterey Institute of International Studies • Mount Holyoke College • University of New Mexico • New School University • New York University • University of North Carolina– Chapel Hill • Northwestern University • University of Notre Dame

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• • • • • • • • •

University of Oregon University of Pennsylvania Pennsylvania State University University of Pittsburgh Princeton University Rutgers University Smith College Stanford University University at Buffalo

• • • • •

Stony Brook University University of Texas–Austin Vanderbilt University University of Virginia Washington University, St. Louis • University of Washington • Wesleyan University • Yale University

Length of Award: One to ten months Applicant Eligibility: U.S. or Canadian citizenship or permanent residents; full-time student in Ph.D. or postdoctoral program; necessary research or study in Germany; for those in arts, humanities, social sciences, with good command of German. Application Requirements: CV or resume; research proposal not more than six double-spaced pages; two letters of recommendation; evidence of contact with a German institution; DAAD language evaluation form; confirmation of ABD status; transcripts. Application Comments and Advice: Be sure to explain clearly and convincingly why time in Germany is fundamental to your academic or professional goals. Start early and make contact with a German faculty member or administrative office. Your letters of recommendation should be from faculty or supporters who can verify your need to work in Germany. As always, get everything in on time. Graduate Student Research Grants/ German Language Study/Scholarships for Fine Arts, Architecture, Music, Dance

Award Purpose: To support students in the social sciences and hard sciences for research in Germany. To help students master the German language, complete a project in Germany, or study at a German university. Programs include a master’s program in German, independent study, and study for fine arts, architecture, music, dance. Deadline and Award Notification Date: November 1 or 15, depending on field for submission; end of March to beginning of April for notification

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Number of Awards Available: 60 Award Amount: 750 Euros with health insurance and travel stipends Application Form: Online Length of Award: One to two years Applicant Eligibility: Graduating seniors, graduate students, recent graduates; all fields welcome; U.S. or Canadian citizens Application Requirements: If studying at a DAAD partner university (see above), contact your on-campus coordinator; CV, resume, and study proposal; two letters of recommendation; language evaluation and transcripts; supplementary materials for artists and musicians. Application Comments and Advice: Be sure to explain clearly and convincingly why time in Germany is fundamental to your academic or professional goals. Start early and make contact with a German faculty member or administrative office. Your letters of recommendation should be from faculty or supporters who can verify your need to work in Germany. As always, get everything in on time.

Fulbright (IIE) Grants for Graduate Study, Graduate Research, English Teaching Worldwide Address: Institute of International Education (IIE) 809 United Nations Plaza New York, NY 10017-3580 Phone: 212-984-5327 Website: www.iie.org/fulbright Award Purpose: To promote mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of 155 other countries. Awards are made to college seniors about to graduate, recent college or university graduates, graduate students, doctoral candidates, young professionals, and artists. Applicants

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can apply through their college or university or individually as an At-Large candidate. Graduate study and research may include university study, independent library or field research, classes in music or art, and special projects in social and life sciences. English teaching assistantships offer classroom teaching opportunities. This area has seen a dramatic increase in awards in the last few years. Deadline and Award Notification Date: Mid-October for At-Large candidates’ submission; January for notification about whether the application has been sent to the host country; June for final notification. On-campus submission deadlines will be much earlier. Consult your campus coordinator. Washington University in St. Louis, for example, requires completed applications turned in to the Fulbright adviser in mid-September. A week later, applicants are interviewed by an on-campus Fulbright Committee. The university forwards the applications to the IIE. Number of Awards Available: Over 1,048 for graduate study and research; 685 for English teaching assistantships Average Number of Applicants: 5,489 for 1005 graduate study and research fellowships in 2010; 3,038 for 589 English teaching assistantships in 2010. The “Competition Statistics” page lists all countries, how many awards given, and how many applicants. For example, Sri Lanka had 5 awards with 14 applicants in 2010, while Australia had 11 awards and 123 applications. Award Amount: Award amounts vary. Full study and research grants include travel, book, and research allowances; cost of living stipend; health and accident insurance; tuition; and orientation course costs. English teaching grants are the same. Travel grants to Germany, Hungary, or Italy include round-trip transportation, health and accident insurance, and orientation course cost. Different countries have different types and numbers of awards. Russia has 20 full grants and 20 English teaching assistantships; Germany has 80 full grants, 5 travel grants, 5 professional journalism awards, and 140 teaching assistantships. The book, with over a hundred pages, lists all participating countries with a paragraph description that includes the number and types of grants offered. The book is available from the on-campus coordinator or through IIE. Be sure to get a copy. It is much easier to sort through the data in a booklet. The online information is difficult to navigate.

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Application Form: Online. Applicants enrolled in U.S. colleges or universities should contact their campus Fulbright coordinator and submit their application to the campus Fulbright Program Adviser. At-Large applicants should register online. Length of Award: Six months to one academic year. Applicant Eligibility: U.S. citizen; hold a B.A. degree equivalent before beginning date of grant; sufficient language proficiency at time of application; may hold a J.D. degree; must be in good health and provide a Certificate of Health. Certain restrictions apply relating to employment with the Department of State. Application Requirements: Field of study; citizenship information; degree information; GPA; work experience; publications; future plans, extracurricular and civic activities and an abstract of proposal; foreign experience; scholarships; dependents financial statement; three references; foreign-language evaluation; study or research statement or English Teaching statement; letter of affiliation for study or research applicants; personal statement; transcripts. Application Comments and Advice: Most students apply through their college or university. Go to whatever workshops are offered, whether you are an undergraduate or a graduate student. When you register with IIE Fulbright online, you will start to receive informational and encouraging emails weekly. IIE makes a series of Webinars and Guidance Sessions available. You should view whatever videos are relevant to your goals. Those applying, especially in the creative and performing arts, should view all videos available in those areas. In addition, you can access a Facebook site where Fulbright awardees dole out valuable insights. Be sure to join that conversation. You truly cannot have enough information. At-Large applicants especially should take advantage of the emailed IIE information. IIE also offers group sessions starting in April in various regions of the country; check the online site or booklet for cities and dates. Again, At-Large applicants should seriously consider attending. They should also be sure to contact their undergraduate or graduate campus Fulbright coordinator to discuss the application process. The application process is complicated, so start early. Since contacts abroad either for research or study must be made, assume it will take at least six months to get research contacts and letters of welcome from archives, a

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faculty mentor at a university, admission to an art program, whatever. Schedule this part of the process with an eye on the application deadline, which is always earlier on campus. The on-campus procedure usually includes preparation sessions, help with country and project identification, and an oncampus interview with a faculty committee. The abstract of proposal is limited to six lines. Study and research applicants should focus on “what, where, and why.” Teachers should describe what they bring to the program or why they chose a certain country or region. References must agree to work through an online reference service. The Study/Research Statement can be two typed, single-spaced pages, including citations and so on. The English Teaching statement is limited to one typed, single-spaced page. All statements must be in Times Roman 12-point type with one-inch margins. The Personal Statement is limited to one typed, single-spaced page. Here you describe yourself, your background, goals, interests, and career plans. This biography will help Fulbright know what kind of ambassador you will be abroad and how committed you are to fostering mutual understanding between nations. This section should be interesting, lively, and full of personal details. For English teachers especially, this is an important component. Those teaching English abroad truly represent the United States and should be patient, caring, kind, compassionate, and organized, and enthralled with world cultures. The personal statement should be slanted to the Fulbright Program, its goals as well as your research or study proposal or proposed teaching program. Applicants are judged on how much their project will foster goodwill; how well the project matches the country’s interest; and the ratio of applications to available positions. Important to the proposal is a justification for why the study or research project must be done in the chosen country. For example, are vital papers only available there? Reasons must be carefully and specifically spelled out. Consult with faculty and committee members to construct a reasonable time frame for project completion. Most people overestimate what can be done in ten months. Contacts abroad can be helpful with schedules. Be sure your language skills are up to speed before you apply. Be able to demonstrate your knowledge of the culture, politics, and history of your chosen country. Be positive in your approach to the concept of mutual understanding and improved communications among nations.

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Fulbright-Hays Doctoral Dissertation Research Abroad Address: U.S. Department of Education International Education Programs Service 1990 K Street, NW, Room 6084 Washington, DC 20006 Phone: 202-502-7689 Email: [email protected] Website: www2.ed.gov Award Purpose: To deepen research knowledge in areas of the world not generally included in U.S. curricula. To support doctoral dissertation research in modern foreign languages and area studies. To support research in 78 less commonly taught languages, including Akan (Twi-Fante), Albanian, Amharic, Arabic (all dialects), Armenian, Azeri (Azerbaijani), Balochi, Bamanakan (Bamana, Bambara, Mandikan, Mandingo, Maninka, Dyula), Belarusian, Bengali (Bangla), Berber (all languages), Bosnian, Bulgarian, Burmese, Cebuano (Visayan), Chechen, Chinese (Cantonese), Chinese (Gan), Chinese (Mandarin), Chinese (Min), Chinese (Wu), Croatian, Dari, Dinka, Georgian, Gujarati, Hausa, Hebrew (Modern), Hindi, Igbo, Indonesian, Japanese, Javanese, Kannada, Kashmiri, Kazakh, Khmer (Cambodian), Kirghiz, Korean, Kurdish (Kurmanji), Kurdish (Sorani), Lao, Malay (Bahasa Melayu or Malaysian), Malayalam, Marathi, Mongolian, Nepali, Oromo, Panjabi, Pashto, Persian (Farsi), Polish, Portuguese (all varieties), Quechua, Romanian, Russian, Serbian, Sinhala (Sinhalese), Somali, Swahili, Tagalog, Tajik, Tamil, Telugu, Thai, Tibetan, Tigrigna, Turkish, Turkmen, Ukrainian, Urdu, Uyghur/Uigur, Uzbek, Vietnamese, Wolof, Xhosa, Yoruba, and Zulu. Application is made by individual students through their graduate universities. Deadline and Award Notification Date: Early November for submission; April to May for notification. Number of Awards Available: Up to 155, depending on appropriation

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Average Number of Applicants: 567. Odds of winning vary from year to year; for example:

Africa Central/Eastern Europe/Eurasia East Asia Near East South Asia Southeast Asia Western Hemisphere TOTALS

Applications for 2010 Received

Funded

107 66 83 44 49 38 180 567

31 20 35 8 19 7 28 148

Award Amount: $25,000 to $40,000. Amount varies depending on chosen country and includes travel expenses; maintenance for applicant and dependents; project allowance for books, tuition, copying, and so on; health and accident insurance. Application Form: Online after October. Applicant must work with a staff member at his or her university. Length of Award: Six to twelve months Applicant Eligibility: U.S. citizen or national or U.S. permanent resident; graduate student admitted to candidacy and planning a career in teaching in the United States; sufficient language skills to carry out the proposal. Application Requirements: Designated area of study; country(ies) of research; research language(s); dissertation abstract; veteran status; previous overseas travel; references. Application Comments and Advice: Be sure to read the application to determine the topic focus. In 2010, the fields were environmental science, ecology, climate studies, development studies, economics, public health, education, and political science. Fields may change from year to year. Be sure to check the website or call the Department of Education for current topic foci. Reviewers use a scoring system with a 110-point maximum that includes 60 points for proposed project quality, 40 points for applicant qualifications, and 10 points for priority area of study.

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It is especially important to read the application guide regarding the point system. For example, justification for research abroad and contacts abroad are worth 10 points, as is a plan to share research results with scholars and officials in the host country. Both of these areas require that extensive detail be obtained from contacts in the host country before application. Be sure you are at the right stage in your research and that your academic qualifications, especially in language skills, are advanced enough to function within the proposed culture. You clearly must construct your proposal with help from faculty on campus as well as experts in your proposed area of research. So you must be far along in your dissertation proposal stage before application. Before you start, be sure to read the “Technical Review–Doctoral Dissertation Research Abroad” pages located in “Applications for Grants, FulbrightHays Doctoral Dissertation Research Abroad.” Then think like a reviewer when constructing your application. For example, under “V. Quality of Proposed Project,” the examiner is asked to consider “the statement of the major hypotheses to be tested or questions to be examined and the description and justification of the research methods to be used.” To get 10 points you will have to cover this area clearly and confidently. As with any government document, many pages have to be completed; some are done by the university, but many are your responsibility. Read carefully, start early, and get help. If you have a question that can only be answered by the Department of Education, get your university coordinator to call on your behalf. I was the university coordinator for a student who won an award to do research in Turkey. He was a U.S. permanent resident and a Palestinian with no passport. The Department of Education worked very hard to get him a visa to Turkey. All sorts of complications can arise when heading to non-Western countries, so start early and anticipate trouble.

Institute of Turkish Studies Summer Language Study Grants for Graduate Students in Social Sciences or Humanities Address: Institute of Turkish Studies Georgetown University Intercultural Center, Box 571033 Washington, DC 20057

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Phone: 202-687-0295 Email: [email protected] Website: http://turkishstudies.org Award Purpose: To support graduate students interested in summer language study and research in Turkey. To support students in the social sciences and humanities. Deadline and Award Notification Date: March for submission; May for notification Number of Awards Available: One to 5. Varies depending on funding and quality of applicants. Award Amount: $1,000 to $2,000 Application Form: Online Length of Award: Two-month minimum Applicant Eligibility: U.S. citizen or permanent resident; current enrollment at a U.S. university in social sciences or humanities Application Requirements: Two-page cover sheet; three-page project proposal that includes location and duration of language training and reasons for training, research project, and methodology; review of literature; contribution project will make to field; budget; three letters of recommendation; CV; transcripts. Application Comments and Advice: This grant is for those students doing research related to Turkey who are in need of language improvement. The Turkish Institute’s mission is the “advancement, research, and training in the field of Ottoman and modern Turkish Studies.” Your research project should be focused in those areas. The Institute also funds dissertation-writing grants. A look at the winners of previous awards can give you a sense of what topics are of interest.

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National Security Education Program (NSEP) David L. Boren Fellowships for International Language and Research Address: Boren Fellowships Institute of International Education (IIE) 1400 K Street, NW, 6th Floor Washington, DC 20005-2404 Phone: 800-618-6737 Email: [email protected] Website: www.borenawards.org Award Purpose: For master’s or doctoral-level graduate students interested in overseas research and language study and proficiency related to areas of critical interest to the United States. To encourage proficiency in less commonly taught languages, including but not limited to Chinese, Korean, Portuguese, Russian, and Swahili. Boren fellows study in Africa, Asia, Central and Eastern Europe, Eurasia, Latin America, and the Middle East. There is a complete list of countries on the website. Domestic Language Study is limited to summer intensive language study and is seen as a supplement to a proposed overseas program. It is possible to apply for a domestic-only year of study if going overseas is not practical. Overseas study is the primary focus of this grant. Deadline and Award Notification Date: February 1 for submission; by early May for notification Number of Awards Available: 90 to 100 Average Number of Applicants: 500 Award Amount: Maximum for domestic and abroad awards is $30,000 over 24 months. There is a payback service requirement. Recipients must search for an appropriate job in the Department of Defense, Homeland Security, or other federal government office and serve in that work for the same length of time as the award.

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Application Form: Online Length of Award: No longer than a year for overseas programs; 12 weeks to 24 months for others Applicant Eligibility: U.S. citizen; enrollment in an accredited U.S. university Application Requirements: Congressional voting state and district; program abstract; language of study; degree objective; overseas affiliation; GPA; employment history; list of activities relevant to the fellowships; overseas experience; honors and awards; list of government agencies where you would like to work; three essays; language assessment; budget; three letters of reference. Application Comments and Advice: While national security is the main purpose of the Boren, other area topics, such as sustainable development, environmental degradation, global disease, hunger, population growth, and migration and economic competitiveness, are also funded. These topics need to be framed within the concept of U.S. national security. Preference is given to the following fields: agricultural and food sciences, area studies, business and economics, computer and information sciences, foreign languages, health and biomedical science, history, international affairs, law, mathematics, sciences and engineering, social sciences, political science, and policy studies. Boren considers these factors when evaluating applications: • • • • •

Enthusiasm for government service; A strong, unique project; A plan for serious language study; A project that makes a compelling case for national security; and Strong letters of reference.

Study the most current list of fellows to get a sense of their topics. A recent list included “The Intersection of the Healthcare System and the Bedouin Community in Southern Israel,” “Competitive Poetics and Multilingualism in Tartar Cultural Production,” and “Regional Dimensions and State Failure: Exploring Somalia’s Impact on the Security and Stability of Kenya.” Three essays are required, with a fourth one optional. Essays 1 and 2

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should be no more than 6,000 characters, not including spaces. Essays 3 and 4 should be no more than 3,000 characters, not including spaces. Essay 1 is a description of your project, including language study overseas or domestically and your research project. Preference is given to overseas language study. Essay 2 details the significance of your project, region, and language to U.S. national security and your academic and career goals, including your government-service requirement. Essays 1 and 2 must work together to convince reviewers that your project is important and feasible and that you have the contacts and skills to complete it. Essay 3 is your plan to acquire language proficiency for the project and for your future academic and career goals. Essay 4 is for applicants interested in working for the Bureau of Asian Research that conducts independent research on issues affecting U.S. relations with Asia. In the end, Boren is looking for students who are committed to a career in government service, who have been trained overseas in an area critical to U.S. national security, and whose projects are important to U.S. relations with the chosen country.

Organization of American States (OAS) Graduate Academic Scholarships Each nation has a National Liaison Agency through which application must be made. The OAS website www.educoas.org provides a complete list of agencies for each country. Address: Organization of American States Department of Human Development 1889 F Street, NW, 6th Floor Washington, DC 20006 Phone: 202-458-6166 Email: [email protected] Website: www.educoas.org Award Purpose: To strengthen bonds among peoples of the hemisphere. To support study toward a master’s or doctoral degree and for graduate research. No awards for medical science or learning a new language.

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Select universities in the following countries participate in the OAS Graduate Scholarship Program: Argentina, Barbados, Bolivia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Grenada, Jamaica, Mexico, Panama, Peru, Trinidad and Tobago, United States, and Uruguay. Deadline and Award Notification Date: Submission and notification depends on sponsoring nation Number of Awards Available: 100 to 140, three to five for each sponsoring country. The budget changes from year to year. Average Number of Applicants: The number of applicants in each country is not reported to the central OAS office. Check with the liaison officer in your country. Award Amount: Up to $30,000 per academic year for tuition, other benefits, and administrative costs Application Form: Through the National Liaison Agency in each OAS country Length of Award: Up to two years Applicant Eligibility: Citizen of an OAS country that includes Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Barbados, Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Grenada, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Peru, St. Kitts/Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent/Grenadines, Suriname, Bahamas, United States, Uruguay, Venezuela. Prospective master’s or doctoral student at a university in an OAS country; have sufficient language skills; agree to return home 2 years after completing study or research program; be endorsed by a member state; be in good physical and mental health; have the required academic background. Application Requirements: Standardized test scores; GPA; publications, honors, and scholarships; employment information; essay; five-year plan for applying skills and knowledge to bring about change in your field; certificate of language proficiency; two letters of recommendation from faculty; one letter of recommendation from current or former employer; medical history; transcripts.

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Application Comments and Advice: There are two types of graduate fellowships: 1. Self-placed candidates apply directly to a university and separately to the OAS for funding. The average for this type is one scholarship per country. 2. OAS-placed candidates apply to the OAS for scholarships. The OAS seeks placement for awardees, taking into consideration countries preferred, fields of study indicated, language skills. There are many, many more of these fellowships available. Ten candidates are nominated by each sponsoring country. Those names are forwarded to a central OAS office where applicants are matched with the various universities and programs of the participating nations. Three to five of the ten candidates are awarded scholarships. The following fields of study are of importance to the OAS: culture; economic diversification and integration; trade liberalization; market access education; scientific development and exchange; transfer of technology; social development; creation of productive employment; strengthening democratic institutions; and sustainable development and the environment. The essay requires you to write an analysis of how your area of study will contribute to the developmental needs of your sponsoring country. In addition, you are required to return to your country for two years upon completion of study, and the application asks you to develop a plan for applying the knowledge learned to bring about change in your field of study. These two areas should work as two halves of a whole. Remember the purpose of this scholarship is to strengthen bonds among the peoples of the hemisphere as well as to bring about change in your field and, implicitly, how things are done in your country. As an American, you might have a plan for exchanging specific scientific information with other members of the OAS, thus building an international research collaborative benefiting all nations involved in the transfer. This essay section will also reflect how much information you have about the country in which you want to study as well as your own. The information needs to be specific and compelling.

