External Grant Opportunities and Deadlines

Graduate student external grant opportunities

In addition to the major grants listed below, Pathways to Science maintains a searchable database specifically for MS and PhD students including travel grants. https://pathwaystoscience.org/Grad.aspx and UCLA maintains a searchable listing grad.ucla.edu/funding/#/

Rolling Submission open now. North Carolina Sea Grant. Minigrants up to $10,000.

Sigma Xi Grants in Aid of Research Program. Up to $1000. Students use the funding to pay for travel expenses to and from a research site, or for the purchase of non-standard laboratory equipment necessary to complete a specific research project. (This is NOT eligible for incentive money from Graduate School.)

NSF Graduate Research Fellowship. 3 years of support $34,000 and $12,000 allowance for education-related costs. Must be US citizen, US national, or permanent resident. Applicants must not have completed more than 12 months of full-time graduate study or its equivalent as defined by the universities attended as of August 1 of the year the GRFP application is submitted. Individuals may apply as an undergraduate senior as well as post-baccalaureate, before beginning graduate training. Applicants are limited to only one application to the GRFP, submitted either in the first year or in the second year of graduate school. The NSF accords Honorable Mention to meritorious applicants who do not receive Fellowship awards. Graduate students with Honorable Mention may request access to XSEDE cyberinfrastructure resources in support of research undertaken toward completion of the graduate program of study that occurs within the 5-year period following receipt of Honorable Mention. Please refer to http://www.xsede.org/ for more information.—Current recipients of this award include Tyler Carrier, Remi Ketchum, and Devin Clegg.

American Association of University Women Dissertation Fellowship. $20,000 to doctoral candidates for completing dissertation work. Dissertation Fellowships offset a scholar’s living expenses while she completes her dissertation. The fellowship must be used for the final year of writing the dissertation. Applicants must have completed all course work, passed all preliminary examinations, and received approval for their research proposals or plans by the preceding November. Students holding fellowships for writing a dissertation in the year prior to the AAUW fellowships year are not eligible. Open to applicants in all fields of study. Scholars engaged in science, technology, engineering, and math fields or researching gender issues are especially encouraged to apply.

Phycological Society of America Grants in Aid of Research Program. Up to $2000. Applicants must be a graduate student or postdoctoral researcher with an active research program in any area of phycology. The applicant must be a member of PSA. Students use the funding to pay for supplies, materials, or equipment necessary to complete a specific research project. (This is NOT eligible for incentive money from Graduate School.)

American Association of University Women’s International Fellowship program. MS students may recieve $18,000, and PhD students may receive $20,000. The program provides support for women pursuing full-time graduate or postdoctoral study in the U.S. who are NOT U.S. citizens or permanent residents. A limited number of awards are available for study outside of the U.S. (excluding the applicant’s home country) to women who are members of Graduate Women International (see the list of GWI affiliates). Preference is given to women who show prior commitment to the advancement of women and girls through civic, community, or professional work. Details at this site.

The PEO Scholar Award is one time $15,000 open to US citizen women graduate students. Applicant must be within two years of her graduation date and has at least one full academic year of work remaining to complete her doctoral level degree at the time the award payment is made (August 1). This is a one-time, highly competitive, merit-based award given to women pursuing a doctoral-level degree at an accredited college or university in the United States or Canada. Priority is given to women who are well established in their program, field of study or research.

P.E.O. International Peace Scholarship open for all international women graduate students. To request information click here. The one time award is of $12,500 for a year and is not renewable, but the student can apply for the second year. —Mukilika Bose is a current recipient of the International Peace Scholarship.

National Defense Science and Engineering Graduate Fellowship. 4 years with a stipend, tuition, fees. Must be US citizen or national. Designed to encourage baccalaureate recipients to enter graduate school and ultimately gain doctorates in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) fields.