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Rhodes Scholarships for Study at Oxford University Address: Office of the American Secretary The Rhodes Trust 8229 Boone Boulevard, Suite 240 Vienna, VA 22182 Phone: Contact your campus coordinator or email questions to the Rhodes Trust. Email: [email protected] Website: www.rhodesscholar.org Award Purpose: To bring outstanding students from around the world to study at Oxford University. Deadline and Award Notification Date: Your college or university should have a staff person who coordinates the Rhodes and Marshall programs. Check to see whether there is a campus deadline. Applications are due to Rhodes in early October. There is an interview process for those selected at the district level that is in late November. Number of Awards Available: 32 awardees from 300 American colleges and universities. On average, each year a scholar is chosen from a college or university that has never had a Rhodes winner. Award Amount: All educational costs; a maintenance stipend; travel to and from Oxford Application Form: Online, but must be endorsed by your undergraduate college or university Length of Award: Two to three years depending on degree sought. A fourth year of support to complete a doctoral degree is possible at the discretion of the trustees, although only tuition and not maintenance fees will be considered. Applicant Eligibility: U.S. citizen aged at least 18 but not yet 24 on October 1 of the application year; citizens of Bermuda, Canada, the Commonwealth

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Caribbean, Jamaica, Kenya, New Zealand, Zambia, and Zimbabwe who attend undergraduate institutions in the United States are eligible to apply in their own constituencies (check the rules yearly with regard to these Commonwealth regulations); completion of a bachelor’s degree before entering Oxford; formal endorsement of undergraduate college or university. Application Requirements: District selection; secondary school information; proposed course of study, such as M.Phil. in economics; up to eight references; institutional endorsement; personal statement and essay; transcripts; list of activities; photograph. Application Comments and Advice: Years ago, the Rhodes required physical prowess in sports. That criterion has been replaced by physical vigor, although interest and participation in sports does help. Cecil Rhodes, the founder of the scholarship, insisted that his scholars be “more than mere bookworms.” That said, intellectual ability is still very important. Student field interest is not restricted except to the offerings of Oxford University. The selection process in the United States is done through sixteen districts, each electing two candidates. You can apply from your home district or the district in which your college or university is located. The following districts are: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16.

Maine, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Rhode Island, Vermont Connecticut, Massachusetts New York Delaware, Pennsylvania, West Virginia Maryland/District of Columbia, North Carolina Georgia, Virginia Alabama, Florida, Tennessee Louisiana, Oklahoma, Texas Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio Illinois, Michigan Iowa, Minnesota, Wisconsin Arkansas, Kansas, Mississippi, Missouri, South Carolina Colorado, Nebraska, New Mexico, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Washington, Wyoming California North, Hawaii, Nevada California South, Arizona

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The personal statement must not exceed 1,000 words in length and requires your proposed course of study and reasons for interest in Oxford. Obviously, you must do your research about Oxford, the fields of study offered, the culture, and the region. You need to fit into the university and its surrounds. Important in selection are intellectual ability, physical energy, integrity of character, interest in and respect for others, and ability to lead. All these must be incorporated into your personal-statement essay. Use your specific experiences to exemplify physical energy, integrity, respect for others, and leadership. Maybe you run three miles a day, do volunteer work at a homeless shelter, and are president of a campus organization. Be sure to attend any campus workshop for the Rhodes. Work with a faculty adviser and Rhodes coordinator on your essay. If you gain an interview, talk to your coordinator about interviewing skills. Rhodes wants bright, affable people who are comfortable living and interacting in a foreign setting.

Rotary Foundation Ambassadorial Scholarships Address: The Rotary Foundation One Rotary Center 1560 Sherman Avenue Evanston, IL 60201-3698 Phone: Contact your local Rotary Club Website: www.rotary.org Award Purpose: To foster goodwill and world peace and increase awareness of and respect for cultural differences; to instill the ideal of service above self; to develop leaders who can improve the quality of life worldwide; to alleviate poverty, improve health, support education; to foster a lifelong connection between Rotarians and scholars. Although all fields of interest are supported, programs that reflect Rotary purposes are favored, such as disease prevention and treatment, maternal and child health, and economic and community development. The scholarships may be used for academic or vocational training. Rotary scholarships “cannot be applied to unsupervised research, medical internships or residencies, or employment. Scholars planning to pursue medical studies are not permitted to engage in hands-on procedures or direct-care patient services.”

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Application is done through a local Rotary Club that must be willing to support your proposed program. Deadline and Award Notification Date: Deadlines are determined by the local Rotary Club and can be from January through July. Your local club is in the area of your permanent residence or full-time study. Because this is a lengthy procedure, Rotary recommends you start at least 18 to 20 months before going abroad. Notification September through December. Number of Awards Available: 700 awards to over 70 countries Average Number of Applicants: This number varies widely from year to year depending on local club participation Award Amount: $26,000. If costs such as travel, maintenance, and tuition exceed the scholarship, awardees are expected to pay the difference. Application Form: Online but submitted through a local Rotary Club. Clubselected candidates will be forwarded to a district level, and district-endorsed candidates will be forwarded to a national committee. Length of Award: One academic year Applicant Eligibility: Be a citizen of a country in which there is a Rotary Club; have completed at least two years of college or university coursework. Rotarian children, grandchildren, or employees are ineligible. Application Requirements: Attend one orientation seminar if offered; application to an overseas institution determined by Rotary; proof of sufficient language skills; an autobiographical essay; a statement describing reasons for applying, proposed field of study and career plans, and how these plans will foster world understanding and peace, and a community-service project you will carry out while abroad; two recommendations; transcripts; a personal interview with Rotary representatives. Application Comments and Advice: The goals of Rotary should frame your essays. Rotary is looking for idealistic young people who will travel to a foreign country and become goodwill ambassadors during their tenure abroad

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as well as when they come back. They want scholars who appreciate Rotary ideals and want to have a lifelong relationship with Rotarians. Rotarians are devoted to peace in the world, alleviating poverty and hunger, and improving health care in the Third World. Key to this is a willingness to speak often to Rotary Club gatherings. If you win an award, you will be expected to go to your sponsoring club and speak before you leave and many times after you come back. I suggest attending several Rotary Club meetings to get a feeling for the culture (make sure you select a club that is involved in the Scholarship Program). If you find this organization’s culture comfortable and inspiring, talk to the leadership about applying for a scholarship. Your chances of winning are increased if you are interested in study in one of the following less-applied-to areas: Japan, Korea, Scandinavia, and developing nations in Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe, and South America. Finally, start very early. The Rotary process is long and complicated.

Other Study-Abroad Fellowship Programs and Goals Belgian American Foundation Fellowships To support advanced study or research at a Belgian university or institution of higher education.

Council on International Educational Exchange (CIEE) To support overseas study through a variety of programs.

George Lurcy Fellowships for Study in France To support students from selected universities to do advanced doctoral research or study in France.

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Henry Luce Foundation Scholars To support students chosen from 75 participating universities to do research or study in Asia. For scholars “who would not otherwise have the opportunity to know Asia intimately.” The Luce Foundation does not accept applications submitted directly by individual candidates.

World Bank Scholarships Japan Indonesia Scholarships

To support three to four years of Ph.D. graduate work at ten Indonesian Centers of Excellence. Joint Japan/World Bank Graduate Scholarships

To support graduate study in World Bank member nations’ universities. Over 60 percent of applicants are from Africa. All applicants must be citizens of World Bank member nations. Robert McNamara Fellowship Program

To support dissertation research in a variety of fields for a five- to tenmonth stay in a host country. Acceptable fields include economics, health, education, agriculture, environment, and natural-resource management.

Chapter 5

Research Grants

This chapter presents general information and application-writing advice for research grants for which an individual may apply. It also describes in detail the following specific grant opportunities: 1. American Bar Association Janet D. Steiger Fellowships 2. American Museum of Natural History Grants (for ornithology, marine biology, wildlife conservation and ornithology, travel to the museum, exchanges with France and Germany) 3. American Philosophical Society: Lewis and Clark Fund for Exploration and Field Research Grants; Exploration and Field Research Grants in Astrobiology 4. Charles A. and Anne Morrow Lindbergh Foundation Grants 5. Deutscher Akademischer Austausch Dienst (DAAD) Research Grants 6. Explorers Club Exploration Fund Grants 7. Geological Society of America Graduate Student Research Grants 8. Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) Research Training Fellowships for Medical, Dental, Veterinary Students 9. Sigma Xi Grants-in-Aid of Research 10. White House and Presidential Libraries Travel and Research Grants Grants in this section are of interest to junior and senior undergraduates, first-year through fifth-year graduate students, and postdoctoral scholars. Fields funded by one or more of these grants are in the social sciences, humanities, sciences, law, and medicine.

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General Information The purpose of research grants is to support work on a specific project. The project may be in the exploratory, middle, or advanced stage. Research grants are available to purchase equipment and other supplies, conduct surveys and experiments, provide living support, and encourage travel to archives and collections. Locating research money often takes careful detective work. While wellknown opportunities are on the Internet and in publications, far more can be found through determined hunting. Reading journals in your discipline and contacting associations and societies within your field of research are good ways to tap into these funds. Another place to look for research money is through nonacademic, notfor-profit agencies. The online Encyclopedia of Associations reached through the Dialog website lists “over 159,000 nonprofit membership organizations worldwide.” “The Encyclopedia of Associations database provides addresses and descriptions of professional societies, trade associations, labor unions, cultural and religious organizations, fan clubs, and other groups of all types.” Other sources include local, state, or regional agencies and foundations that are too small to be noticed by larger databases and grant lists. Somewhere in every state is an organization that gathers information about these resources and makes them available. The Secretary of State’s office can lead you to these sources. The Foundation Center database, available through many public and university libraries, also describes many small, local foundations. State governments often offer research grants, especially in conservation, public health, historic preservation, social welfare, public policy, agriculture, environmental improvement, and education. Many states have online listings of available research grants. When I was in graduate school, I applied for and received a grant from the State of Missouri to study and map nineteenthcentury architectural styles and buildings in Gasconade County, a project that lasted two years. Museums, archives, and libraries are also sources of unadvertised research money. Because organizations are eager to have qualified scholars use their resources, they often set aside money for the purpose of bringing scholars in to study their collections, manuscripts, documents, or other holdings. When looking for this sort of support, first determine where data is located, then contact the institution by phone to see whether grants are available. Many times that information will be listed on the institution’s website.

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The more famous museum and library research grants may be well known, but there are many more that are not easily found and that take determination and perseverance to locate.

Application Advice Hunt in out-of-the-way places. Look through trade publications, journals, newsletters, career libraries on campus, and specialty libraries. When a grant seems to fit your project but the organization information is not clear, call the agency. Email can work, especially if you have a contact, but you may get instant results with a phone call. If the application asks for a general description of the research project, be sure to indicate the problem to be solved and how the problem is to be solved. Be sure to explain how your research plan will be enhanced by the grant, what significance your research will be to the field, and who is likely to benefit from your research. For example, say you are researching Truman’s involvement in the development of the atomic bomb, and you need information from the Truman Library. State the specifics of your research; why you want to travel to Independence, Missouri; and what records you want to look at and why. You will need to know what specific records the library has that will shed light on your research. Be sure to frame the project within the context of the larger picture. This advice is especially true when you are trying to support part of your research. Carefully research your financial needs and prepare a realistic budget. Consult with faculty or the research office in this area, especially if the application requirements are complicated. Sometimes money is available only through faculty or institutional sponsorship. If this is the case, try to find a faculty mentor who will agree to act as principal investigator (PI). If a faculty PI is used, the project will usually go through the institution’s sponsored-projects office. In this case, all sorts of signatures may be needed, and the budget will be reviewed outside the department. This process takes time, so start early.

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Specific Grant Opportunities The research grant opportunities listed in this section are just a sample of what is available. Be sure to consult Chapter 6, “Dissertation Fellowships and Grants,” for more research funding opportunities. All information, except the authors’ advice, is taken from the actual application information, including data on the website. Every effort is made to use the same language as that on the application or to paraphrase or summarize that language.

American Bar Association Janet D. Steiger Fellowships Address: American Bar Association 321 N. Clark St. Chicago, IL 60654-7598 Phone: 800-285-2221, ext. 6726, or 312-988-6726 Email: [email protected] Website: www.abanet.org Award Purpose: To support law students in summer work or research positions in state Offices of Attorneys General and the Georgia Governor’s Office of Consumer Affairs in the area of antitrust. This “consumer protection outreach initiative” introduces law students “to the rewards of legal careers in public service.” Twenty geographic areas participate in the program. Each year the sites change, so look at the current application materials. Deadline and Award Notification Date: Late January for submission (be sure to check as date changes from year to year). Notification depends on geographic area. Number of Awards Available: 20 Average Number of Applicants: The number varies according to geographic area.

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Award Amount: $5,000 stipend plus travel and housing in some circumstances Application Form: Online Length of Award: Eight weeks Applicant Eligibility: First- or second-year law student at an ABA-accredited law school. Application Requirements: Two-page statement of interest; writing sample from a law class; law-school transcript. Application Comments and Advice: Janet Steiger was chair of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) from 1989 until 1995 and served as a commissioner until 1997. Through her efforts, the FTC “reestablished ties with the Attorney’s general throughout the states, the Antitrust Section of the ABA, and with the Antitrust section of the Justice Department.” Because of this tie, the ABA established this fellowship program. If you are interested in consumer protection and antitrust law as well as a possible public-service career, this fellowship provides a wonderful opportunity: a chance to see how this area of the law functions at the state level. Be sure to articulate your interest in an intelligent, well-informed statement. Do your homework and learn about the workings of the office to which you intend to apply. Find out what cases are in the pipeline. Be specific in your statement.

American Museum of Natural History (AMNH) Research Grants Address: American Museum of Natural History Central Park West at 79th Street New York, NY 10024-5192 Phone: 212-769-5100 Email: See under grant headings online Website: www.amnh.org

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Award Purpose: To support advanced graduate students and postdoctoral scholars with the following awards: • Frank M. Chapman Memorial Grants for ornithology • Lerner-Gray Grants for marine biology • Theodore Roosevelt Memorial Grants for research in wildlife conservation other than ornithology • Collection Study Grants for travel and subsistence while visiting the museum collections • Annette Kade Graduate Student Fellowship Exchange with France and Germany Deadline and Award Notification Date: Deadlines and notification vary according to each grant. Number of Awards Available: 121. Up to 33 for Chapman, 42 for Lerner-Gray, 43 for Roosevelt, 3 for Kade. Average Number of Applicants: Varies according to area Award Amount: Depending on the grant, $200 to $3,000 Application Form: Online Length of Award: Three months to two years Applicant Eligibility: Graduate students and postdocs enrolled in the field funded by the grant. Project in keeping with the museum’s area of research interests. Application Requirements: CV; project description; references; budget. Application Comments and Advice: The applications for most of these grants are simple. The AMNH is interested only in applicants who have projects in the museum’s areas of interest. Call to make sure your research is compatible with AMNH collections. Collection Study Grant applicants should first contact the museum and talk to a staff member to discuss the collection content and to secure a staff member with whom to work while in residence.

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Although Chapman, Roosevelt, and Lerner-Gray grants do not require contact with the museum, common sense would dictate doing so. Annette Kade grants are initiated by adviser sponsorship, so contact your adviser about the program. If your adviser is unaware of the program’s nature, call the museum for information. With all these grants, except the Kade, you will need to provide a description of the project that includes the big as well as the little picture; the research plan, including the time frame; the significance of the project; the contribution it will make to science; and, very important, the relevance to museum activities and interests.

American Philosophical Society Lewis and Clark Fund for Exploration and Field Research, Exploration and Field Research in Astrobiology Address: American Philosophical Society 104 South Street Philadelphia, PA 19106-3387 Phone: 215-440-3429 Website: www.amphilsoc.org/grants Email: [email protected] Award Purpose: Lewis and Clark Fund: to encourage doctoral-student research and exploratory field studies for the collection of specimens and data primarily in the fields of archaeology, anthropology, biology, ecology, geography, geology, linguistics, and paleontology. Astrobiology: to encourage graduate students and postdoctoral scholars in the continued exploration of the world in astrobiological fields, including astronomy, chemistry, evolutionary biology, field and population biology, geology, microbiology, molecular biology, oceanography, paleontology, and planetary science. “Astrobiology includes investigations of the geologic and fossil record to understand the conditions of the early Earth when life arose. Its scope also includes research of contemporary locations on Earth that might be similar

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to early Earth and to environments elsewhere in our Solar System (such as on Mars, Europa, and Titan), which may be, or have been in the past, suitable for life. Astrobiology is also about understanding the characteristics of life, which requires investigations into extreme natural environments on Earth and, eventually, elsewhere.” Deadline and Award Notification Date: Lewis and Clark Fund: mid-January for submission, and May for notification; Astrobiology: early February for submission, and May for notification. Number of Awards Available: Lewis and Clark Fund: 46; Astrobiology: 7 Average Number of Applicants: Lewis and Clark Fund: 400; Astrobiology: 20 Award Amount: Up to $1,000 to $6,000 Application Form: Online Length of Award: Dependent on field research Applicant Eligibility: U.S. citizens and permanent residents and foreign nationals based at a U.S. university or planning to carry out work in the United States; doctoral students. Application Requirements: All required permits to do field work; project title, including time period to be studied and geographic location if appropriate; brief description of filed trip or exploratory project; dates of trip or project; amount requested; description of project nature, including hypotheses to be tested, observations to be made, equipment to be used, field methods, safety and training procedures, and how funded work fits into thesis; publications; language ability and travel experience; budget; other grants applied for and received; two letters of support, including one from academic adviser. Application Comments and Advice: The scope section of the website tells us that the grants are provided to “encourage exploratory field studies for the collection of specimens and data and to provide imaginative stimulus that accompanies direct observation.” Your project should articulate the sense of

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“imaginative stimulus” that will inspire your project. The work must absolutely be key to your thesis.

Charles A. and Anne Morrow Lindbergh Foundation Grants Address: The Charles A. and Anne Morrow Lindbergh Foundation 2150 Third Avenue North, Suite 310 Anoka, MN 55303-2200 Phone: 763-576-1596 Email: [email protected] Website: www.lindberghfoundation.org Award Purpose: To fund projects that further Charles Lindbergh’s “vision of a balance between the advance of technology and the preservation of the natural/human environment.” Deadline and Award Notification Date: Early June for submission; mid-July for notification Number of Awards Available: 8 to 10 Average Number of Applicants: 200 Award Amount: Up to $10,580 (the amount represents the cost of the airplane, the Spirit of St. Louis) Application Form: Online Length of Award: One year Applicant Eligibility: An innovative project at the early, developmental stage that fits the grant purpose Application Requirements: Five copies of the completed application; one letter of reference; two reference names; balance statement; project description;

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budget; methodology; review of literature; project timeline; selection of one or two of the following categories in which the proposed project must fit: 1. Agriculture 2. Aviation/Aerospace 3. Conservation of: Animal Resources Plant Resources Water Resources 4. General Conservation (land, air, energy, etc.) 5. Education and Art 6. Education/Intercultural Communication 7. Exploration 8. Health and Population Sciences 9. Health/Biomedical Research 10. Waste Minimization and Management (A note of caution: There are two lists of categories, one from the application and another from the “Examples by Category” page. The lists are very similar but not exactly the same. The list used here is from “Examples by Category.”) Application Comments and Advice: The preference is for aviation- and environment-related projects. Be sure to read about the foundation’s history, mission, and programs. In addition, the “Vision” and “Mission” sections of the application should serve as a guide. Balance is a word that should be used repeatedly, especially in the balance statement. When writing the proposal, avoid disciplinary jargon. Reviewers of the “Balance” section may not have your technical expertise, so writing in layman’s language is required. If technical information is important in the Balance section, indicate why this is so, and also write as much as possible in plain language. Write clearly and concisely and emphasize the potential, long-range impact of your research. Methodology, procedures, and objectives must be clearly stated so that a nonscientist can understand them. The foundation states, “The longer the application, the more reviewers tend to skim the material.” They further advise you to “ask yourself how much you would like to read if you were the reviewer.” There is a section on the website called “Examples by Category.” Be sure to

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look at the samples in your project category for the foundation’s idea of what is highly fundable.

Deutscher Akademischer Austausch Dienst (DAAD) Research Grants Address: DAAD New York 871 United Nations Plaza New York, NY 10017 Phone: 212-758-3223 Email: [email protected] Website: www.daad.org Award Purpose: To support highly qualified Ph.D. candidates in their early academic or professional careers or to support those wishing to earn a doctoral degree in Germany and recent Ph.D.s who want to conduct research in Germany. Deadline and Award Notification Date: Mid-November for short- and longterm grants for submission; notification in end of March or beginning of April. Mid-May for short-term grants for submission; notification in mid-August. Average Number of Applicants: 20–25 percent of applicants receive awards. Award Amount: 1,000 Euros a month; health insurance and travel costs; language-course stipend in some cases Application Form: Online Length of Award: Short-term, one to six months; long-term, seven to ten months. For those enrolling in a Ph.D. program in Germany, up to three years. Applicant Eligibility: U.S. or Canadian citizen or permanent resident, or foreign student who has been enrolled for two or more years in a U.S. or

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Canadian university; students enrolled in full-time, doctoral-degree programs (ABD) or in postdoctoral positions; those wishing to enroll in a Ph.D. program in Germany; a good command of German. Application Requirements: CV; research proposal no more than five to six double-spaced pages; two letters of recommendation; evidence of contact with a German institution; language certificate; confirmation of Ph.D. status when applicable; transcripts. Application Comments and Advice: The proposal should focus on the academic status of your research area and how your project fits into that scheme. Emphasize why you must go to Germany to do your research. Be clear in your methodology and concise in your writing. They want your name on every page.

Explorers Club Exploration Fund Grants Address: Explorers Club 46 East 70th Street New York, NY 10021 Phone: 212-628-8383 Email: [email protected] Website: www.explorers.org Award Purpose: To support exploration and field research for graduate students and postdoctoral scholars at the beginning of their research professional careers. Deadline and Award Notification Date: Early December for submission; April for announcement. Number of Awards Available: 30 to 35 Average Number of Applicants: 230 to 250

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Award Amount: $500 to $5,000 Application Form: Online Length of Award: Depends on the project. The amount can cover travel and some living expenses for a short period. Applicant Eligibility: Graduate student or postdoctoral scholar Application Requirements: One-page project description with focus on scientific objectives; budget; career objectives; letter of recommendation from faculty or project supervisor; student ID showing proof of current enrollment; agreement to write a written report within six months of funded project completion; liability release. Application Comments and Advice: The Explorers Club is a quirky organization. For example, sometimes an application is available online, and at other times it is nowhere to be found. Be sure to join the club. The application recommends you do so. The application, if you can find it, is straightforward. Succinctness is highly valued in the project description. The application tells you to pay attention to scientific objectives, to include any maps or diagrams, and to name project associates. The best of all worlds is to secure a place on an expedition, such as an archaeological dig or other organized field research project, before applying for support. Make sure your letter of recommendation is from a project supervisor or faculty adviser who can attest to your qualifications to carry out the project and your potential success in field research. Because the club tends to disorganization, be persistent. If late spring comes and you have not heard from them, call and politely ask when awards will be announced. The actual money may come after the field work is completed, as it did for my son when he worked on a dig in Greece. All said, this is a wonderful resource for anthropologists, archaeologists, ecologists, environmentalists, biologists, conservationists, zoologists, oceanographers, astronomers, paleontologists, speleologists, and any graduate student or postdoctoral scholar interested in exploration, field research, and an affiliation with a great organization.

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Geological Society of America (GSA) Graduate Student Research Grants Address: Geological Society of America Grants, Awards, and Recognition P.O. Box 9140 Boulder, CO 80301-9140 Phone: 303-357-1028 Email: [email protected] Website: www.geosociety.org/grants/gradgrants/htm Award Purpose: To provide partial support for master’s and doctoral thesis research in the geological sciences to student GSA members enrolled in the United States, Canada, Mexico, and Central America. Women, minorities, and disabled persons are especially encouraged to apply. Deadline and Award Notification Date: Early February for submission; late April for notification Number of Awards Available: 245 Average Number of Applicants: 50 percent of applicants receive awards Award Amount: Up to $4,000 Application Form: Online Length of Award: Depends on project Applicant Eligibility: Membership in GSA; a student currently enrolled in a U.S., Mexican, Canadian, or Central American university in earth sciences or geology; an email address. Application Requirements: A statement addressing the problem(s) to be resolved; the hypothesis or hypotheses to be tested; budget; reference from supervisor.

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Application Comments and Advice: The application is simple and straightforward. No transcripts are required, which means you will be judged primarily on your project and your supervisor’s assessment. The application is a model of clarity. You are allowed a certain number of characters to explain the problem, the hypothesis, the test, the project duration, and the budget. The GSA does not tolerate wordiness. In some ways, this application is tougher because of the enforced economy of words. You will have to rewrite several times to make sure the essentials are covered. The more concise and meatier the explanation, the greater the impact the project has on science, and the more reasonable the time frame, the more likely an award. There is a great web page entitled “Suggestions for Research Grant Applicants.” There you are asked to put yourself in the shoes of the people who will read your application and to remember that they are going to be skeptical and critical. Your job is to convince the critics that yours is the best possible project. Here they emphasize significance and the soundness of your plan.

Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) Research Training Fellowships for Medical, Dental, Veterinary Students Address: HHMI Medical Education Programs 1 Cloister Court, Building 60, Room 254 Bethesda, MD 20814-1460 Phone: 800-424-9924 Email: [email protected] Website: hhmi.org Award Purpose: To support a year of basic, translational, or applied biomedical research training for medical, dental, and veterinary students. Also for students researching inherited retinal degenerative disease. Acceptable fields of research include biochemistry, bioinformatics, biomedical engineering, biophysics, cell biology, developmental biology, epidemiology, genetics, immunology, mathematical and computational biology, microbiology, neuroscience, pharmacology, physiology, structural biology, and virology.

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Deadline and Award Notification Date: Early January for submission; midMarch for notification Number of Awards Available: 66 Average Number of Applicants: 237 Award Amount: $28,500 stipend; $5,500 for health insurance; $1,500 relocation expenses if necessary; $5,500 for other expenses Application Form: Online Length of Award: One year Applicant Eligibility: U.S. citizen or foreign student with visa; medical, dental, veterinary student. Not open to programs combining medical, dental, or veterinary programs with a Ph.D. Application Requirements: Reference contact information; research experience; professional activities; honors and awards; publications; one-page personal statement; project title; 1,600-character (including spaces and punctuation) research-plan summary; five single-spaced pages for research project plan; project citations; three letters of reference, including one from the dean; project mentor. Application Comments and Advice: The selection of a mentor is very important to success. This person will be responsible for supervising a year of full-time research and so must be chosen carefully. The mentor can be at your home institution or somewhere else. The mentor should be a recently published, experienced investigator. Work with the mentor to develop a project that involves “basic biological processes or disease mechanisms.” Be sure the project is feasible within the time frame. There is a section in the application titled “Research Mentor and Research Plan” that should be studied carefully. Remember that selection is based on your promise as a physician-scientist and the quality of the project proposed.

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Sigma Xi Grants-in-Aid of Research Address: Sigma Xi P.O. Box 13975 3106 East NC Highway 54 Research Triangle Park, NC 27709 Phone: 800-243-6534 or 919-549-4691 Email: [email protected] Website: www.sigmaxi.org Award Purpose: To promote scientific excellence and foster close working relationships between students and faculty. Areas of research supported are anthropology, behavioral ecology, cell biology and biochemistry, chemistry, computer science and mathematics, conservation biology, ecology, engineering, paleontology and sedimentation, hydrology and geomorphology, physics and astronomy, physiology and functional morphology, psychology, systematics and evolutionary biology, tectonics and geophysics. Deadline and Award Notification Date: Mid-March and mid-October for submission; end of May and end of December for notification Number of Awards Available: 400–500 per year Average Number of Applicants: 1,000+ for March; 800 for October Award Amount: Up to $1,000 for all areas of science (average award is $600); up to $5,000 for astronomy research; up to $2,500 for vision-related research. Awards may be used for purchase of specific equipment (restrictions apply), travel, and reimbursement of human subjects. Application Form: Online Length of Award: Depends on project Applicant Eligibility: Enrolled undergraduate or graduate student in a science program. Applicants may have two awards in their lifetime.

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Application Requirements: Two reference letters; supporting literature; budget; 500-word proposal. Application Comments and Advice: While membership in Sigma Xi is not required, around 75 percent of funds go to student members. Even if you did not receive an award, membership in this organization is well worthwhile. The “Tips or Preparing a Successful Application” section emphasizes starting early, stating goals and hypothesis clearly, indicating significance or research, and putting your project within the context of the larger research picture. When you look at the award list you will be amazed at the universities not represented. This is a great opportunity for research seed money from a terrific organization. With up to 300 awards a year available, you cannot pass this up if you have a worthy project. One great piece of advice Sigma Xi offers is “don’t write on the fly.” Think through your proposal, take time to rewrite the application, and have a mentor read it. Be brief, compelling, and informative.

White House and Presidential Libraries Travel and Research Grants White House Association Research Grants

Address: White House Historical Association Research Grants Program P.O. Box 27624 Washington, DC 20038-7624 Phone: 202-737-8292 Website: www.whitehousehistory.org Award Purpose: To support research at the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), Presidential Library System, Library of Congress, and other repositories. To encourage new White House scholarship, such as on life and work in the White House, including social and diplomatic functions, the president, first lady, and first family; and on the physical structure, such as construction, renovation, and decoration.

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Deadline and Award Notification Date: March 1 and September 1 for submission; spring and fall for notification Number of Awards Available: 30 Award Amount: Up to $2,000 Application Form: Online Length of Award: To be used within a year of award notification Applicant Eligibility: A research project fitting the association mission Application Requirements: A statement describing the project and final product; two-page project proposal; verification from archives that material for project is available; CV; three professional references; budget. Application Comments and Advice: The first step is to determine the location of information needed for your project and then call the archives or library and talk to a resource person. You will need this person to verify availability of documents. Check to see whether the archive offers any financial support for your research. This application is simple and straightforward. The most important factors are verified access to materials, a reasonable budget, and the significance of the research to the White House Historical Association’s mission. Be sure to put your project within the larger historical picture so that context is established. You only have two pages, so be clear and concise. Look at the list of recent winners for clues about what enchants the association. Presidential Libraries

For basic information about presidential libraries, be sure to visit the National Archives website. Here you will find information about all thirteen presidential libraries and how they may be contacted. Every president since Herbert Hoover has established a library to hold documents related to his years as president as well as other aspects of his life. Most libraries have some sort of travel grant available for research. Some have more elaborate funding, such as the Truman Dissertation Year Fellowship. Grants available are listed below.

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George Bush Presidential Library and Museum Address: Texas A & M University 4220 TAMU College Station, TX 77843 Phone: 979-845-1540 Email: [email protected] Website: http://bush.tamu.edu/scowcroft/grants/korea Award Purpose: Korea Grant: to support research at the library on East Asia, specifically Korea; O’Donnell Grant: to support general research at the library Deadline and Award Notification Date: Mid-November for Korea and O’Donnell submission; end of January for notification Number of Awards Available: Korea, 1 to 5; O’Donnell, 7 to 9 Average Number of Applicants: O’Donnell, 8 to 18; Korea, 2 to 3 (in January 2011, no one had applied for the Korea Grant by the mid-November deadline, so they extended the deadline to March). Award Amount: $500 to $2,500 Application Form: Online guidelines Length of Award: Awards must be used within a year of notification. Applicant Eligibility: A research project of interest to the Bush Library Application Requirements: A research proposal discussing the nature and scope of research; CV; three reference names; budget. Application Comments and Advice: Contact a librarian to discuss your archival needs. Find out what is available and whether travel to the library is necessary. Sometimes documents can be delivered electronically. Once your

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needs are established, write a clear, concise proposal. The Scowcroft Institute, which oversees research grants, is interested in supporting research that has the most likelihood of being published and brings new light to a subject, so be sure to emphasize the significance of your project and the publication potential. Many of the grants are given to support dissertation research projects. If your research is part of a larger project, provide the context. Pay careful attention to methodology and how library holdings will be approached and used within your research. Finally, be sure to look at the list of past winners and the thumbnail descriptions of their projects to get an idea about what research is of interest to the library. George W. Bush Presidential Library Email: [email protected] Website: www.georgewbushlibrary.gov As of this edition, the George W. Bush library has a temporary location in Lewisville, Texas. In November 2010, ground was broken at Southern Methodist University for the permanent facility, and the building completion is projected for 2013. Records, which are not available until five years after the end of the administration, should be accessible January 20, 2014. President Bush’s records from his years as governor of Texas are available through the Texas State Library and Archives. Jimmy Carter Library and Museum Address: 441 Freedom Parkway Atlanta, GA 30307-1498 Phone: 404-865-7100 Email: See Contact Us! on website Website: www.jimmycarterlibrary.gov The Jimmy Carter Library does not offer travel grants. If your project is at all related to Jimmy Carter or his family in the White House or events at the White House during the Carter Administration, see the White House

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Association Research Grants detailed above in this chapter. Check with a Carter Library archivist to see whether there are any materials you need that might fit White House Association interests. William J. Clinton Presidential Library and Museum Address: 1200 President Clinton Avenue Little Rock, AR 72201 Phone: 501-374-4242 Email: [email protected] Website: www.clintonlibrary.gov The William J. Clinton Library does not offer travel grants. If your project is at all related to Bill Clinton or his family in the White House or events at the White House during the Clinton Administration, see the White House Association Research Grants detailed above in this chapter. Check with a Clinton Library archivist to see whether there are any materials you might need that fit White House Association interests. Dwight D. Eisenhower Library Travel Grants Address: Abilene Travel Grants Program Eisenhower Foundation c/o Eisenhower Presidential Library P.O. Box 295 200 S.E. 4th Street Abilene, KS 67410 Phone: 785-263-6700 Email: [email protected] Website: www. Eisenhower.archives.gov Award Purpose: To facilitate research at the library in the fields of history, government, economics, communications, and international affairs

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Deadline and Award Notification Date: Late February and late September for submission; six weeks after application deadline for notification Number of Awards Available: 10 Average Number of Applicants: 20 Award Amount: Up to $1,000, depending on distance traveled and length of stay in Abilene Application Form: Online Length of Award: Must be completed in one year Applicant Eligibility: A research project of interest to the library Application Requirements: Project title; research proposal of five pages or less describing project scope, objective of research, methodology, possible conclusions, importance of Eisenhower library holdings to research; budget; duration of stay in Abilene; publication plans for research product; two to three references; letter from the library regarding relevant holdings; CV; ten- to fifteen-page writing sample. Application Comments and Advice: As with other travel-to-collections grants, you must contact the library and talk to an archivist about your project and what holdings might be relevant to your research. Gerald R. Ford Presidential Foundation Research Travel Grants Gerald R. Ford Scholar Award for Dissertation Research in Honor of Robert Teeter Address: Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library and Museum 1000 Beal Avenue Ann Arbor, MI 48109 Phone: Travel Grant: 734-205-0557 Dissertation Award: 734-205-0554 Email: [email protected]

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Website: www.fordlibrarymuseum.gov Award Purpose: Travel Grant: to support research at the library. The library holdings focus on federal policies, foreign relations, and politics in the 1960s and 1970s. Dissertation Award: to support dissertation research, at the library, on the political process and public policy in the last half of the twentieth century. Students in political science, history, journalism, communications, public policy, foreign relations, or American studies are encouraged to apply. Of special interest is the area of public opinion. Deadline and Award Notification Date: Travel Grant: March 25 and September 15 for submission; two months after deadlines for notification; Dissertation Award: early May for submission; end of June for notification Number of Awards Available: 20 to 25 Travel Grants; 1 Dissertation Award Average Number of Applicants: 27 for Travel Grants; 12 for Dissertation Award Award Amount: Up to $2,000 for Travel Grant; $5,000 for Dissertation Award Application Form: Online Length of Award: Must be used within one year of award notification Applicant Eligibility: Research in areas of interest to the library Application Requirements: Travel Grants: project title; budget; three-page project proposal; CV; three references. Dissertation Award: abstract of no more than 150 words describing dissertation; five- to ten-page proposal; two-page bibliography; three letters of recommendation; unofficial transcript; CV; proof of ABD status. Application Comments and Advice: The library has the Robert Teeter papers. Teeter specialized in the area of public-opinion analysis, thus the interest in public opinion under the Dissertation Award. For both the dissertation and travel awards, be sure to study past winners for clues about interests of the review committee. For both grants, check the

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holdings of the library. Talk to an archivist about what primary source material is available. Support from staff at the library is always a big plus. Herbert Hoover Library Grants Address: Herbert Hoover Presidential Library Association Travel Grant Committee 302 Parkside Drive P.O. Box 696 West Branch, IA 52358 Phone: 800-828-0475, 319-643-5327 Email: [email protected] Website: www.hooverassociation.org Award Purpose: To support travel of graduate students, postdoctoral scholars, and independent researchers to the Hoover Library in West Branch, Iowa. The Library Association is interested in research “relating to the life, ideas, values and times of Herbert Hoover.” Deadline and Award Notification Date: March 1 for submission; end of April for notification Number of Awards Available: 8 to 9 Average Number of Applicants: 10 to 15 Award Amount: $500 to $1,500 Application Form: Online Length of Award: Depends on project. Must be completed within one year. Applicant Eligibility: A research project of interest to the library Application Requirements: 1,200-word research proposal; one-page bibliography; CV; three letters of reference; budget with per diem of $120.

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Application Comments and Advice: A research librarian should be contacted to determine holdings at the library relevant to your research. The application information advises clarity, simplicity, clear objectives, a review of the literature, and what resources at the library will be used. You should also include the planned use for the information, including dissertation, thesis, journal publication, and so on. Be sure to highlight the significance of your project. Lyndon Baines Johnson Foundation Research Grants Address: Grants and Awards Office of the Director The Lyndon Baines Johnson Library and Museum 2313 Red River Street Austin, TX 78705 Phone: 512-232-2280 Email: [email protected] Website: www.lbjfoundation.org Award Purpose: To support research at the Johnson Library at the University of Texas at Austin. The library holds more than 45 million primary source documents, an audiovisual collection, and 1,500 oral histories. Johnson’s papers from his time as U.S. congressman, senator, vice president, and president are held at this location. There are numerous papers of family, friends, and associates. The library also has a large book collection that concentrates on the U.S. presidency. Deadline and Award Notification Date: Mid-March and mid-September for submission; end of April and end of October for notification Number of Awards Available: $50,000 annual grant budget Average Number of Applicants: 56 to 60 annually Award Amount: $500 to $2,500

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Application Form: Online Length of Award: Must be used within the grant period awarded Applicant Eligibility: A project of interest to the foundation Application Requirements: Applicants must contact an archivist at the library to discuss available materials. Budget calculations should include a per-diem amount of $150. A research proposal of no more than four pages, including title; project description, including scope, objective of research, methodology, possible conclusions, and relevance to holdings at the library; budget; research time frame; three references; publications list. Application Comments and Advice: As with all archives, you should contact a staff member to discuss the library’s holdings relative to your proposed research. Sometimes a document can be photocopied, eliminating a need to travel to the library. If your proposed library research is a portion of your project, be sure to summarize the larger picture with the Johnson Library research within that context. Be clear about any publications that might result from your library research or bring new light to the subject. John F. Kennedy Library Research Grants Note: The Kennedy Library also has three additional fellowships for research in the fields of foreign intelligence; foreign policy during the Kennedy years; and domestic policy, political journalism, polling, and public relations. See the website for more information. Address: Grants and Fellowship Coordinator John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum Columbia Point Boston, MA 02125 Phone: 617-514-1629 Email: [email protected] Website: www.jfklibrary.org

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Award Purpose: To support research at the Kennedy Library in Boston. Preference is given to dissertation research in newly opened or relatively unused collections and to Ph.D. recipients expanding or revising dissertations for publications. Deadline and Award Notification Date: Mid-March and mid-August for submission; April 20 and October 20 for notification Number of Awards Available: 15 to 22 Average Number of Applicants: 30 Award Amount: $500 to $2,500 Application Form: Online Length of Award: Depends on project Applicant Eligibility: A research project of interest to the library Application Requirements: Academic degrees; current job; two references; project title; research product; name of contact at the library; amount requested; archive arrival date; other grants; three- to four-page research proposal; writing sample; budget with per-diem rate of $225; CV; list of collections in the library to be used. Application Comments and Advice: Contact with an archivist is a must. You should focus on the significance of your research since groundbreaking work is more highly valued. In addition, describe your audience as well as expected results. Be sure to put your research within the context of any larger picture, if there is one. Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Birthplace Address: Nixon Library 18001 Yorba Linda Blvd. Yorba Linda, CA 92886 Phone: 714-983-9120

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Email: [email protected] Website: www.nixonlibrary.gov The Nixon Library does not offer travel grants. The library provides a web page dedicated to secondary sources written about Nixon, his administration, and issues during his tenure as president. In 2010, 100,000 pages of primary source data and 47 video oral histories were made available. Many of the secret conversations and telephone tapes that were made in the Oval Office, the Old Executive Office Building, and Camp David are now available to the public. Many tapes can be accessed online. The library is making more tapes available over time. In 2010, the Nixon materials were moved from College Park, Maryland, to the library in Yorba Linda. Ronald Reagan Presidential Library Address: 40 Presidential Drive Simi Valley, CA 93065 Phone: 800-410-8354 Email: [email protected] Website: www.reagan.utexas.edu The Ronald Reagan Library does not offer travel grants. If your project is at all related to Ronald Reagan or his family in the White House or events at the White House during the Reagan Administration, see the White House Association Research Grants detailed above in this chapter. Check with a Reagan Library archivist to see whether there are any materials you need that might fit White House Association interests. Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt Institute Grants Note: The Roosevelt Library started renovations in 2010. Some of the collection has been moved offsite and will not be available until 2013. A list of documents unavailable during that period can be found on the library website, www.fdrlibrary.marist.edu.