Ford Foundation Dissertation Fellowship. 1 year support $25,000 and attendance to one conference. For students in final year to complete the dissertation with expected graduation in the 2019-2020 year and no later than Fall 2020. Must be US citizen, US national, or permanent resident. Selection criteria positive factors include membership in one or more of the groups whose underrepresentation in the American professoriate has been severe including Alaska Natives, Black/African Americans, Mexican Americans, Native American Indians, Pacific Islanders, Puerto Ricans.

Ford Foundation Predoctoral Fellowship (for program information) and Ford Foundation Application Instructions (for more detailed information). 3 years support with $24,000 stipend. Must be US citizen, US national, or permanent resident. Selection criteria positive factors include membership in one or more of the groups whose underrepresentation in the American professoriate has been severe including Alaska Natives, Black/African Americans, Mexican Americans, Native American Indians, Pacific Islanders, Puerto Ricans.

Graduate Women in Science Fellowship. 1 year $10,000 for exepdible supplies, travel to field sites, or publication costs. For female students only. Fellowships are intended to increase knowledge in the natural sciences and promote research careers of women in science.

Boren Fellowships for Language Acquisition. Up to $30,000 to U.S. graduate students to add an important international and language component to their graduate education through specialization in area study, language study, or increased language proficiency. Open to both MS and PhD students. Boren Fellowships support study and research in areas of the world that are critical to U.S. interests, including Africa, Asia, Central & Eastern Europe, Eurasia, Latin America, and the Middle East. The countries of Western Europe, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand are excluded. Boren Fellows represent a variety of academic and professional disciplines, but all are interested in studying less commonly taught languages, including but not limited to Arabic, Chinese, Korean, Portuguese, Russian and Swahili.

Sigma Xi Grants in Aid of Research Program. Up to $1000. Students use the funding to pay for travel expenses to and from a research site, or for the purchase of non-standard laboratory equipment necessary to complete a specific research project. (This is NOT eligible for incentive money from Graduate School.)

Laura Bassi Scholarship was established by Editing Press in 2018 with the aim of providing editorial assistance to postgraduates and junior academics whose research focuses on neglected topics of study, broadly construed. The scholarships are open to every discipline and the next round of funding will be awarded in April 2020. All currently enrolled master’s and doctoral candidates are eligible to apply, as are academics in the first five years of their employment. Applicants are required to submit a completed application form along with their CV through the application portal by the relevant deadline. Further details, previous winners, and the application portal can be found at: https://editing.press/bassi

National Institutes of Health Predoctoral Fellowships (F31). 3 years support with $24,000 stipend, tuition, fees. Must be US citizen or permanent resident.

National Institutes of Health Predoctoral Fellowships to Promote Diversity in Health-Related Research (F31). 3 years support with $24,000 stipend, tuition, fees. Must be US citizen or permanent resident. For the purpose of this announcement, institutions must identify applicants who will enhance diversity on a national basis (see NOT-OD-15-053), as defined by either A or B: A. Individuals from racial and ethnic groups that have been shown by the National Science Foundation to be underrepresented in health-related sciences on a national basis (see data at http://www.nsf.gov/statistics/showpub.cfm?TopID=2&SubID=27 and the most recent report on Women, Minorities, and Persons with Disabilities in Science and Engineering). The following racial and ethnic groups have been shown to be underrepresented in biomedical research: African Americans, Hispanic Americans, American Indians, Alaska Natives, Native Hawaiians, and other Pacific Islanders. B. Individuals with disabilities, who are defined as those with a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities, as described in the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, as amended. See NSF data at http://www.nsf.gov/statistics/wmpd/2013/pdf/tab7-5_updated_2014_10.pdf.

American Society of Microbiology Robert Watkins Graduate Research Fellowship. 3 years support with $21,000 stipend and travel support to attend ASM meeting. Must be US citizen or permanent resident and a member of an underrepresented minority group (African American, Hispanic American, Native American or Native Pacific Islander) in the sciences. The American Society for Microbiology (ASM) awards up to 7 underrepresented PhD candidates for dissertation research in the microbiological sciences for 3 years. Fellows will submit an abstract each year to ASM for presentation at the annual ASM General Meeting. During the fellowship, awardees will also attend the ASM Kadner Institute OR the ASM Scientific Writing and Publishing Institute one time. Applicants must have completed the 1st year of a doctoral program in the microbiological sciences in an accredited United States institution, successfully completed all graduate coursework requirements for the doctoral degree by the date of activation of the fellowship. Student and mentor must be members of ASM.