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Address: Chairman, Grants Committee The Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt Institute 511 Albany Post Road Hyde Park, NY 12538 Phone: 845-486-1142 for the archives Email: [email protected] Website: http://newdeal.feri.org www.fdrlibrary.marist.edu/archives/askthearchivist Award Purpose: To support travel and research on the “Roosevelt years or clearly related subjects” at the Roosevelt Library in Hyde Park, New York. To encourage young scholars to expand research into the Roosevelt period and to assist scholars from “emerging democracies and the Third World.” Deadline and Award Notification Date: Mid-November for submission; spring for notification Number of Awards Available: 10 to 15 Average Number of Applicants: 18 to 25 Award Amount: Up to $2,500 Application Form: Online Length of Award: Funds must be used within one year of receipt of award letter. Applicant Eligibility: A project of interest to the institute Application Requirements: Three references; CV; affiliation; budget; duration of time at the library; project title; project abstract; two-page research proposal; bibliography. Application Comments and Advice: Be specific in your budget. Get hotel cost information, transportation specifics, and so on. You should talk to an archivist about where to stay and what the per-diem costs might run.

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Your research proposal should be no longer than two pages. The institute wants information regarding your use of holdings at the library, so be sure to contact an archivist and include a list of the documents you need for your research in the application. The scope of your project is important even beyond your research at the library. Significance of your research is always of interest, as is any potential publication of your data. Harry S Truman Institute Library Research Grants, Dissertation Year Fellowships, and Scholar’s Award Address: Grants Administrator Harry S Truman Library Institute 500 West U.S. Highway 24 Independence, MO 64050-1798 Phone: 816-268-8248 or 800-833-1225 Email: [email protected] Website: www.trumanlibrary.org/grants Award Purpose: Research Grants: to support graduate students, postdoctoral scholars, and researchers for travel to the library for one to three weeks to access documents. Dissertation Year Fellowships: to support dissertation research that uses library holdings and that focus on the “life and career of Harry S Truman or of the public and foreign policy issues which were prominent during the Truman years.” Scholar’s Award: to support postdoctoral scholars “engaged in work on some aspect of the life and career of Harry S. Truman or of the public and foreign policy issues which were prominent during the Truman years.” A substantial part of the research is required to be done at the library. The award tends to be available only in even-numbered years, although application is made at the end of an odd-numbered year. Deadline and Award Notification Date: Research Grants: April 1 and October 1 for submission; notification six weeks after deadlines. Dissertation Year Fellowships: February 1 for submission; notification four weeks after deadline.

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Scholar’s Award: Mid-December in odd-numbered years, such as 2015, for award receipt in 2016. Applicants who make the first cut will be notified in mid-February and must submit more information. Final notification in mid-April. Number of Awards Available: Research Grants: 20 to 22; Dissertation Year Awards: 2; Scholar’s Award: 1 every other year Average Number of Applicants: Research Grants: 35; Dissertation Year Fellowships: 10; Scholar’s Award: 4 Award Amount: Research Grants: up to $2,500; Dissertation Year Fellowships: $16,000; Scholar’s Award: negotiable up to $30,000 Application Form: Online Length of Award: Research Grants: one to three weeks at the library; Dissertation Year Fellowships: one year; Scholar’s Award: “a substantial period of time” Applicant Eligibility: Research Grants: a research proposal of interest to the Truman Library Institute; Dissertation Year Fellowships: a dissertation topic of interest to the Truman Library Institute; Scholar’s Award: a research project of interest to the Truman Library Institute that is “intended to result in the publication of a book-length manuscript” Application Requirements: Research Grants: educational history; institutional affiliation; research product; title of project; CV; five-page proposal, including significance, how the Truman years are important to the project, review of existing literature; specific files to be used at the library; name of library archivist contacted; budget; two reference letters. Dissertation Year Fellowships: educational information; Ph.D. program in which enrolled; date of expected degree; dissertation adviser; title of dissertation; CV; ten-page dissertation prospectus, with significance of projects and review of literature; schedule for completion of project; two letters of reference. Scholar’s Award: Step 1: employment; title of project; CV; six-page project description with project significance; bibliography; two letters of reference.

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Step 2: finalists will be notified by mid-February, and those chosen must submit a list of files already, or to be, used; a project timeline for completion; a projected income for the academic award year. Application Comments and Advice: Contact with a library archivist is a must with all these funding opportunities. I have done research through the Truman Library, and they are most helpful people who are anxious to make your research job pleasant and fruitful. The number of archival documents to be used and the potential significance of the project will weigh heavily in the decision-making process.

Chapter 6

Dissertation Fellowships and Grants

This chapter provides general information and application-writing advice for dissertation fellowship and grant applications. It also describes in detail the following specific funding opportunities: 1. American Association of University Women (AAUW) American Dissertation Fellowships 2. American Education Research Association (AERA) Minority Dissertation Fellowships in Education Research 3. American Council of Learned Societies (ACLS) Dissertation Fellowships Andrew Mellon Dissertation Completion East European Studies Henry Luce American Art 4. Ford Foundation Dissertation Fellowships 5. Foundation for Jewish Culture Maurice and Marilyn Cohen Fund for Doctoral Dissertation Fellowships in Jewish Studies 6. Harry Frank Guggenheim Foundation Dissertation Fellowships for Research in the Areas of Violence, Aggression, and Dominance 7. Kress Foundation History of Art Dissertation Research Travel Fellowships 8. National Science Foundation (NSF) Doctoral Dissertation Research Improvement Grants 9. Social Science Research Council (SSRC) International Dissertation Research Fellowships (IDRF)

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10. Spencer Foundation Dissertation Year Fellowships for Improvement of Education 11. U.S. Institute of Peace Jennings Randolph Peace Scholarship Dissertation Program 12. Wenner-Gren Dissertation Fieldwork Grants for Anthropology 13. Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation Charlotte W. Newcombe Doctoral Dissertation Year Fellowships in Ethical and Religious Values

General Information Dissertation grants and fellowships may be awarded to support thesis research and writing. Some competitions require ABD (all but dissertation) status be achieved just before application. Others require that the applicant have ABD status just before receiving the award. Dissertation funding comes in a variety of types. Some sources have been established to support groups of people who have not historically been well financed by universities, such as women and underrepresented groups, including minorities and disabled scholars. Such fellowships as the AAUW and the Ford fall into these categories. Another type of dissertation award is designed to fund students in specific discipline areas. The Wenner-Gren supports students in anthropology. A third type of dissertation grant supports specific research areas. The Guggenheim, for example, is available to students in many fields who do research in the areas of violence, aggression, and dominance. Other dissertation support is for research abroad, some of which is described in Chapter 4. Dissertation money can pay for cost-of-living expenses, travel, supplies, and equipment. Some fellowships provide small amounts of money, while others are quite generous. Be sure to see Chapter 5, “Research Grants,” for other opportunities that can be used to fund dissertation work. The initial stage of dissertation-proposal preparation is the time to start the grant search process. Support can be especially important to students who have outlived their institutional funding and must rely on outside money. A dissertation fellowship is a very good credential that appeals to employment search committees. It shows initiative, assertiveness, and organization, and is recognition of the quality of your research. A student who wins research and dissertation grants during her or his graduate years is viewed as

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more likely to secure such funding in the future. This type of achievement is a real plus on a job application and in some fields, such as anthropology, is a serious requirement. If your proposal is rejected, be sure to reapply. Not all agencies allow reapplication, so check the rules. Those that do allow it will usually supply reviewer’s remarks if requested to do so. These opinions can be helpful in redirecting the proposal revision, although sometimes evaluator remarks will not tell you much. Until you see them, you cannot know how helpful they will be, so always request a copy. It is important to determine whether your project will be of interest to a particular agency. Sometimes you can figure that out by reviewing a list of past winning topics. The Guggenheim, for example, publishes a list of past winners, their university affiliations, and their topics. Many agencies make this information available online. In some cases it is prudent to email or call the agency (calling usually gets more information) and find out whether a topic is suitable. The NSF is particularly good at guiding students with regard to fields and areas of study in which they have a particular interest. Most organizations are interested in getting the most relevant applications, so they are usually very helpful to students who make contact. If you have questions after reading the application information provided by an agency, a call or an email can save you a lot of aggravation and wasted time.

Application Advice When you have settled on your dissertation topic, start looking around for funding. The proposal writing stage is a good time to ask faculty and more advanced students what is available in the field. If the department or administration has someone who helps students locate funding opportunities, schedule a visit to his or her office. Since money is available for the various stages of dissertation work, it is helpful to know early on what is available. Do not apply for anything until after selecting your dissertation director. Most agencies rely heavily on the opinion of the faculty adviser when evaluating proposals. If your dissertation director is not wildly enthusiastic about the project, the likelihood of doing well in fellowship competition is limited. Do not just attach the dissertation proposal to every application and hope for the best. Each application is different. Although many agencies want

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substantially the same information, the order of presentation and the amount of space permitted varies. Additionally, you may want funding to support a specific part of your research, and that area should be emphasized. Customize your research-project description to the requirements of each application. Fine-tuning takes more time, but the results are worthwhile. Do seriously consider reapplication if you are rejected, particularly for study-abroad fellowships. By the second application, your research may be more finely focused, resulting in a more compelling proposal. Be sure to check with your institution about possible dissertation support. The department or the graduate school can provide information about funding available for dissertation research and writing. Contact any library or archive important to your research to see whether they offer grants or fellowships, particularly if you have to travel to a resource for research. Some, like the Truman Library, offer dissertation grants. Know when to borrow money. For some, there comes a point when time is better spent finishing the dissertation than sending out more funding applications. At that juncture, seeking external funding becomes more trouble than it is worth. The fellowship-seeking process can help focus and facilitate the research, but, at some point, it can interrupt the investigative or writing flow. It may make better economic and career sense to finish the degree and then concentrate on finding a job or a postdoctoral opportunity. The decision is an individual call and should be made in consultation with a faculty adviser and financial-aid administrator. Read the directions carefully and follow them scrupulously. Nothing irritates a funding organization more than an applicant who does not follow the directions. You would be very surprised how many applications arrive with pieces missing and directions ignored. By this stage, no promising Ph.D. candidate should just attach his or her dissertation proposal to an application and hope for the best. Most funding organizations have guidelines for writing a good proposal. Read any advice provided carefully. Start early, be careful, and consult your adviser.

Specific Grant Opportunities All information, except the author’s advice, is taken from the actual application, award announcements, websites, and other documents written by the agencies, and from contact made with each agency. Every effort is made to

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use the same language as that on the application or to paraphrase or summarize that language.

American Association of University Women (AAUW) American Dissertation Fellowships Address: AAUW American Fellows P.O. Box 4030 Iowa City, IA 52243-4030 Phone: 319-337-1716 Email: [email protected] Website: www.aauw.org Award Purpose: To support women completing dissertations Deadline and Award Notification Date: Mid-November for submission, although a week earlier is recommended; mid-April for notification Number of Awards Available: 44; women of color are awarded 37 percent of all AAUW American Fellowships, which also include postdoctoral fellowships (10) and publication grants (14). Number of all American Fellowships available is 68. Average Number of Applicants: 1,205 eligible applicants for all 68 American Fellowships Award Amount: $20,000 Application Form: Online Length of Award: One year Applicant Eligibility: U.S. citizen or permanent resident; students planning to complete their dissertations and receive their degrees within the award year;

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open to all fields; students in science, technology, engineering, and math and those researching gender issues are especially encouraged to apply. Application Requirements: Budget; narrative autobiography in which a commitment to helping women is described; statement of project, including design, methodology, significance, schedule for completion, statement of financial need; three recommendations; official transcripts; university certification of degree status. Application Comments and Advice: The application lists the following as criteria for selection: scholarly excellence, quality of project design, originality, significance of project to discipline, feasibility of schedule, qualifications of applicant, commitment to women’s issues, mentoring of other women, teaching experience. In addition, applicants from math, sciences, and engineering and those who do gender-issues research are preferred. If you have not shown a serious commitment to helping other women succeed in life or if you are not seriously committed to resolving issues plaguing women, this fellowship may not be for you. The commitment to women need not necessarily be part of your doctoral project, but it should somehow be part of your life. Maybe you help in a day-care center or advise battered women. AAUW was founded in 1888 with the creed that it “advances equity for women and girls through education, philanthropy and research” and “breaks through educational and economic barriers so that all women have a fair chance.” Be sure to look at the list of recent recipients for clues to award selection. Women’s welfare and other poverty, race, and social-welfare subjects, along with scientific projects, receive a great deal of support. A short synopsis of each winning applicant is worth reading.

American Educational Research Association (AERA) Minority Dissertation Fellowships in Education Research Address: AERA Minority Dissertation Fellowships Program AERA 1430 K Street, NW, Suite 1200 Washington, DC 20005 Phone: 202-238-3200

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Email: [email protected] Website: www.aera.net Award Purpose: To support minority students and to advance education research and promote diverse university faculties. Mentoring and guidance for minority students toward completion of their doctoral studies is also provided. Minorities are defined as African Americans, Alaskan Natives, American Indians, Hispanics or Latinos, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders. Deadline and Award Notification Date: December 1 for submission; May for notification Number of Awards Available: 3 to 5 Average Number of Applicants: 90 to 100 Award Amount: $12,000 stipend and up to $1,000 in travel support to attend AERA Annual Meeting. University supplements, such as tuition wavers, are encouraged. Application Form: Online Length of Award: One year Applicant Eligibility: U.S. citizens and permanent residents; proof of advanced candidacy; member of a target minority group. Application Requirements: Personal statement of three single-spaced pages; eight-page, single-spaced dissertation research prospectus, including abstract, statement of problem, framework, review of literature, research questions, projected findings; CV; official transcripts; two letters of reference. Application Comments and Advice: This fellowship is all about guiding minorities to faculty positions in postsecondary institutions. The personal statement is your opportunity to expand on your passion to pursue a faculty or education research career at a college or university. When writing the dissertation prospectus, be sure to include the significance of your project within the field and any potential publication prospects.

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If you are aiming for a career in research, be sure to explain how your dissertation will translate into future research projects. Work closely with your adviser. One letter of recommendation must come from your dissertation adviser. Be sure to look at the Frequently Asked Questions section on the web page. They advise you to read “The Art of Writing Proposals” located on the Social Science Research Council (SSRC) website, www.ssrc.org. Be sure to do so.

American Council of Learned Societies (ACLS) Dissertation Fellowships Andrew Mellon Dissertation Completion East European Studies Henry Luce American Art Address: American Council of Learned Societies 633 Third Avenue, 8th Floor New York, NY 10017-6795 Phone: 212-697-1505 Email: See ACLS Staff web page for current Fellowships and Grants Programs Director of Fellowships Website: www.acls.org Andrew Mellon Dissertation Completion

Award Purpose: To provide research and writing dissertation support to students in the following fields: American studies; anthropology; archaeology; art and architectural history; classics; economics; film; geography; history; languages and literatures; legal studies; linguistics; musicology; philosophy; political science; psychology; religious studies; rhetoric, communication, and media studies; sociology; and theater, dance, and performance studies. Proposals in the social-science fields listed above are eligible only if they employ predominantly humanistic approaches (e.g., economic history, law and literature, political theory). Proposals in interdisciplinary and crossdisciplinary studies are welcome, as are proposals focused on any geographic region or on any cultural or linguistic group. The ACLS encourages reapplication if you are not successful the first time.

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Deadline and Award Notification Date: November 10 for submission; March for notification Number of Awards Available: 65 to 70 Average Number of Applicants: 1,000 Award Amount: $25,000, plus up to $3,000 for research and up to $5,000 for fees Application Form: Online Length of Award: One year Applicant Eligibility: Ph.D. candidate in one of the fields above in a U.S. institution; ABD status; enrolled no more than six years in program. Since a chapter of your dissertation is required in the application, this fellowship assumes a good start on the project. Application Requirements: Summary of all internal and external support, including research assistantships and teaching assistantships, tuition grants, summer support; five-page, double-spaced proposal in Times Roman 11point font; three pages of optional nontext material; completed chapter of dissertation in English; two reference letters; institutional letter. Application Comments and Advice: Since this fellowship is open to most humanities and social-science fields, proposals that are very well organized, written clearly and convincingly and shed the most light on the field, and come from students who show the most promise in their fields are the most likely to be funded. Go to the winner’s page and read a few of the abstracts to get a feel for the quality and direction of the proposals. This is a long, timeconsuming application, so start early! East European Studies

Award Purpose: To support dissertation research and writing in humanities and social sciences in the area of East European studies. Eastern Europe is defined as Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Kosovo/a, Latvia, Lithuania, Macedonia,

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Montenegro, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, and Slovenia. Applicants may propose comparative work considering more than one country of Eastern Europe or relating Eastern European societies to those of other parts of the world. Deadline and Award Notification Date: November 10 for submission; May for notification Number of Awards Available: 8 Average Number of Applicants: 60 to 70 Award Amount: $18,000 Application Form: Online Length of Award: One year Applicant Eligibility: U.S. citizens; ABD status; project must include one of the Eastern European countries listed above; dissertation must be written in English. Application Requirements: Five-page, double-spaced proposal in Times New Roman 11-point font; two-page bibliography; three pages of illustrations; two-page publications list; three letters of reference; institutional statement; language evaluation form. Application Comments and Advice: The research fellowships should be based on the dissertation proposal that includes hypotheses, methodology, and basic proposed argument. The writing fellowships assume material has been collected and the basic argument has been refined, although all the data may not be in since the application is made many months before the actual fellowship is awarded. The application is long and time consuming, so start early! Henry Luce American Art

Award Purpose: To support dissertation work at any stage in the field of American art. The award may not be used for tuition costs.

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Deadline and Award Notification Date: November 10 for submission; April for notification Number of Awards Available: 10 Average Number of Applicants: 80 to 85 Award Amount: $25,000 Application Form: Online Length of Award: One year Applicant Eligibility: Ph.D. candidate in art history in the United States; a topic in the history of the visual arts; dissertations must be “object-oriented and use historical or visual studies approaches.” Application Requirements: Five-page, double-spaced proposal in Times New Roman 11-point font; two-page bibliography; three pages of illustrations; two-page publications list; three letters of reference; institutional statement. Application Comments and Advice: When they insist on “object-oriented” proposals, they mean they are supporting an approach that studies works of art within a visual or historical framework, or both. A look at the page containing the list of fellows, for example, finds one winning project described as Turbulent Bodies: Disruptive Materiality in Modern American Painting, 1880–1930. As they say on their web page, “attention to the art object and/or image should be foremost.” The ACLS is looking for the highest-quality methodology, scope, theoretical framework, and knowledge of the literature. In addition, they are hunting for projects that bring new light to the field. Your academic record and career potential are important parts of the mix. The application is long and filling it out is time consuming, so start early!

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Ford Foundation Dissertation Fellowships Address: Fellowships Office, Keck 576 National Research Council 500 Fifth Street, NW Washington, D.C 20001 Phone: 202-334-2872 Email: [email protected] Website: http://nationalacademies.org Award Purpose: To support Ph.D. and Sc.D. students to degree completion. Important as a positive factor in award selection is membership in one or more of the following underrepresented groups: Alaska Natives (Aleut, Eskimo, or other indigenous people of Alaska), Black/African Americans, Mexican American/Chicanas/Chicanos, Native American Indians, Native Pacific Islanders (Hawaiian/Polynesian/Micronesian), Puerto Ricans. Most research-based fields are eligible. Deadline and Award Notification Date: November for submission; January for notification Number of Awards Available: 20 Award Amount: $21,000; travel to Conference of Ford Fellows Application Form: Online Length of Award: Nine to twelve months Applicant Eligibility: Academic achievement; promise as a scholar and teacher; able to communicate with students from diverse backgrounds; connections to diverse communities; use of diversity of experience in teaching and scholarship; preference for applicants in underrepresented groups listed above. Application Requirements: Two-page statement of previous research; annotated bibliography; one-page dissertation abstract; three-page plan and

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timeline for dissertation completion and career goals; two-page personal statement describing background and commitment to Ford goals; in the best of all worlds, membership in an underrepresented group and commitment to diversity; names of four professors who will serve as recommenders. Application Comments and Advice: The fellowship objective is to support students who are members of underrepresented groups and who are committed to helping students in these groups in their careers. Many of the students who win this dissertation award have been previously awarded a Ford Predoctoral Fellowship and are most likely to apply for the Ford Postdoctoral Fellowship. It is certainly possible to win this award if you are not a member of one of the underrepresented groups, but a complete commitment to working with diverse groups and a pledge to work for their betterment in the future is essential. Be sure to read the several articles on the “Helpful Resources: Preparing a Competitive Fellowship Application” web page listed on the Ford Fellowship Program website. There is a Ford Fellows Regional Liaisons group that is technically a support group for current Ford Fellows. Consult the directory, and, if there is a Liaisons member at your school, make contact and see if he or she is willing to talk to you about the program. The more you know about the fellowship and the application process, the more likely you are to win an award.

Foundation for Jewish Culture Maurice and Marilyn Cohen Fund for Doctoral Dissertation Fellowships in Jewish Studies Address: Foundation for Jewish Culture 330 Seventh Avenue, 21st Floor New York, NY 10001 Phone: 212-629-0500 Email: [email protected] Website: www.jewishculture.org Award Purpose: To encourage scholarly research, publication, and teaching in Jewish studies. Students who applied previously may not apply again.

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Deadline and Award Notification Date: Mid-December for submission; notification on or before June 1 Number of Awards Available: 3 to 5 Average Number of Applicants: 40 Award Amount: $16,000 Application Form: Online Length of Award: One year Applicant Eligibility: U.S. citizen or permanent resident, or Canadian citizen studying in the United States; ABD status; significant coursework in Jewish studies at the graduate level; proficiency in Hebrew, Yiddish, Ladino, Aramaic, and so on; an approved dissertation proposal; a strong preference for those preparing for academic careers in Jewish studies. Awards may not be deferred. Application Requirements: 500-word abstract of thesis; 250 words about how you found out about the fellowship; other funding you may have for the award year; academic status; 250-word career plan; 250-word field and discipline description; language proficiency; educational background; honors, awards, publications; employment: ten-page dissertation prospectus; dissertation chapter submitted by April 1; undergraduate and graduate transcripts. Application Comments and Advice: Be sure to check the “Previous Grantees” web page for an idea of the universities and seminaries, departments and topics that define the winners, especially for the last ten years. You should have a firm commitment to a career in which Jewish history, language, literature, philosophy, and culture research and teaching are extremely important. Your 250 words about your career plans should be very carefully written, assuring your commitment to the Foundation for Jewish Culture’s goal to invest “in creative individuals in order to nurture a vibrant and enduring Jewish identity, culture and community.”

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Harry Frank Guggenheim Foundation Dissertation Fellowships for Research in the Areas of Violence, Aggression, and Dominance Address: Harry Frank Guggenheim Foundation 25 West 53rd Street New York, NY 10019-5401 Phone: 646-428-0971 Website: www.hfg.org Award Purpose: To support dissertation research in any field that increases our understanding of the “causes, manifestations, and control of violence, aggression, and dominance.” Deadline and Award Notification Date: February 1 for submission; June for notification Number of Awards Available: 10 or more Award Amount: $15,000 Application Form: Online to be mailed to the foundation Length of Award: One year Applicant Eligibility: Students at the writing stage of their doctoral program; citizens of any country studying at any university in any country. Application Requirements: Three copies of the application mailed to the foundation; title page; abstract with relevance to violence, aggression, dominance; adviser’s letter; CV and other background information; research plan of around fifteen pages; human and nonhuman subjects protection-from-harm statement; other fellowships. Application Comments and Advice: The foundation is looking for research that results in useful information. Their goal is to understand the various manifestations and origins of aggression, violence, and domination, with

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the idea of creating solutions or mechanisms for reducing the incidences and impacts of these problems worldwide. Avoid disciplinary jargon. Reviewers may not be in your particular field. They tell you to write “in plain English.” The foundation is not interested in projects that are tangentially related to their mission. If you are not sure how relevant your research is, call them. They state they are not interested in wasting their time or yours and are happy to talk about any project. Be sure to look at the list of Past Dissertation Fellowships to get a sense of who won and their research titles. Here is the foundation’s final advice: In summary, the mistakes made most often in the past are these: • Applicant will not finish the dissertation in the grant year • Project is not directly relevant to violence, aggression, or dominance • Only one copy arrives • Three copies arrive but are not collated • Application arrives in our office after the due date • Adviser’s letter and CV arrive separately, and/or late, and/or in only one copy • No research plan • No title page, no abstract, or no protection-of-subjects statement • No note on other support Please avoid these careless errors and omissions. They will seriously diminish any hope of receiving a fellowship.

Kress Foundation History of Art Dissertation Research Travel Fellowships Address: Samuel H. Kress Foundation 174 East 80th Street New York, NY 10075 Phone: 212-861-4993 Email: [email protected] Website: www.kressfoundation.org

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Award Purpose: To support promising young scholars with travel-for-research support for the completion of dissertation work in the field of European art. Deadline and Award Notification Date: End of November for submission; March for notification Number of Awards Available: 15 to 20 Average Number of Applicants: 30 to 35 Award Amount: $3,500 to $10,000 Application Form: Online but mailed to foundation Length of Award: One year Applicant Eligibility: Candidates must be nominated by their department; U.S. citizens at U.S. universities. Application Requirements: Four copies of completed application; three reference letters sealed and signed across the seal, one from department chair; five-page summary of research project; annotated bibliography; five-page proposed research itinerary with dates and locations of travel and budget; work completed on dissertation; language proficiencies; other awards; CV; transcript of M.A. degree. Application Comments and Advice: The goals of this fellowship are quite clear. The student should benefit from direct exposure to the art objects, be able to use the archives, develop long-term connections with colleagues, and immerse him- or herself in European culture. Your specific plan for doing all these things while abroad must be addressed. Contact your adviser to talk about securing departmental nomination. The department chair must write one of the letters of recommendation. If students in your department have won this fellowship, see whether you can look at their winning application for guidance. Take a look at the foundation’s annual reports online to get a sense of who won and their topics.

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National Science Foundation (NSF) Doctoral Dissertation Research Improvement Grants The NSF supports Doctoral Dissertation Improvement in the following areas: archaeology, cultural anthropology, geography and spatial sciences, linguistics, and physical anthropology areas of behavioral and cognitive sciences. The NSF also supports dissertation research in the social and economic sciences areas of decision, risk, and management sciences; economics, law, and social science; methodology, measurement, and statistics; political science, science, technology, and society; and sociology. Support is offered in many fields. Be sure to check the NSF website. Below is a full description of a grant opportunity available in the Directorate for Biological Sciences that is presented as an example of an NSF dissertation grant. Award amounts, deadlines, and other criteria differ according to field. Grants in the Directorate for Biological Sciences (DDIG) Address: National Science Foundation 4201 Wilson Blvd. Arlington, VA 22230 Phone: 703-292-8480 Email: [email protected] Website: www.nsf.gov Award Purpose: To support doctoral dissertation work in selected areas of the biological sciences. Institutions eligible to apply for this award include colleges, universities, such research organizations as botanical gardens, marine and freshwater institutes, and natural history museums. Deadline and Award Notification Date: Third Friday in November for submission; June for notification Number of Awards Available: 100 to 120 Average Number of Applicants: 430

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Award Amount: $15,000. These awards are supplemental and are not for the full cost of dissertation work. Funding can be used for travel, field research, professional meeting costs, supplies, equipment, computer fees, and rental of environmental chambers or other research facilities. Application Form: Look at the Grant Proposal Guide online Length of Award: Up to 24 months Applicant Eligibility: Students enrolled in a U.S. university but who are not necessarily U.S. citizens; ABD status; application must be made through the institution and should be restricted to “outstanding dissertation proposals with unusual financial requirements that cannot be met otherwise”; projects under way will be given preference; organizations may submit only one proposal per year; student may receive only one DDIG award. Application Requirements: Cover page with dissertation adviser listed; eightpage, single-spaced project description, including overall project; design and significance; progress to date; new data to be collected with grant; budget justification with detailed explanations; degree candidacy statement; letters of collaboration. Application Comments and Advice: You must have a dissertation adviser or principal investigator (PI) support this application, and the application must come through the institution (see Grant Proposal Guide on website). The application is judged on the importance of the project in the field; the impact of the proposal on promoting teaching, training, and learning, especially with underrepresented groups, including gender, ethnicity, and disability. To understand the NSF’s review criteria, be sure you read the document titled “Merit Review Broader Impacts Criterion.” Like every other government grant, there is nothing easy about finding this application, getting administration approval, and getting the completed document back to the NSF on time. The website alone is a challenge to determination. Because of these issues, you need to start especially early. Investigate this opportunity when you are formulating your dissertation proposal, even though application may be quite a way down the road.

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Social Science Research Council (SSRC) International Dissertation Research Fellowships (IDRF) Address: Social Science Research Council One Pierrepont Plaza, 15th Floor Brooklyn, NY 11201 Phone: 212-377-2700 Email: [email protected] Website: www.ssrc.org Award Purpose: To support doctoral students in the humanities and social sciences doing research on contemporary issues in non-U.S. cultures and societies. Deadline and Award Notification Date: Early November for submission; April for notification Number of Awards Available: 75 Average Number of Applicants: 1,200 Award Amount: Amount varies depending on project; average award is $18,750 Application Form: Online Length of Award: Nine to twelve months Applicant Eligibility: Students in the humanities or social sciences enrolled in U.S. universities; a proposal that focuses on non-U.S. contemporary themes. Application Requirements: List of courses and grades; publications and presentations; awards; relevance of research to SSRC International Dissertation Research Fellowships goals; methodology. Application Comments and Advice: The application focuses on three areas: your disciplinary methodology; your use of methodologies from other

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disciplines; and how your research connects “to contemporary issues and debates across world regions.” Depth of information and facility with various methodologies seems to drive the application. Because the study of non-U.S. cultures can be difficult, SSRC is looking for scholars who are familiar with a variety of approaches to cultural and societal questions and issues. Because the review panel is multidisciplinary, a clearly written proposal is fundamental. Be sure to document your foreign-language abilities if necessary. This application is unusual in structure, so be sure to take time to follow their directions carefully and thoughtfully. Be sure to look at “The Art of Writing Proposals” on the SSRC website.

Spencer Foundation Dissertation Year Fellowships for Improvement of Education Address: Spencer Foundation Dissertation Fellowships Office 625 North Michigan Ave., Suite 1600 Chicago, IL 60611 Phone: 312-274-6517 Email: [email protected] Website: www.spencer.org Award Purpose: To support dissertation research to bring “fresh and constructive perspectives to the history, theory, or practice of formal or informal education anywhere in the world.” Doctoral disciplines funded include but are not restricted to anthropology, architecture, art history, communications, economics, education, history, linguistics, literature, philosophy, political science, psychology, public health, religion, and sociology. Deadline and Award Notification Date: Late October for submission; late April for notification Number of Awards Available: 20 Average Number of Applicants: 600

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Award Amount: $25,000 Application Form: Online Length of Award: One to two years, not renewable Applicant Eligibility: U.S. citizen; doctoral degree candidate Application Requirements: All materials in English; two letters of recommendation; background information; 200-word dissertation abstract; ten double-spaced pages for Narrative Discussion of the Dissertation; two-page bibliography; 400-word work plan; official or unofficial graduate transcript. Application Comments and Advice: The goal of the Spencer Foundation is to understand the issues in education with the purpose of addressing current issues and solving or improving problems. This fellowship is not for research activities but for the analysis and writing stages. The dissertation should be completed within the two-year funding range. Criteria for selection include the importance of the research question to education, the quality of the research approach and feasibility of the work plan, and the student’s research-career potential. Fellowship-review committee members will probably not be from your discipline, so be sure to write in plain English and avoid discipline-specific jargon. They recommend you read the Social Science Research Council’s “The Art of Writing Proposals.” Since this is a highly competitive fellowship, be sure your topic is absolutely in line with Spencer goals. They have a lot of rules about how the information is to be communicated, such as specifying margins, typeface, and type size. Be sure to follow all the rules carefully. The Personal Statement section of the application is Spencer’s guarantee that you are aiming for a career in educational research. Even though the space is limited, be sure to write an assuring statement about your specific post-graduation goals and expectations. Be sure to review the projects of the current class of fellows for topic information.

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U.S. Institute of Peace Jennings Randolph Peace Scholarship Dissertation Program Address: United States Institute of Peace 1200 17th Street, NW Washington, DC 20036 Phone: 202-457-1700 Email: [email protected] Website: www.usip.org Award Purpose: To support dissertation projects on topics related to peace, conflict, and international security. The focus is analysis of contemporary policy issues. The award is not for policymaking efforts for a government, NGO, or other organization, nor is it meant for advocacy of a particular policy position. Although students from any field are encouraged to apply, most awardees are in departments of political science and government. Deadline and Award Notification Date: Early January for submission; early May for notification Number of Awards Available: 10 to 12 Average Number of Applicants: 180 to 200 Award Amount: $20,000 Application Form: Online Length of Award: Ten months Applicant Eligibility: Citizens of any country enrolled in U.S. universities; ABD status in a recognized doctoral program, such as Ph.D., S.J.D., Ed.D., or Th.D. Application Requirements: Proposal, research methodology, project design, schedule, publication potential, dissertation completion schedule.

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Application Comments and Advice: The Components of a Successful Proposal web page gives a detailed description of the proposal, research methodology and project design, project schedule, products, and likelihood of completion sections of the application. This section tells you how reviewers will approach your application and what they expect to find. For example, the page advises that “scholars seeking research support will want to refer to the methodologies specific to their disciplines while avoiding the use of jargon that may confound reviewers trained in other fields.” So print this section and follow it scrupulously. They provide the map; this is your GPS. Most important is to make sure your dissertation “fits within the Institute’s mandate to help prevent and resolve violent conflicts, promote post-conflict stability and development, and increase peace-building capacity, tools, and intellectual capital worldwide.” Look at the list of past winners to get a sense of topics that interest the institute.

Wenner-Gren Dissertation Fieldwork Grants for Anthropology Address: Wenner-Gren Foundation 470 Park Avenue, 8th Floor New York, NY 10016 Phone: 212-683-5000 Email: [email protected] Website: www.wennergren.org Award Purpose: To support basic dissertation fieldwork research in anthropology. Deadline and Award Notification Date: May 1 and November 1 for submission; first-cut notification three months after deadline, final award notification six months after deadlines for submission. Number of Awards Available: 75 to 80 Average Number of Applicants: 650; 50 percent of applicants make the first cut; 33 percent of stage 2 applicants win awards; 11–12 percent are winners each round.

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Award Amount: Up to $25,000 Application Form: Online plus five paper copies Length of Award: Depends on project Applicant Eligibility: Current enrollment in doctoral degree program; application must be made jointly with dissertation field adviser or other faculty member; ABD status before beginning of grant. Application Requirements: Written in English; general information about you and your adviser; abstract; project description; detailed budget; bibliography; CV for applicant and faculty adviser; visa information for travel if award is won. Application Comments and Advice: Contributions to the field and quality of research are the primary criteria for evaluation. Here Wenner-Gren is talking about the larger contributions to the field as opposed to the applied contributions. For example, you have developed or tested a new method of approaching a problem that would be of great interest to others in the field. There are no restrictions on geographic area or on topics. Be sure your project is feasible. Use faculty in determining what can be done in locales that may be hard to reach or where communication is difficult and technology nonexistent. Reviewers will know when a research plan is too optimistic and therefore unrealistic. Your faculty mentor can really help in this area. The applicant must answer five of the six project questions. Be sure to read these questions carefully and follow the directions scrupulously. Seek help from those who have won a Wenner-Gren. Get ahold of a winning application if possible for guidance. If you do not win an award the first time, clarify your project, rewrite the application, and reapply. There is an optional bonus award available called the Osmundsen Initiative, which is worth an extra $5,000. Your proposal should “demonstrate the unique perspective Anthropology brings to understanding contemporary concerns.” There is no penalty if you do not opt to apply for the Osmundsen.

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Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation Charlotte W. Newcombe Doctoral Dissertation Year Fellowships in Ethical and Religious Values Address: Woodrow Wilson National Fellowships Foundation U.S. Mail: P.O. Box 5281, CWN Department Princeton, NJ 08543-5281 Street address: 5 Vaughn Drive, Suite 300 Princeton, NJ 08540-6313 Phone: 609-452-7007 Email: See Staff Directory on website for current contact Website: http://woodrow.org Award Purpose: To encourage original and significant study of ethical or religious values in humanities and social sciences. In addition to philosophical and religious ethics, topics in “the ethical implications of foreign policy,” political decision making, and religious or ethical issues in history or literature are of interest. Deadline and Award Notification Date: Mid-November for submission; early March for notification Number of Awards Available: 20 Average Number of Applicants: 600 Award Amount: $25,000. Student’s university will be asked to waive tuition and some fees. Application Form: Online Length of Award: Twelve months Applicant Eligibility: Ph.D. or Th.D. candidate; ABD status with expectations of submitting completed dissertation at end of award year; be at the writing stage with research and fieldwork completed at beginning of award.

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Application Requirements: Abstract no more than 200 words; proposal no more than 2,000 words; bibliography; timetable no more than 350 words; three letters of recommendation; official graduate transcripts Application Comments and Advice: There are very specific rules for writing the proposal. For example, “to indicate italics or underlining (e.g., for a book title), place a single underscore before and after the text you are indicating.” Print out this section, and be very careful to employ all the numerous formatting requirements. In addition, the application has a section titled “Writing a Compelling Proposal.” Study it carefully, and look at the list of fellows and their topics to get a flavor for what rings their bell.

Other Dissertation Fellowships and Goals Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) U.S. Department of Health and Human Service To support dissertation research in improvement in safety, quality, efficiency, and effectiveness of health care for all Americans.

American Association of Geographers Dissertation Research Grants To support dissertation research in any geographic specialty.

American Institute for Sri Lankan Studies Dissertation Planning Grant To support travel to Sri Lanka to investigate dissertation topics, to sharpen research design, and to make practical arrangements for further research.

American Lung Association Lung Health Dissertation Grant To support dissertation risk-factors research in the psychological, behavioral, health services, epidemiological and biostatistical, and public-health education areas of lung health.

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American Occupational Therapy Foundation (AOTF) Dissertation Research Grant Program To support dissertation research in occupational therapy that contributes to the AOTF research agenda.

American Political Science Association Dissertation Awards For recognition of excellence in eight areas.

American Psychological Association (APA) Dissertation Research Award To support doctoral students in science-oriented research. 30 to 40 grants per year.

Association for the Study of Higher Education Association for Institutional Research (AIR) Dissertation Fellowships To foster the use of federal databases for institutional research in postsecondary education.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Grants for Public Health Research Dissertation To support dissertation research in areas of interest to the CDC.

Conference Group for Central European History Research Grants for Predissertation, Dissertation, and Postdoctoral Travel To support travel and research in Central Europe.

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Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR) Mellon Fellowships for Dissertation Research in Original Sources To encourage use of original sources in libraries, archives, museums, historical societies, and related repositories in the United States and abroad.

Elderhostel Road Scholar Cross Doctoral Research Grant To encourage dissertation research in topics relevant to aging and later life.

Fulbright-Hays Doctoral Dissertation Fellowships To support doctoral dissertation research in non-Western countries. See Chapter 4 for a full description.

Gerald Ford Dissertation Award in Honor of Robert Teeter To support dissertation research on the U.S. political process during the latter part of the twentieth century. See Chapter 5 for a full description.

Haynes Foundation Dissertation Fellowships To support dissertation research for students in social sciences in the greater Los Angeles area.

Institute of Internal Auditors Michael J. Barrett Doctoral Dissertation Grants To encourage research by doctoral candidates in the area of internal audit studies.

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International Research Foundation for English Language Education (TIRF) Sheikh Nahayan Doctoral Dissertation Fellowships To support dissertation research in the field of applied linguistics–English language education in the Arab world.

International Research Foundation for English Language Education (TIRF) Doctoral Dissertation Grants To support dissertation research in TIRF’s areas of interest in the teaching of English.

Institute of Turkish Studies Dissertation Writing Grants To support students in the social sciences or humanities at the dissertationwriting stage.

Jack Kent Cooke Dissertation Fellowships Award To support dissertation work in “understanding educational pathways and experiences of high-achieving, low-income students.”

John F. Kennedy Library Ernest Hemingway Research Grants To support dissertation research using the Hemingway collection at the Kennedy Library.

McNeil Center for Early American Studies (MCEAS) Dissertation Fellowships To support dissertation research or writing in the areas of North America or the Caribbean before 1850.

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Medieval Academy of America John Leyerle–CARA Prize for Dissertation Research To support research in the medieval collections at the various libraries in Toronto.

Morris K. Udall and Stewart L. Udall Foundation Dissertation Fellowship To support dissertation research in U.S. environmental public policy or environmental conflict resolution, or both.

National Gallery of Art Paul Mellon and Samuel H. Kress Dissertation Fellowships To support dissertation completion in Western art (Mellon) and European art (Kress).

National Institute of Justice Graduate Research Fellowship Program To support independent research on issues related to crime and justice.

Organization for Autism Research To promote autism “research in analysis, evaluation, or comparison assessment or treatment models focusing on aspects of early education, behavioral, or communication interventions and adult issues such as continuing education, employment.”

Resources for the Future Joseph L. Fisher Doctoral Dissertation Fellowship To support dissertation research on issues related to the environment, natural resources, or energy.

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Social Science Research Council Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) Fellowship To support dissertation research in the social sciences or humanities in Japan for one to twelve months.

Society for Historians of American Foreign Relations (SHAFR) Dissertation Fellowships SHAFR has five different dissertation fellowship programs.

Society for the Advancement of Behavior Analysis Dissertation and Thesis Grant To support research in the development of behavior analysis.

Southern Nursing Research Society (SNRS) Dissertation Research Grant To support quantitative and qualitative research on any topic relevant to the nursing profession. For students in the Southern region.

State Farm Doctoral Dissertation Award To stimulate research and develop new knowledge in the fields of insurance, business, and education.

Truman Library Dissertation Year Fellowships To support dissertation research at the library that focuses on the life and career of Truman or policy issues during the Truman years. See Chapter 5 for a full description.

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United States Marine Corps General Lemuel C. Shepard, Jr., Memorial Dissertation Fellowship To support U.S. military and naval history and history-based studies that contribute to a greater understanding of the Marine Corps.

U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Doctoral Dissertation Research Grants (DDRG) through the Office of University Partnerships To support dissertation research relevant to HUD’s policy priorities, annual goals, and objectives.