Congressional Black Caucus Foundation Spouses Education Scholarship. Awards vary. Must be US citizen or permanent resident.Selected applicants will be qualified African-American or black students who reside or attend school in a CBC member district. Award scholarships of all majors who are preparing to pursue or are currently pursuing a graduate degree full-time.

American Indian Graduate Center Fellowship. Up to $5000 per year. Must be American Indian and Alaska Native. Applicant must demonstrate financial need through submission of the AIGC Financial Need Form (FNF).

Burroughs Welcome Fund Graduate Diversity Enrichment Program. Total of $5000 over two years. Must be US citizen. Must be a graduate Ph.D. student actively conducting biomedical and medical research enrolled at a North Carolina Institution of Higher Education (public or private) and within their 2nd to 5th year of studies at the time of application. Must have passed qualifying exams at the time of application. Must be an underrepresented minority (i.e. American Indian or Alaska Native, Black or African American, Hispanic, or Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander).

National Institutes of Health Predoctoral Fellowships (F31). 3 years support with $24,000 stipend, tuition, fees. Must be US citizen or permanent resident.

National Institutes of Health Predoctoral Fellowships to Promote Diversity in Health-Related Research (F31). 3 years support with $24,000 stipend, tuition, fees. Must be US citizen or permanent resident. For the purpose of this announcement, institutions must identify applicants who will enhance diversity on a national basis (see NOT-OD-15-053), as defined by either A or B: A. Individuals from racial and ethnic groups that have been shown by the National Science Foundation to be underrepresented in health-related sciences on a national basis (see data at http://www.nsf.gov/statistics/showpub.cfm?TopID=2&SubID=27 and the most recent report on Women, Minorities, and Persons with Disabilities in Science and Engineering). The following racial and ethnic groups have been shown to be underrepresented in biomedical research: African Americans, Hispanic Americans, American Indians, Alaska Natives, Native Hawaiians, and other Pacific Islanders. B. Individuals with disabilities, who are defined as those with a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities, as described in the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, as amended. See NSF data at http://www.nsf.gov/statistics/wmpd/2013/pdf/tab7-5_updated_2014_10.pdf.

Application portal open but unlcear deadline. The SMART Scholarship-for-Service Program Department of Defense (DoD). SMART Scholars have been working within labs and agencies of the Army, Navy, Air Force and Additional DoD to support the warfighter and create an impact to secure our nation. SMART Scholars enter the program to pursue their education in some of the leading STEM fields currently in high demand by the United States Government. The program offers scholarships for Masters and PhD students pursuing STEM. While in school, students will receive full tuition, monthly stipends, health insurance and book allowances, as well as summer internships that range from 8 to 12 weeks. Upon degree completion, scholars begin working in a civilian position with their sponsoring facility.

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Dr. Nancy Foster Scholarship Program. To download full announcement click here. Award up to $30,000 annual stipend and $12,000 education allowance and $10,000 support for a 4-6 week program at a NOAA facility = total maximum per year of $42,000. Must be US citizen or permanent resident. May support master’s students for 2 years and doctoral students for 4 years. Supports graduate-level research in the fields of oceanography, marine biology, and marine archaeology.

Variable deadline. American Society for Microbiology Robert Watkins Graduate Research Fellowship. 3 years of support $21,000 stipend. Eligible candidates must be from groups that have been determined by the applicant’s institution to be underrepresented in the microbiological sciences including African-Americans, Hispanics, Native Americans, Alaskan Natives, and Pacific Islanders. Must be in the Ph.D. program and who have completed their graduate course work in the microbiological sciences. Must be a student member of ASM and be mentored by an ASM member. The fellowship encourages students to continue and complete their research project in the microbiological sciences.