Chapter 7

Postdoctoral Opportunities Jennifer S. Furlong

A postdoctoral research opportunity, often known as a “postdoc,” is a shortterm appointment, frequently for one or two years, usually, but not always, begun immediately upon the completion of a doctorate. The rate of compensation typically falls between the level of a graduate student stipend and the salary of an assistant professor. Many science postdoctoral appointments are for at least two years. Year-long openings are most commonly found in the social sciences and humanities. In some fields, for example, the biomedical sciences, such an appointment may be virtually required for a research career. In others, it may be a backup should you not receive an academic position, or it could provide a chance to shift research direction. Postdoctoral opportunities fall into two broad categories. Some are ongoing, often endowed, positions that a candidate must identify and apply for through a formal, usually highly competitive process. Many of these opportunities are available through large government agencies, foundations, or research centers at universities, and they can be identified through standard Internet, and in some cases print, resources. They most commonly require the candidate to propose a research project, and the funding will be awarded in terms of that specific research proposal. Of these institutionalized opportunities, some are “portable,” meaning that the funding can be taken anywhere, and others require resident research at a particular institution.

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Other opportunities, frequently but not exclusively in the sciences, are more ad hoc and temporary. They are created by a more senior researcher’s grant money and support work on a project already proposed and funded by the researcher. These opportunities are identified by seeking out researchers; scientific journals may also list job notices. While these positions may be highly competitive in terms of selectivity, applying may be as informal a procedure as a phone call to a researcher followed by a letter, CV, and a highly enthusiastic recommendation from one’s adviser. By definition, all these latter opportunities require work in the senior researcher’s location. This chapter will discuss the reasons for doing a postdoc, suggest ways to identify and successfully apply for opportunities, give some considerations for evaluating opportunities, and address some specific considerations and opportunities in the sciences and in the social sciences and humanities.

General Information There are many reasons for doing postdoctoral work. Such positions can help new Ph.D.s branch out from the narrowly defined specialty created by their dissertation work. By broadening your area of expertise, you can become a more desirable candidate when entering the job market to seek a tenure-track position. If you are perceived as stuck in a very narrowly defined specialty, a hiring department may have no interest in you. However, if your work is more broadly based, you may be perceived as one who will fill both a research and teaching gap in that department. Many in the humanities and social sciences use a postdoctoral fellowship to transform their dissertation into a book project. If you are one of those unfortunate people who learned too late that someone else was also working on basically the same dissertation topic that you were, a postdoc can offer you the opportunity to redefine your research so that it is quite different from that of other scholars. If the job market is terrible, doing a postdoc allows you to “buy time” by remaining in research. In a tight economic climate, however, the application process for many of these opportunities can be nearly as competitive as that of a tenure-track position. Nonetheless, postdoctoral positions can leave you well positioned for a successful tenure-track job search. Although you are not in a tenure-track position, you have the opportunity to think about your course as a scholar, develop new mentoring relationships, get to know more

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people in the field, and apply for jobs. Furthermore, since tenure decisions are often heavily based on a candidate’s research record, the research you do during a postdoc, without teaching obligations, will help you build the total amount of research you have to show when it comes time to be evaluated for tenure. Some postdoctoral fellowships can even help Ph.D.s move into career fields beyond the traditional tenure-track career path. Good examples of these are the AAAS Science and Technology Policy Fellowship, the NCI Cancer Prevention Fellowship Program, the Council on Library and Information Resources Postdoctoral Fellowship in Academic Libraries, and the newly-created Public Fellows program of the American Council of Learned Societies. In science, postdocs are usually a prerequisite for research-oriented academic positions. Most research-intensive universities and many small colleges will not even consider a candidate for an assistant or associate professorship without a couple of years of postdoctoral experience. In such industries as the pharmaceutical industry, postdocs are also virtually required for research positions. In the social sciences and humanities, postdocs are often done out of necessity or to build a stronger research record for the academic job market. However, more Ph.D. students are looking at them as an opportunity to enhance their research abilities and deepen their research area before entering the academic job market. Postdocs in traditional research-oriented roles may go for several years without the opportunity to teach. For those candidates interested in building a career at a teaching-focused institution, it is important to find a way to gain some teaching experience during these years, be that mentoring undergraduate students, lecturing in an adviser’s course, or teaching a course at another institution. There are postdocs that include teaching as a component of the postdoctoral experience. Though this is more common in the humanities and social sciences, a few opportunities with teaching components also exist in the sciences. One example is the NIH’s Institutional Research and Academic Career Development Awards (IRACDA), an institutional award that provides funding for a traditional mentored postdoctoral research experience paired with the chance to build teaching skills through assignments at minority-serving institutions. A list of participating institutions can be found at http://www .nigms.nih.gov/Training/CareerDev/PartInstIRACDA.htm. It is important to

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know that even in these types of postdoctoral positions, your research should remain your primary focus, as your research productivity will likely be the deciding factor in your search for a tenure-track position.

General Application Advice Begin your search for a postdoc early, at least 24 months before you complete your degree. It will take time to identify and research opportunities and submit applications. Some opportunities will have application deadlines close to a year in advance of the time the position begins. Therefore, even if a postdoctoral position is your second choice, you need to plan to pursue it simultaneously with your academic job search. Use all means possible to identify opportunities. The most important place to begin the exploration is with your adviser. If you are in the sciences, where postdocs tend to be de rigueur for research careers, your adviser may regularly refer graduates to good postdoctoral opportunities in colleagues’ labs. As will be discussed later, this type of referral can be a mixed blessing, especially if your research interests are beginning to diverge from your adviser’s. In any case, your adviser’s contacts, recommendations, and support will be important to you, so you will want to take seriously what he or she has to say. Advisers and other faculty members in your department will often be aware of additional programs and opportunities for which previous students have successfully competed. Then move on to using all the print and Internet resources mentioned in “Resources for Further Investigation” at the end of Chapter 2. Of particular interest to those in the humanities and social sciences is H-Net (http:// www.h-net.org/). Community of Science (www.cos.org) is a useful resource for researchers in a wide range of fields. For those in the sciences and engineering, Postdoc Jobs (www.postdocjobs.com), Ph.D.s.org (www.PhDs.org), Science Jobs (http://sciencecareers.sciencemag.org/), and Nature Jobs (http:// www.nature.com/naturejobs/index.html) are excellent resources. In addition, PhDs.org is an important source of information about funding opportunities from the U.S. government. It is becoming increasingly common, particularly in the sciences, to do a postdoc at a strong institution abroad. Both Nature Jobs and Science Jobs feature international opportunities. Euraxess (http://ec.europa.eu/euraxess/index.cfm/jobs/latestJobs) is also an interesting source of research

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opportunities in Europe. The NSF’s International Research Fellowship Program (see below) provides funding for U.S scholars to conduct research abroad. A major source of information about postdoctoral opportunities will likely be the discipline-specific resources with which you are probably already familiar. In many fields, for example, scholars who participate in listservs will respond to each other’s inquiries about what organizations may be interested in funding a particular type of research. Many scholarly associations list funding opportunities and resources on their sites. In addition to staying alert for formally announced opportunities, you should consider making inquiries of researchers with whom you wish to work or with institutions or centers with which you would like to be affiliated. In the sciences, where externally funded research is the norm, identify the researchers whose work excites you; learn as much as you can about their work through their publications; and then contact them directly to express your interest. In some cases, you may prefer to have a faculty member who knows the researcher make an advance phone call on your behalf. It is completely appropriate, however, for you to send a copy of a CV, with a letter expressing your interest, directly to the researcher and to follow this up with a phone call. If you actively attend professional meetings, as you should, you can easily have informal face-to-face discussions with researchers. At the graduate institutions where I have worked, when new science and engineering Ph.D.s are asked how they obtained their postdoctoral positions, many answer, “I contacted researchers whose work interested me.” The same approach to a researcher that would be effective in the sciences would also be appropriate in the less common situations in the social sciences and humanities where there are large, sponsored research grants. In some cases, however, you may want to approach a researcher more as a point of contact with his or her institution rather than as a direct source of funding. If you would like the opportunity to be at the same institution as a senior researcher whose work you admire, you may contact that individual, whether or not he or she has external funding that could support you, to explore whether there might be some way to be affiliated with his or her institution. In many cases, this approach might merely lead to a one- or two-year teaching appointment, which would not be a postdoctoral research grant, but occasionally it could lead to the creation of an institutional postdoc. If you are an international scholar, you may be frustrated to learn that

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some U.S.-based postdoctoral research opportunities require U.S. citizenship. Expand your base of opportunities by researching sources of funding in your home country as well. Even though you may identify opportunities informally, you will almost surely have to make formal application for them. At a minimum, you will always need to submit a CV, letters of recommendation, and some form of written discussion of your interests. For a position with a single researcher, your written discussion may be no more than a cover letter. For direct application to an external funding agency, your written discussion might be an elaborate research proposal.

The Curriculum Vitae A curriculum vitae, vita, or CV (the terms all are used for the same document) is the document that summarizes your qualifications. The construction of a CV is beyond the scope of this chapter. However, we do stress that yours should be clear, error-free, and visually appealing. It should also be constructed in such a way that the material of most probable interest to the person or committee who will be reading it is the most visually prominent part. Do not content yourself with modeling your CV after that of a fellow student’s. Consult professional sources, such as your scholarly association, for materials on CV preparation. The Academic Job Search Handbook (University of Pennsylvania Press, 2008) gives an extensive discussion along with examples from many disciplines.

Recommendations These have already been discussed in “How to Get Good References” in Chapter 2, so there is little to add here. However, if you are submitting a proposal to do a specific piece of research, you should ask recommenders to discuss the importance and promise of the research itself in addition to your strengths as a candidate.

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Other Written Materials If the application procedure is merely to write a cover letter to a senior researcher, you can succinctly describe your own interests, your interests in the researcher’s work, and what you can particularly contribute to his or her laboratory, such as knowledge of particular techniques or ability to develop equipment. If a full-scale research proposal is required, your ideas will have to be more specific and fleshed out in greater detail. Everything that has been discussed in terms of applying for dissertation support (see Chapter 6) is relevant in writing a proposal for postdoctoral support. Today, nearly all postdoctoral opportunities have application forms available on their websites. For most of these applications, you will have to submit your materials electronically, although some still ask applicants to mail hard copies. If you’re applying for a position with an individual researcher, electronic submission may mean simply sending your materials by email and asking your recommenders to do the same. However, some funding agencies and foundations now have computer-based application platforms that can be quite complex, such as the NSF’s Fastlane platform or the NIH’s eRA Commons. If this is the case, it’s important to log on, create a profile, and learn how to submit your application well in advance of the deadline. You don’t want technological glitches to cause you to miss out on an opportunity. You’ll find that the standards for your application now are even higher. By the time you receive postdoctoral funding, you have completed a Ph.D. and received your calling card into the international community of scholars. Particularly in the social sciences and humanities, you are no longer expected to be an apprentice. Instead you are expected to be a contributor; it will be expected that your work will have significant impact in your field. It will also be more important than ever to be clear about how the short-term proposal fits into longer-term research goals, how much you can realistically expect to complete while receiving the postdoctoral grant, and, in some cases, how you would pursue additional sources of funding to continue your work. With limited funds available, funding agencies would prefer to think that they are making a long-term investment in scholars who will be productive far into the future.

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Evaluating Opportunities The whole process of pursuing postdoctoral research opportunities should involve some evaluation on your part. Why waste time preparing an application for something you do not want anyway? Nevertheless, it’s wise to apply broadly enough to be sure of obtaining something, and you may well end up with more than one opportunity from which to choose. In making a decision, you may have some personal considerations, such as salary and geographic location, which are simply a matter of your own priorities. In professional terms, however, there are several things everyone should consider. Probably the most important question is with whom you will work. While this question weighs in most heavily when working on another researcher’s grant, it is important even if you are being funded to do your own work. The researchers available to you as you pursue your work will probably have a significant intellectual impact on the outcome of your work. On a personal level, they can make a typical workday a pleasant source of challenge or a nightmare. They may also serve as important sources of recommendations and leads, as well as publishing and funding opportunities, as you pursue a more permanent position. So you need to consider your own view of the quality of their work, their reputations in the field, and whatever personal characteristics they bring to the workplace. When you choose a supervisor (which is what you are doing, even as the supervisor chooses you), consider the person’s track record in working with and supporting postdocs. A good way to do this is to speak directly with some of the researcher’s current or recent postdoctoral associates. To some extent you can evaluate the record for yourself by using standard library and Internet sources to examine the supervisor’s publications and the publications of postdocs who have worked with him or her. You can also ask the person directly to tell you about the career paths of recent postdocs. It is also important, however, to find out through informal conversation with people in the field, particularly those who have worked in that person’s lab, what he or she will be like to work with. This process will be useful, not only in deciding whether you want to accept the position at all, but also in getting off to a good start if you do accept it. While you can sometimes be offered a postdoc and assess it without visiting the actual place of work, it’s important to do everything within your power to visit the place so you can meet with people face-to-face. Forming a

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realistic assessment of a place is easier if you’ve visited it in person. For those who will be working in a laboratory, a visit is especially important, as much of your time will be spent in this setting. An additional consideration for international scholars may be whether the supervisor is someone who will sponsor you for U.S. permanent residency. Having a “green card” is a tremendous advantage when you enter the job market, so you might want to look particularly carefully at any offer that includes this option.

The Bottom Line A postdoctoral experience is virtually worthless unless it results in significant publications that will help you reach the next stage of your career. You must be far more proactive in identifying, applying for, and evaluating opportunities than you probably were when you applied to your doctoral program. If you must develop your own research proposal for a postdoctoral application, think it through very carefully to make sure that it’s both important and doable. If you start to run into dead ends early in your research, consider reframing it. If you will work as a postdoc on someone else’s research (typically in the sciences), and arrive at the research facility only to find out that it’s not at all what you expected it to be and that the odds of your success are low there, seriously consider cutting your losses and finding a more suitable appointment. Don’t waste these important years at the beginning of your research career in blind alleys.

Specific Postdoctoral Opportunities The following sampling of postdoctoral opportunities is intended not as anything like a comprehensive list, but as an indication of what such funding opportunities look like. We’ve divided it into opportunities in the sciences and engineering, and opportunities in the social sciences and humanities. Some of the opportunities listed are available across disciplines. As is mentioned in Chapter 3, all the information listed below is taken either from the website or from conversations by phone or email with staff at the various funding agencies and foundations. Where possible, the agency’s language has been paraphrased or summarized.

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Specific Postdoctoral Opportunities in Science and Engineering Scientific postdocs are particularly likely to be funded by a senior researcher whose grant allows him or her to hire postdoctoral researchers. A very common mechanism for linking candidates and positions is through an informal word-of-mouth system: an adviser calls a colleague on behalf of a student, strongly recommending the individual for a postdoctoral position. This system has certain advantages and disadvantages for candidates. If you are lucky enough to have a good relationship with an adviser who has a network of colleagues of national or international stature, and you are interested in continuing in the research direction of your adviser and the colleagues to whom he or she can recommend you, this personal referral system makes it easy to find a position. The only negative aspect of the system is that you will defer to a later stage of your career the valuable skills you learn when having to find your own position. In a variation of this system, you merely continue with your current adviser as a postdoctoral appointee after the completion of your doctoral degree. You may choose this option if you are midway through an important research project that is likely to continue to yield substantial results and want to continue working on it or if your adviser is about to undertake some exciting new research with which you want to be associated. The potentially negative aspect of this option is that it reinforces your dependence on one individual and deprives you of the chance to widen your circle of mentors. If you will not be working with your adviser and he or she does not recommend you to close associates with whom you would like to work, or if you want to shift research direction, you should not limit yourself to the contacts provided by your adviser and should search more proactively on your own, as described above. Industrial postdocs are another option, most common in the chemical and pharmaceutical industries. While these can provide valuable industry experience, you must generally keep in mind that they are postdoctoral rather than career-track research and development positions. Do not assume that an industrial postdoc represents a “foot in the door” of the company, unless there is internal evidence that is in fact the case. Commonly companies make a practice of not hiring their own postdocs. Therefore it may not be wise to accept a postdoctoral position at a company that is your

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first choice for subsequent permanent employment without verifying their hiring practices. Most funding for scientific postdocs comes from the U.S. government. The primary sources are the National Science Foundation (primarily, although not exclusively, for the physical sciences), the National Institutes of Health (for the biomedical sciences), and national research laboratories, such as Oak Ridge. Other civilian agencies, such as the Departments of Agriculture and Energy offer postdocs, as do military agencies. Many of these are funneled through the Research Associateships Program of the National Research Council. Direct U.S. funding often requires U.S. permanent residency and sometimes citizenship. International scholars who are not U.S. permanent residents may receive funding as postdocs on another individual’s research grant, because in that case funding is channeled through the researcher’s institution. See the online Community of Science, at www.cos.com, and GrantsNet, sponsored by Science magazine, at http://sciencecareers.sciencemag.org/ funding, for free searchable databases of grants. The conditions under which postdocs work, particularly in the biomedical sciences, has been a subject of national debate. The main advocacy organization for postdocs is the National Postdoctoral Association; its website, http://www.nationalpostdoc.org/, contains considerable practical information for postdocs on topics that range from career questions to advice on retirement planning and tax questions, as well as information related to policies on scientific research and the use of postdocs. Another useful tool to help postdocs share information is the online community found at the Science Careers Forum (http://scforum.aaas.org). In addition, Science Careers offers a range of valuable career information for scientists at many stages of their careers. See http://sciencecareers.sciencemag.org/.

National Science Foundation Postdoctoral Programs The NSF is a major source of science postdoctoral funding. This list includes only programs that award direct funding to individuals, though many NSFsponsored programs include long- or short-term training opportunities. For further information on each program listed below, contact the appropriate office or division. The list of NSF postdoctoral opportunities can be found at the following URL: http://www.nsf.gov/funding/education.jsp?fund_type=3.

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Administrative Agency: National Science Foundation Address: 4201 Wilson Boulevard Arlington, VA 22230 Phone: 703-292-5111 Email: [email protected] Website: http://www.nsf.gov Eligibility: Eligibility is limited to U.S. citizens and permanent residents. Arctic Research Opportunities

Administrative Agency: Division of Arctic Sciences Deadline: Mid-October, annually Astronomy and Astrophysics Postdoctoral Fellowships (AAPF)

Administrative Agency: Directorate for Mathematical and Physical Sciences Division of Astronomical Science Deadline: Early October, annually International Research Fellowship Program

Administrative Office: Office of International Science and Engineering Description: The goal of this program is to introduce scientists and engineers in the early stages of their careers to international collaborative research. Applicants must be awarded a Ph.D. within two years of the application deadline or expect to receive the degree before beginning the project. Deadline: Early September, annually Earth Sciences Postdoctoral Fellowships (EAR-PF)

Administrative Office: Directorate for Geosciences, Division of Earth Science Deadline: Early July, annually

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Mathematical Sciences Postdoctoral Research Fellowships

Administrative Agency: Directorate for Mathematical and Physical Sciences, Division of Mathematical Sciences Deadline: Mid-October, annually Minority Postdoctoral Research Fellowships and Follow-up Research Starter Grants (MPRF)

Administrative Agency: Directorate for Social, Behavioral, and Economic Sciences SBE Office of Multidisciplinary Activities Description: The goal of this award is to increase the diversity of researchers in the social, behavioral, and economic sciences. Deadline: Mid-October, annually NSF Fellowships for Transformative Computational Science Using CyberInfrastructure (CI TraCS)

Administrative Agency: Office of Cyberinfrastructure Description: The goal of this program is to support early-career scientists and engineers in the field of computational science, with a focus on crossdisciplinarity. Deadline: Mid-January, annually Postdoctoral Research Fellowships in Biology (PRFB)

Administrative Agency: Directorate for Biological Sciences Deadline: Early October, annually Postdoctoral Fellowships Polar Regions Research

Administrative Agency: Office of Polar Programs Division of Arctic Sciences Division of Antarctic Sciences Deadline: Mid-October, annually

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Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award (NRSA) Individual Postdoctoral Fellowships (F32) Administrative Agency: National Institutes of Health Address: Division of Extramural Outreach and Information Resources Office of Extramural Research National Institutes of Health 6705 Rockledge Drive, Suite 350 Bethesda, MD 20817 Phone: 301-435-0714; FAX: 301-480-0525 Email: [email protected] Website: http://grants.nih.gov/training/nrsa.htm Deadline and Notification: Applications are due April 8, August 8, and December 8. If funding is awarded, the start date for the project is approximately nine months after the due date. Please note that proposals related to AIDS have a different submission schedule. Number of Awards and Average Number of Applicants: All statistics relevant to the NRSA program can be found here: http://report.nih.gov/index.aspx. The success rate for applicants varies from institute to institute, but generally it is about 30 percent. Award Amount: In 2010, NRSA postdoctoral stipend levels were as follows: Years of Experience

Stipend

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 or more

$37,740 $39,756 $42,624 $44,304 $45,960 $47,940 $49,836 $52,068

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The award requires one month of payback for each month of training, up to a maximum of twelve months. This requirement can be fulfilled by teaching or research (a minimum of 20 hours per week) on a continuous basis, beginning within two years after support ends. Application Form: Application for NRSA fellowships now takes place online. Applicants must be registered at both grants.gov (http://www.grants.gov/applicants/get_registered.jsp) and eRA Commons (http://era.nih.gov/Electronic Receipt/preparing.htm). The applicant’s institution must also be registered on eRA. The NIH cautions applicants that some elements of registration in these two systems can take up to four weeks. Applicants are advised to familiarize themselves with these platforms well before the due date of their fellowship application. Purpose of Grant/Fellowship and Restrictions: This award offers health scientists the opportunity to receive full-time research training in areas that reflect the national need for biomedical and behavioral research; it is offered by all the NIH institutes and centers. The award was renamed for Dr. Ruth L. Kirschstein, a pioneer in the field of polio vaccination and the first female director of an NIH institute, after her death in October 2009. Length of Award: Awards may be for project periods up to five years in duration and are renewable. Awardees are expected to conduct research full time. Applicant Eligibility: When the fellowship begins, the applicant must have received a doctoral degree and have arranged to work with a sponsor affiliated with an institution that has the staff and facilities needed for the proposed training. Applicants must be U.S. citizens, non-citizen nationals, or legal permanent residents of the United States. Application Requirements: You and the institution that will sponsor you must each submit an extremely detailed application, giving extensive information about both your background and your proposed research. In addition, you need to submit at least three but no more than five letters of recommendation. Application Advice: As you begin to work on your NRSA application, it’s important to take a look at the NIH databases to see what the various centers and institutes are currently funding. If you have questions, you are encouraged to

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establish contact with a program officer. This will help give you a sense of the type of research an institute does or does not fund. Make sure that your application is welcome; otherwise, you will be wasting your time. It’s also crucial to pick a strong mentor, someone whose lab can provide you with the support you need to complete your project. The selection committee also considers carefully the training environment of a potential lab. Your potential sponsor must have a good track record for training and mentoring students and postdocs. Because the application is so detailed and time consuming and requires the cooperation of several other people, get started on your application early; allow yourself plenty of time to meet all the requirements. In addition, the NIH offers other awards. Medical Informatics Research Training

The National Library of Medicine funds this program in biomedical informatics at eighteen institutions in the United States. Website: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/ep/GrantTrainInstitute.html Mentored Research Scientist Development Award (K01)

The award provides additional time for intensive research career development under the guidance of an experienced mentor. In some cases, the award can be used to gain expertise in an area new to the candidate to enhance his or her scientific career. Qualified candidates should also consider applying for the recently created K99 award. Website: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/PA-09-040.html National Cancer Institute (NCI) Career Development Grants

The NCI offers a range of funding opportunities for research or health professional doctorates. Website: http://epi.grants.cancer.gov/train. Of particular interest is the Cancer Prevention Fellowship Program (CPFP), which provides awardees with the funding to pursue a master’s degree in public health (M.P.H.). Website: http://www3.cancer.gov/prevention/pob/

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Research Supplements for Underrepresented Minority Individuals in Postdoctoral Training

This funding opportunity provides current NIH principal investigators with supplemental funds to recruit and support postdocs from underrepresented minority groups. Though only a current principal investigator is eligible to apply for this award, he or she is encouraged to identify candidates for the position in advance. Potential postdocs from underrepresented minority groups should thus be aware of this as a possible funding source. Those with disabilities are eligible for this award as well. Website: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/PA-08-190.html Supplements to Promote Reentry into Biomedical and Behavioral Research Careers

This award supports the reentry into the research profession for those whose career has been interrupted owing to family responsibilities. As in the case of the above award, the candidate must be supported by a principal investigator currently funded by the NIH. Candidates must have held a postdoc or faculty position before their departure from active research in order to be eligible for the award. Website: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/pa-08-191.html

AAAS Science and Engineering Fellowship Program Administrative Agency: American Association for the Advancement of Science Address: AAAS Science and Technology Policy Fellowships 1200 New York Avenue, NW Washington, DC 20005 Phone: 202-326-6700 Email: [email protected] Website: http://www.aaas.org/careercenter/fellowships/ Deadline: Early December

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Number of Awards Available: Overall, AAAS awards about 100 fellowships each year. In 2010, the program received 643 applications. Average Number of Applicants: Awards are highly competitive. The ratio of applicants to awardees varies by program. Award Amount: The stipend begins at $74,872 and follows the federal general schedule Grade 12–Step 1 established by the Office of Personnel Management. The stipends are higher for awardees with more than seven years of experience. Application Form: Available online Purpose of Grant/Fellowship and Restrictions: To provide opportunities for scientists and engineers to contribute to the federal policy-making process in Congress and several other executive branch agencies. Length of Award: One year. Renewal for an additional year is possible contingent on funding availability and the approval of both the AAAS and the host office. Applicant Eligibility: Candidates must be U.S. citizens. Applicants must have a Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral-level degree at the time of application. Application Requirements: The application is completed online. Candidates must submit a CV, a bibliography, a candidate statement, information about extracurricular activities, a certification of accuracy and citizenship, and three letters of recommendation. Interviews are held with finalists in March. Those who receive the award are invited to a placement week in early April, where they can interview for positions with partner agencies. Application Advice: “The ratio of applicants to fellowships awarded is different in each of the AAAS programs. We urge you not to consider ‘the odds,’ but to apply to the programs that best fit your areas of experience and interest, because it is in those areas that you will be most competitive.” Read through the program descriptions carefully. If you are applying to more than one program, take care to customize your applications to each program area. The AAAS also works with partner agencies to provide support to congressional and executive branch fellows. These partner agencies have a separate

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application process. A list of them can be found here: http://fellowships .aaas.org/01_society_partners/01_SponSocieties.shtml. Candidates can apply to more than one agency at a time. Evaluation Criteria: Candidates are evaluated and scored based on five categories: • • • • •

Scientific/technical background and professional accomplishment; Leadership and potential; Problem-solving abilities; Communication, interpersonal, and outreach skills; and Commitment to AAAS fellowship objectives and opportunities.

More information about these categories can be found on the AAAS website: http://fellowships.aaas.org/04_Become/04_Evaluation_Scoring.shtml. General Information: In 2010–11, the AAAS will offer awards in four programmatic areas, including: • • • •

Congressional; Diplomacy, security, and development; Energy, environment, and agriculture; and Health, education, and human services.

Typical placements include such organizations as congressional offices and committees, the Department of State, the Environmental Protection Agency, and the Department of Health and Human Services.

Cancer Research Award––Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation Administrative Agency: Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation Address: One Exchange Plaza 55 Broadway, Suite 302 New York, NY 10006 Phone: 212-455-0520

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Email: [email protected] Website: http://www.damonrunyon.org/for_scientists/more/fellowship_award _overview Deadline: There are two deadlines, mid-March and mid-August. The selection committee meets in May and November. Number of Awards and Applicants: The program typically receives between 150 and 250 applications per cycle, and makes awards to between 15 and 20 percent of the candidates. Award Amount: As of 2010, the level-one stipend is $50,000 per year, and the level-two stipend is $60,000. Only M.D. applicants who have completed their residencies and clinical training and are board eligible receive the level-two stipend. The lab hosting the fellow is awarded a $2,000 allowance per year for the fellow’s educational and scientific expenses. Application Form: The application form is available online, and materials must be received in hard copy by the foundation on or before 4:30 p.m. on the day of the deadline. Purpose of Fellowship and Restrictions: The award’s purpose is to fund both theoretical and experimental research related to the study of cancer. The overarching goal of the Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation is to fund early-career researchers whose work has the potential to make a lasting impact on cancer treatment. Length of Award: Three years. Second and third year funding is contingent on successful progress reports. Applicant Eligibility: Applicants for the program must have completed either an M.D., Ph.D., M.D./Ph.D., D.D.S., or D.V.M. A diploma must be submitted to the program with the application as confirmation of the date the applicant received his or her degree. The proposed postdoctoral research must be significantly different from the applicant’s graduate work. International scholars may apply, but their work must be carried out in the United States.

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Application Requirements: A cover sheet with original signatures (available for download online), the research sponsor’s biosketch (NIH format) and letter, the applicant’s CV, a letter of intent from the applicant, a research proposal, a summary of research form, a copy of the diploma, and reprints of the applicant’s publications, if available. Three letters of recommendation using the foundation’s form must also be submitted. Application Advice: The quality of the applicant’s potential training environment is a very important factor for the selection committee. An applicant should select a lab in which his or her abilities will be broadened and strengthened. Applicants also are judged on their long-term potential to impact cancer treatment.

Helen Hay Whitney Foundation Postdoctoral Research Fellowships Administrative Agency: The Helen Hay Whitney Foundation Address: 20 Squadron Boulevard, Suite 630 New City, NY 10956 Phone: 845-639-6799; Fax: 845-639-6798 or 646-304-7133 Email: [email protected] Website: http://www.hhwf.org/HTMLSrc/ResearchFellowships.html Deadline: Mid-July for activation between April and December of the following year. Notification is in early November. Number of Awards and Applicants: In 2010, the foundation awarded 22 fellowships out of a total of 461 applications received. Award Amount: As of 2010, first-year stipend is $48,000; second-year is $49,000; third-year is $50,000, with a $2,500 research allowance in each of the three years. Application Form: The application is available online.

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Purpose of Fellowship and Restrictions: To increase the number of imaginative, well-trained, and dedicated medical scientists. The foundation does not make more than one award in any one year for training with a given supervisor, and in addition, will not support more than two fellows per laboratory at one time. Length of Award: Three years Applicant Eligibility: Candidates living in North America who hold or are in the final stages of obtaining an M.D., a Ph.D., or an equivalent degree and are seeking beginning postdoctoral training in basic biomedical research. Applicants can have no more than one year of postdoctoral experience before the award deadline and may apply a second time as long as they still do not have more than one year of postdoctoral experience by the deadline. U.S. citizenship is not a requirement, but fellowships to resident non-citizens are awarded only for training in this country. Citizens may train abroad. International scholars will need to obtain appropriate visa documentation as required by U.S. immigration regulations. Application Requirements: Application form, summary of previous research accomplishments, bibliography, autobiographical sketch, research proposal, statement of general and specific professional interests, goals for the fellowship period and long-range career objectives, transcripts, reprints, letter from prospective supervisor, and four letters of reference, one of which should be from a thesis adviser. A personal interview with a foundation committee member is scheduled for those whose application makes it to the final steps in the selection process. Application Advice: The Helen Hay Whitney Foundation has as its goal to support the most outstanding young biomedical scientists it can identify, independent of their field. Thus, it is not just the research proposal that the foundation considers, but also its evaluation of an applicant’s promise as a future leader in research.

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Irvington Institute Fellowship Program Administrative Agency: Cancer Research Institute Address: National Headquarters One Exchange Plaza 55 Broadway, Suite 1802 New York, NY 10006 Phone: (212) 688-7515; Fax: (212) 832-9376 Email: [email protected] Website: http://www.cancerresearch.org/programs/research/fellowship.html Deadline: There are two deadlines, early April and early October. Applicants are notified of funding decisions approximately ten weeks after the deadline. Number of Awards and Applicants: The program typically makes between 12 and 15 awards for each award cycle; they receive about 120 to 150 applications per cycle. Award Amount: As of 2010, first-year stipend is $45,000; second-year is $47,000; third-year is $49,000, with $1,500 allotted to the institution each year to use at the sponsor’s discretion to pay for research supplies, travel, or health insurance. Application Form: The application is accepted in electronic format only. Purpose of Fellowship and Restrictions: The Irvington Institute Fellowship Program of the Cancer Research Institute, formerly the Cancer Research Institute Postdoctoral Fellowship Program, answers the need for more researchers in the field of cancer immunology. It supports qualified young scientists at leading universities and research centers around the world who wish to receive training in cancer immunology or general immunology. Proposals outside the field of immunology will not be considered. Length of Award: Three years

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Applicant Eligibility: Applicants for the Irvington Institute Fellowship Program must be working in cancer immunology or general immunology. Applicants must have a doctoral degree by the date of award activation and must conduct their proposed research under a sponsor who holds a formal appointment at the host institution. Applicants with five or more years of relevant postdoctoral experience are not eligible, with the exception of M.D. applicants, who should not include years of residency in this calculation. Work can be carried out in the United States or abroad but must take place at nonprofit institutions. There are no citizenship restrictions. Application Requirements: Institutional certification from the sponsoring institution, an application cover sheet, a brief description of the candidate’s background and research accomplishments; a CV and bibliography; an abstract of the proposed research written in nontechnical terms; a research proposal; a letter from the sponsor, along with his or her CV, bibliography, and list of current research support; and two letters of recommendation. Application Advice: The description of the proposed project should be very thorough. Applicants should not be vague about their research plans: the project should be well thought out. Candidates must be working in the field of immunology. The host lab and potential sponsor should have a record of success. The recommendation letters are very important.

Jane Coffin Childs Memorial Fund for Medical Research Fellowship Administrative Agency: Jane Coffin Childs Memorial Fund for Medical Research Address: 333 Cedar Street, SHM L300 New Haven, CT 06510 Phone: 203-785-4612 Email: [email protected] Website: http://www.jccfund.org/

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Deadline: February 1; notification is given in April or May. The first start date for the fellowship is July 1. Number of Awards Available: 25 to 30 Average Number of Applicants: 350 Award Amount: $45,000 the first year; $46,000 the second year; $48,000 the third year, with an additional $1,000 for each dependent child. There is no dependency allowed for a spouse. An allowance of $1,500 a year toward the cost of the research usually will be made available to the laboratory sponsoring the fellow. A travel award will be made to the fellow and family for travel to the sponsoring laboratory. No indirect costs are paid to the institution. Application Form: Though the application form and information are available online, a certification form with original signatures also must be submitted and postmarked on or before February 1. Purpose of Grant/Fellowship and Restrictions: The fund awards fellowships to suitably qualified individuals for full-time postdoctoral studies in the medical and related sciences bearing on cancer. Applicants in general should not have more than one year of postdoctoral experience. Length of Award: Normally three years, though some two-year awards are made. Applicant Eligibility: Applicants should hold an M.D. or a Ph.D. in the field in which they propose to study. Citizens of any country are eligible, but awards to international scholars will be made only for U.S. study. U.S. citizens may use the fellowship to conduct research abroad. Application Requirements: Evidence of pre- and postdoctoral training; three references, one of whom should be the principal predoctoral adviser; outline of the research problem proposed; and the written consent of both the chief of laboratory and a responsible fiscal officer of the host institution. Application Advice: Focus on developing a sound research proposal that has the support of the laboratory where you want to work and that can be

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executed with its facilities. It is important that the candidate’s project can be carried out successfully in the lab proposed in the application.

NRC Research Associateship Program Administrative Agency: National Research Council Address: Research Associateship Programs National Research Council 500 Fifth Street, NW (Keck 568) Washington, DC 20001 Phone: 202-334-2760; Fax: 202-334-2759 Email: [email protected] Website: http://sites.nationalacademies.org/pga/rap/ Deadline: February 1, May 1, August 1, and November 1. Review results are available six to eight weeks after the application deadline; some awards take additional time as sponsors make funding decisions. Not all labs accept applications at every deadline. More information is available on the website. Number of Awards Available: 300 to 350 typically Average Number of Applicants: 800 to 1,000 Award Amount: Stipends for associates are limited to the amounts set forth by the NRC and the sponsoring federal laboratory. A group health-insurance program is provided. Funds for relocation and professional travel also are available. Application: Apply online through the RAP platform. There is a sample application available for download at the “How to Apply” page of the program’s website. Applicants are required to submit four reference reports, transcripts, and immigration documents (if applicable) by express delivery to the above address.

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Purpose of Grant/Fellowship and Restrictions: The NRC Research Associateship Programs are awards made to doctoral-level scientists and engineers who can bring their special knowledge and research talents to bear in research areas of interest to them, to the host laboratories, and to the research centers. Postdoctoral awards are made to those who have earned their doctorates within the last five years. Each awardee works in collaboration with a research adviser, who is a staff member of the laboratory. Before applying, prospective applicants must identify a host federal laboratory where they plan to conduct their research and have a research opportunity (RO) number or numbers for the laboratory to which they are applying. NRC administers the program for federal laboratories and NASA Research Centers at over a hundred locations in the United States and overseas, including Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) Armed Forces Radiobiology Research Institute (AFRRI) Army Aviation and Missile Research, Development and Engineering Center (AMRDEC) Army Research Laboratory—U.S. Military Academy (ARL/USMA) Chemical and Biological Defense Funded Laboratories (CBD) Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) EPA/Faculty Fellowship Program (EPA/FFP) FAA–Civil Aerospace Medical Institute (FAA/CAMI) Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) Institute for Water Resources, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (IWR) Marine Mammal Commission (MMC) Naval Marine Mammal Program (MMP) National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) Methane Hydrates Fellowship Program (NETL/MHFP) NIH (NIBIB)/NIST Joint Sponsorship Program (NIH[NIBIB]/NIST) National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Naval Medical Research Center/Naval Health Research (NMRC/NHRC) National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Naval Postgraduate School (NPS) Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) U.S. Army Edgewood Chemical Biological Center (ECBC) U.S. Army Medical Research and Materiel Command (AMRMC) U.S. Army Natick Soldier Research, Development and Engineering Center (NSRDEC)

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U.S. Army Research, Development and Engineering Command Night Vision and Electronic Sensors Directorate (NVESD) U.S. Army Research, Development and Engineering Command/ Armament Research, Development and Engineering Center (RDEC/ ARDEC) U.S. Army Research Laboratory (ARL) U.S. Army Research Office (ARO) Length of Award: Tenure varies by agency, but an initial appointment of one year is typical. Applicant Eligibility: Some of these awards require U.S. citizenship, and some do not. International students and scholars can search the website to find associateships for which they are eligible. Application Requirements: Application form, research proposal and anticipated research needs, description of previous and current research, transcripts, reference reports or letters of reference, laboratory center/review form completed by proposed research adviser. Application Advice: Applicants are evaluated based on academic record, letters of recommendation, previous research experience, and the research they propose to conduct during the fellowship. A strong proposal that is well thought out, well written, and technically sound is the most important element of the application.

Specific Postdoctoral Opportunities in the Social Sciences and Humanities Because fewer researchers in most disciplines in these areas receive grants large enough to support postdoctoral researchers, most funding will be available through direct application to external funding agencies. An occasional exception, discussed above, is the opportunity to work with a very senior researcher. Since more postdocs are beginning to be created in these fields, it is particularly important to stay in touch with opportunities. Follow announcements at H-Net.org and in all the scholarly job listings that could possibly apply to your research. If Grant Advisor or other funding databases are available on your campus or at a library near you, search

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them regularly and set up email alerts to keep yourself up-to-date on new funding opportunities. If you subscribe to any listservs, keep watch for announcements of postdoctoral opportunities. Continue to ask everyone who might know, in your department, at meetings, via phone calls and e-mail messages. Many research centers, including major libraries and museums, have some funding for those wishing to work there or to use their collections. Make sure to contact them directly to see whether you can identify additional funding. Social scientists should know they may be eligible for some NSF and AAAS awards, depending on their field of specialty. Good examples of this are the Minority Postdoctoral Research Fellowships, which fall under the NSF Directorate for Social, Behavior, and Economic Sciences (see above), and the Documenting Endangered Languages program, which is jointly sponsored by the NSF Directorate for Social, Behavior, and Economic Sciences and the National Endowment for the Humanities. Listed below are some of the major sources of external funding for which candidates in the humanities and social sciences may apply directly. Use this list only as a starting point, taking care to consult both the resources discussed above and those specific to your field.

U.S. Fulbright Scholar Program Administrative Agency: Council for International Exchange of Scholars Address: 3007 Tilden Street, NW, Suite 5L Washington, DC 20008-3009 Phone: 202-686-4000; Fax: 202-362-3442 Email: [email protected] Website: http://www.cies.org/us_scholars/ Deadline and Notification: August deadline (for an academic year starting 13 months later) Number of Awards Available: The U.S. Scholars program sends approximately 1,100 American scholars and professionals per year to approximately 125

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countries, where they lecture and conduct research in a wide variety of academic and professional fields. Award Amount: Varies and includes a base stipend, maintenance for living in country of assignment, travel and relocation, and health insurance. Purpose of Grant/Fellowship and Restrictions: The Fulbright Scholar Program is sponsored by the U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. It offers grants for college and university faculty, as well as for professionals and independent scholars, to lecture and conduct research in countries around the world. Length of Award: Academic year, which can vary according to country Applicant Eligibility: U.S. faculty and professionals who are U.S. citizens. Applicants must have a Ph.D. or an equivalent professional or terminal degree at time of application. They must also have college or university teaching experience at the level and in the field of the proposed lecturing activity, as specified in the award description, and foreign-language proficiency if specified in the award description. Application Requirements: The application form (completed online and signed electronically), a project statement, CV or resume, and three letters of reference. Some awards may require sample course syllabi, a letter of invitation, a language-proficiency form, or a select bibliography. Candidates in the visual and performing arts, journalism, and architecture may need to provide samples of their work. Application Advice: The website features both helpful tips for potential applicants (http://www.cies.org/us_scholars/us_awards/Tips.htm), content guidelines for application materials (http://www.cies.org/us_scholars/us_awards/Content_Guidelines.htm), and review criteria (http://www.cies.org/us_scholars/ us_awards/ReviewCriteria.htm).

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Mellon Postdoctoral Fellowships in the Humanities Address: 140 East 62nd Street New York, NY 10065 Phone: 212-838-8400 Fax: 212-888-4172 Website: http://www.mellon.org/grant_programs/programs/higher-educationand-scholarship/researchuniversities The mission of the Research Universities and Humanistic Scholarship program at the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation “has three main objectives: (1) supporting research by individual scholars at different career stages, beginning with graduate fellowships and ending with awards for emeritus professors; (2) assisting institutions where humanists work, including research universities, centers for advanced study, independent research libraries, and specialized research institutes, while also facilitating institutional collaborations; and (3) encouraging promising lines of humanistic inquiry, often involving multiple scholars” (2009 President’s Report, Andrew W. Mellon Foundation). To this end, select institutions have been funded by Mellon to provide research opportunities in the humanities. The individual institutions select the areas of research, which usually change each year. Applicants from other institutions are preferred to those who earned doctorates at the institutions offering the fellowship. Most fellowships are for two years; some involve teaching and others do not. Some examples of institutions with Mellon postdoctoral programs are listed here: Cornell University, http://www.arts.cornell.edu/sochum/mellon_postd_fellowships.html Johns Hopkins University, http://krieger.jhu.edu/research/mellon Stanford University, http://mellonfellowship.stanford.edu/ University of California, Los Angeles, http://www2.humnet.ucla.edu/ mellon/ University of Pennsylvania, http://humanities.sas.upenn.edu/index. shtml

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The Mellon Foundation also began its New Faculty Fellows program in response to the weak job market in the humanities after the financial crisis of 2008. This program was created in partnership with the American Council of Learned Societies; see below for more information on how to apply. Related Fellowships: Michigan Society of Fellows, University of Chicago Society of Fellows

Individual Advanced Research Opportunities for U.S. Scholars in Central and Eastern Europe Administrative Agency: International Research and Exchanges Board (IREX) Address: 2121 K Street, NW, Suite 700 Washington, DC 20037 Phone: 202-628-8188; Fax: 202-628-8189 Email: [email protected] Website: http://www.irex.org/application/individual-advanced-research-oppor tunities-iaro Deadline and Notification: Mid-November; notification is given in April Number of Awards Available: 25 Average Number of Applicants: 200 to 220 applications per year. An average of 10 percent of applicants receive a grant. The application numbers have been steadily increasing in the past few years, so the program may be getting more competitive. Award Amount: Round-trip airfare and visa fees. Stipend for living expenses and housing based on pre-established, country-specific levels. Emergency evacuation insurance is also provided. Purpose of Grant/Fellowship and Restrictions: This program provides fellowships for individual long-term research in Central and Eastern Europe and

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Eurasia. The website lists approved countries. Fellows may divide their grant period travel among up to three countries, with the minimum time spent in each country being one month. Length of Award: Two to nine months Applicant Eligibility: U.S. citizen or permanent resident for three years before submitting an application. Command of host-country language sufficient for advanced research. Applicants are required to have a full-time affiliation with a college or university and to be faculty members or doctoral candidates who will have completed all requirements for the Ph.D. except the dissertation by the time of participation. Independent scholars or recipients of professional degrees (M.F.A., J.D., M.D., M.L.I.S., M.B.A., M.P.A.) may also qualify. In addition to conducting their research, IARO fellows are asked to perform service by making themselves available as consultants to schools, local NGOs, or the U.S. embassy in their host country. Application Requirements: The application is completed online. The most critical part is the description of the proposed research. Candidates must also submit a CV, transcript, one letter of reference, and one letter testifying to language proficiency. Detailed instructions are available on the website. Application Advice: A successful IARO application includes strong recommendations from people in your field—advisers, directors of programs, fellow scholars established in the research. Furthermore, the program focuses on policy implications and how the research is relevant to U.S. foreign policy in the region. A strong argument for relevance on a larger scale definitely helps strengthen any proposal.

National Academy of Education Spencer Postdoctoral Fellowship Administrative Agency: National Academy of Education Address: 500 Fifth Street, NW Washington, DC 20001 Phone: 202-334-2341

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Email: [email protected] Website: http://www.naeducation.org/ Deadline: Late fall application deadline; May award notification Number of Awards Available: Up to 20 Average Number of Applicants: 200 Award Amounts: $55,000 for up to two years Application Form: Available on the website Purpose of Grant/Fellowship and Restrictions: The NAE Spencer Postdoctoral Fellowships are designed to promote scholarship in the United States and abroad on matters relevant to the improvement of education in all its forms. Length of Award: One academic year or two contiguous years, working half-time Applicant Eligibility: Applicants must have been awarded their Ph.D., Ed.D., or equivalent degree within the five years before the deadline. Applicants must be in education, the humanities, or the social and behavioral sciences. Application Requirements: Applicants must describe research relevant to education. Applications will be judged on the applicant’s past research record, the promise of early work, and the quality of the project described in the application. Be sure to apply well before the deadline.

Smithsonian Postdoctoral Fellowships Administrative Agency: Smithsonian Institution Mailing Address: Office of Fellowships and Grants Smithsonian Institution 470 L’Enfant Plaza, SW, Suite 7102 MRC 902, P.O. Box 37012 Washington, DC 20013-7012

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Delivery Address: 470 L’Enfant Plaza, SW, Suite 7102 Washington, DC 20024 Phone: 202-275-0655 Email: [email protected] Website: http://www.si.edu/ofg/ Deadline: The deadline for most postdoctoral programs is January 15; some awards have multiple deadlines. Number of Awards Available: 30 to 35 awards per year Average Number of Applicants: 200 to 250 postdoctoral fellowship applications per year Award Amount: $45,000 for twelve months; allowances to assist with the fellow’s research-related expenses and for temporary relocation to the Smithsonian are possible. Stipends are prorated for periods of less than twelve months. Application Form: Application available on website Purpose of Grant/Fellowship and Restrictions: To provide opportunities to conduct research in association with members of the Smithsonian professional research staff and to use the resources of the Smithsonian. Information about Smithsonian staff and their fields of study are available on the website. Length of Award: Three to twelve months; must begin between June 1 and March 1. Some postdoctoral fellowships, such as those that are sciencefocused and the Peter Buck Fellowship Program at the National Museum of Natural History, allow for longer tenure as a postdoctoral fellow. Applicant Eligibility: For scholars who have held the doctoral degree or equivalent for fewer than seven years as of the application deadline. Application Requirements: Applicants must submit detailed proposals, including justification for conducting the research in residence at the Smithsonian.

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Applications are submitted through Solaa, the Smithsonian online academic appointments system at https://solaa.si.edu/solaa/SOLAAHome.html. Application Advice: The key to a successful application is the justification and need for use of Smithsonian research resources. The research proposal must be well tied to the Smithsonian and its collections or staff research interests. Applicants should investigate and make contact with potential advisers about their proposal before applying. More information about the program, as well as the publication “Smithsonian Opportunities for Research and Study,” the Fellowship Office’s guide to the institution’s facilities, support services, current research interests, research staff, and their areas of specialization, can be found at www.si.edu/research+study.

Postdoctoral Fellowships and Advanced Research Grants—Social Science Research Council Administrative Agency: Social Science Research Council Address: One Pierrepont Plaza, 15th Floor 300 Cadman Plaza West Brooklyn, NY 11201 Phone: 212-377-2700; Fax: 212-377-2727 Email: [email protected] Website: http://www.ssrc.org/fellowships/ Deadline: Varies; check website Number of Awards Available: Varies; check website Award Amount and Length of Award: Both vary; check website Application Form: Application materials on website Purpose of Grant/Fellowship and Restrictions: The Social Science Research Council is an independent, nonprofit organization. It seeks to advance social

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science throughout the world and supports research, education, and scholarly exchange on every continent. The SSRC sponsors fellowship and grant programs, either independently or with other organizations. Some programs also provide support for natural scientists and nonacademic professionals. The SSRC administers postdoctoral programs in the following areas: • Abe Fellowships, • Economic and Social Research Council–SSRC Collaborative Visiting Scholars Program, • Japan Society for the Promotion of Science Fellowship, • Latin American Security, Drugs, and Democracy Fellowship, and • Van Allen Resident Fellowship. Application Form: Applications for most fellowships are available online. Application Advice: For advice on submitting fellowship proposals to the council, the applicant may wish to read “The Art of Writing Proposals: Some Candid Suggestions for Applicants to Social Science Research Council Competitions,” by two longtime selection committee members. It is available on the website.

ACLS Fellowships Administrative Agency: American Council of Learned Societies Address: 633 Third Avenue, 8th Floor New York, NY 10017-6795 Phone: 212-697-1505; Fax: 212-949-8058 Email: [email protected] Website: http://www.acls.org Deadline and Notification: Early fall; award notification in mid-March Amounts Awarded: $35,000 to $60,000, depending on rank

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Application form: Information on programs and application materials are posted to the website in midsummer. Purpose of Grant/Fellowship and Restrictions: The ACLS funds postdoctoral research in the humanities and related social sciences through the following programs: • • • • • • • •

ACLS/New York Public Library Residential Fellowships, ACLS Public Fellows, ACLS/SSRC/NEH International and Area Studies Fellowships, African Humanities Program, American Research in the Humanities in China, Digital Innovation Fellowships, Early Career Postdoctoral Fellowships in East European Studies, and New Faculty Fellows Program.

Length of Award: Award length varies according to program; most last from six to twelve months. Applicant Eligibility: Applicants must be citizens or permanent legal residents of the United States. The awards vary as to the required time between Ph.D. conferral and the fellowship deadline. For certain awards, established scholars who can demonstrate the equivalent of the Ph.D. in publications and professional experience may also qualify. For the African Humanities Program, applicants must be nationals and residents of a country in sub-Saharan Africa, with a current affiliation at an institution in Ghana, Nigeria, South Africa, Tanzania, or Uganda. The Public Fellows program seeks to place recent Ph.D.s in careers beyond the tenure-track; the inaugural competition took place in spring 2011. Application Requirements: Applicants must submit a detailed proposal of their research plans with their application. Those applying to the Digital Innovation Fellowships must also include a project budget. Two to three letters of recommendation are required, along with a CV and bibliography of the candidate. Application Advice: Useful suggestions for preparing an application to the ACLS are on both the websites of the various programs and in the following document: http://www.acls.org/uploadedFiles/Publications/Programs/ Writing_Fellowship_Proposals.pdf.

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Ford Foundation Postdoctoral Fellowships for Minorities Administrative Agency: National Research Council Address: Fellowships Office, Keck 576 National Research Council 500 Fifth Street, NW Washington, DC 20001 Phone: 202-334-2872; Fax: 202-334-3419 Email: [email protected] Website: http://sites.nationalacademies.org/PGA/FordFellowships/ Deadline: Early November Number of Awards Available: 18 in 2010 Award Amount: $40,000 stipend; expenses paid to attend one Conference of Ford Fellows Purpose of Grant/Fellowship and Restrictions: The program seeks to increase the diversity of the nation’s college and university faculty by providing career support to scholars from a wide range of ethnic and racial backgrounds, particularly those underrepresented in the professoriate. The program enables fellows to engage in a year of postdoctoral research and scholarship in an environment free from the interference of their normal professional duties. In sponsoring this fellowship program, the Ford Foundation wishes to help recent doctoral recipients achieve greater recognition and develop the professional connections that will make them more effective and productive in academic employment. Major disciplines eligible for support include the life sciences, physical sciences, mathematics, engineering sciences, behavioral and social sciences, education, and the humanities. Length of Award: Either nine or twelve months, beginning between September and June of the fellowship year

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Applicant Eligibility: U.S. citizens or nationals of the United States. Applicants are required to have earned a Ph.D. or Sc.D. degree in an eligible field from a U.S. educational institution no earlier than seven years before the fellowship application deadline, but must have completed the degree by the deadline. Candidates must also be committed to a career in teaching and research at the college or university level. Application Requirements: An application to the Ford Foundation Fellowship Program requires a range of materials, including a statement of previous research, an annotated bibliography, the abstract of the candidate’s dissertation, an abstract of proposed research and a proposed research plan, a personal statement that describes the applicant’s background, experience and commitment to the goals of the Ford Foundation Fellowship Program, the names and contact information of four professors or colleagues who will upload a letter of recommendation on the candidate’s behalf, and the name of and contact information for a host mentor or colleague. Application Advice: The selection committee looks for the following: • Evidence of superior academic achievement; • Degree of promise of continuing achievement as scholars and teachers; • Capacity to respond in pedagogically productive ways to the learning needs of students from diverse backgrounds; • Sustained personal engagement with communities that are underrepresented in the academy and an ability to bring this asset to learning, teaching, and scholarship at the college and university level; • Likelihood of using the diversity of human experience as an educational resource in teaching and scholarship; and • Membership in a minority group whose underrepresentation in the American professoriate has been severe and long-standing. Review panels may also look at such additional factors as the suitability of the applicant’s proposed institution and the likelihood that the applicant will fully use nine to twelve months of postdoctoral support.

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American Fellowships, Postdoctoral Research Leave Fellowships—American Association of University Women Administrative Agency: American Association of University Women Educational Foundation Shipping Address: Fellowships and Grants (UPS, FedEx) 301 ACT Drive P.O. Box 4030 Iowa City, IA 52243-4030 Mailing Address: AAUW American Fellowships P.O. Box 4030 Iowa City, IA 52243-4030 Phone: 319-337-1716 Email: [email protected] Website: http://www.aauw.org/learn/fellowships_grants/american.cfm Deadline: Mid-November postmark deadline; award notification in April. Number of Awards and Average Number of Applicants: In 2011–12, there were 122 applicants. Of those 122, 10 fellowships will be awarded. Other Related Fellowships: AAUW Educational Foundation International Fellowships (http://www.aauw.org/learn/fellowships_grants/international.cfm) are awarded for full-time study or research at accredited institutions to women who are not U.S. citizens or permanent residents. The fellowships support graduate and postgraduate study. Amount Awarded: $30,000 Application Form: Applications become available in mid-August. Purpose of Grant/Fellowship and Restrictions: American Fellowships support women doctoral candidates who are completing dissertations or tenure-track

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scholars seeking funds for postdoctoral research leave from accredited institutions. Candidates are evaluated on the basis of scholarly excellence, teaching experience, and active commitment to helping women and girls through service in their communities, professions, or fields of research. There are no restrictions on the location, field of study, or age of the applicant. Summer and short-term research grants are also available. Length of Award: July 1 to June 30 Applicant Eligibility: Applicants must be U.S. citizens or permanent residents and have achieved a doctorate by mid-November of the year of the deadline. Application Requirements: A proposal budget, narrative autobiography, statement of project, a detailed CV, transcripts or proof of doctorate, an institution letter, and three recommendations. Applicants must mail their applications to the AAUW Grants and Fellowships office in Iowa City. Application Advice: According to the website, “the primary criterion for fellowship awards is scholarly excellence. When comparing proposals of equal merit for postdoctoral fellowships, the review panel will give special consideration to women holding junior academic appointments who are seeking research leave, women who have held the doctorate for at least 3 years, and women whose educational careers have been interrupted. Also, for postdoctoral fellowships, preference will be given to projects that are not simply a revision of the doctoral dissertation.”

National Humanities Center Administrative Agency: National Humanities Center Address: 7 Alexander Drive P.O. Box 12256 Research Triangle Park, NC 27709-2256 Phone: 919-549-0661 Email: [email protected]

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Website: http://nationalhumanitiescenter.org/fellowships/index.htm Deadline: Mid-October Number of Awards Available: 40 Average Number of Applicants: 400 to 500 Other Related Fellowships: The Institute for Advanced Study (http://www.ias .edu) and the Center for Advanced Study in the Visual Arts (http://www.nga .gov/resources/casva.htm) Award Amount: Fellowships are individually determined; candidates are asked to submit a financial information form. The amount of the stipend depends on the needs of the fellow and the center’s ability to meet them. As the center cannot in most instances replace full salary, applicants are urged to seek partial support in the form of sabbatical salaries or grants from other sources. Round-trip travel expenses are provided. Application Form: The application form is available on the website to be printed. The completed form must be mailed, not sent by fax or emailed. Instructions for applicants are also provided. Purpose of Grant/Fellowship and Restrictions: The National Humanities Center is a residential institute for advanced study in history, languages and literature, philosophy, and other fields of the humanities. Each year the center awards fellowships to scholars of demonstrated achievement and to promising younger scholars. Fellows are expected to work at the center. The center exists to encourage excellent scholarship and to affirm the importance of the humanities in American society. In addition to scholars from fields normally associated with the humanities, representatives of the natural and social sciences, the arts, the professions, and public life may be awarded fellowships if their work has humanistic dimensions. Length of Award: Most fellowships are for the academic year (September through May), though a few may be awarded for the fall or spring semester.

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Applicant Eligibility: Applicants must hold a doctorate. Younger scholars should be engaged in work significantly beyond the revision of a doctoral dissertation. Scholars from any nation may apply for fellowships. Application Requirements: Applicants must submit the center’s application and financial forms (available on the website) supported by a CV of no more than four pages, a 1,000-word project proposal, a tentative outline of chapters, a short bibliography, and three letters of recommendation. Application Advice: Applications are read both by scholars in the candidate’s field and by an interdisciplinary committee. Applications are judged on their significance to the field, the quality of the research proposal, the scholarly promise of the candidate, and the possibility of successfully pursuing the proposed project at the National Humanities Center. Candidates should read the guidelines for application carefully.

Postdoctoral Fellowship in Academic Libraries—Council on Library and Information Resources Administrative Agency: Council on Library and Information Resources Address: 1752 N Street, NW, Suite 800 Washington, DC 20036 Phone: (202) 939-4750; Fax: (202) 939-4765 Email: [email protected] Website: http://www.clir.org/fellowships/postdoc/postdoc.html Deadline: December for fellowships that begin the following summer. Candidates are generally notified in early May. Number of Awards and Applicants: The program receives roughly 30 applications each year. The number of fellows varies each year according to number of host institutions. In 2010–11, there were seven new fellows and five fellows doing a second year at their host institutions.

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Award Amount: Award amounts vary from institution to institution. Benefits and some travel expenses are provided. Application Requirements: The application is submitted online. It requires a completed online application form, a CV, three letters of reference submitted by reference providers through the online application system, and graduateschool transcripts. Purpose of Fellowship: The program offers recent Ph.D. recipients opportunities to develop as scholars and teachers while learning about modern librarianship, digital resources, e-publishing, archives, and collection development both digital and analog. CLIR Postdoctoral Library Fellows work on projects that forge, renovate, and strengthen connections between academic library collections and their users. The program offers scholars the chance to develop new research models, collaborate with information specialists, and explore new career opportunities. All fellows must attend an intensive summer seminar before their fellowship begins. Fellows are placed at diverse institutions, from large research universities to small liberal-arts colleges across the country. Length of Award: One to two years, depending on the institution Applicant Eligibility: Applicants must have received a Ph.D. in a discipline no more than five years before applying; if a Ph.D. has not yet been received, all work toward the degree (including dissertation defense and final dissertation editing) must be completed before starting the fellowship. Application Advice: Applicants must demonstrate an interest in working in an academic library. They should be willing to work collaboratively, yet take the lead on a project and run with it.

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Kluge Fellowships—Library of Congress Administrative Agency: Library of Congress/National Endowment for the Humanities Address: Office of Scholarly Programs Library of Congress, LJ 120 101 Independence Avenue, SE Washington, DC 20540-4860 Phone: 202-707-3302; Fax: 202-707-3595 Email: [email protected] Website: http://www.loc.gov/loc/kluge/fellowships/kluge.html Deadline: July 15; applicants are notified the following April. Similar Fellowships: Research fellowships sponsored by the National Endowment for the Humanities. More information can be found at http://www.neh. gov/grants/guidelines/fellowships.html Number of Awards Available: The program typically makes about 10 to 12 awards per year. Award Amount: $4,200 per month Application Requirements: The application is submitted by mail. Applicants must send ten copies of the full application, including a research proposal, a bibliography of basic sources, a one-paragraph project summary, a two-page CV, and three letters of reference. Applicants whose native language is not English must submit evidence that they are fluent in English. Purpose of Fellowship: The fellowship’s aim is to encourage research in the humanities and social sciences that makes use of the Library of Congress’s extensive and varied collections. Interdisciplinary, crosscultural, or multilingual research is particularly welcomed. Length of Award: Six to eleven months

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Applicant Eligibility: Applicants must have received a terminal advanced degree in the humanities or social sciences (includes such fields as law or architecture) within the past seven years. Applicants may be U.S. citizens or international scholars. Application Advice: Applications are reviewed by an independent panel convened by the National Endowment for the Humanities. In their application, candidates should demonstrate why working at the Library of Congress is important to the advancement of their research project.