There are many financial resources available at Princeton. However, navigating these resources – knowing when and how to apply – can be an administrative labyrinth. Below is compiled information about financial resources which may be useful for FLI grads. This page was last updated in January, 2018.
NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program (GRFP): The NSF GRFP program recognizes and supports outstanding graduate students who are pursuing research-based master’s and doctoral degrees in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). The GRFP provides three years of support for the graduate education of individuals who have demonstrated their potential for significant research achievements in STEM or STEM education. NSF especially encourages women, members of underrepresented minority groups, persons with disabilities, veterans, and undergraduate seniors to apply. Applications are due in October.
NSF Alan T. Waterman Award: The National Science Foundation’s (NSF) annual Alan T. Waterman Award honors an outstanding young U.S. scientist or engineer. The awardee receives a grant of $1 million over five years for scientific research or advanced study in any field of science, plus a medal and other recognition. A candidate must be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident. For details about the Waterman Award’s history, the nomination procedure and the selection criteria, please visit the NSF Waterman website. Nominees are accepted from any field of science or engineering. Nominations are due in October, and must be submitted electronically using NSF’s FastLane system.
Princeton Cognitive Science Program funding: Princeton graduate students who are active in the Cognitive Science Program may request research funds to support interdisciplinary research in cognitive science. Preference will be given to collaborative proposals that involve people from two or more disciplines. Requests should normally be for amounts up to $5000 per project, however larger requests may occasionally be considered based on merit, interdisciplinarity, and availability of funding. Graduate students seeking to obtain such funding should submit an application through SAFE and upload a 1-2 page description of the project, highlighting its interdisciplinary character and relationship to cognitive science. Proposals should also include a short statement of the student(s)’s involvement with the Program, as well as a brief budget justification. (Please note that any travel expenses will not be covered by this funding opportunity.) Applicants should also indicate whether they have other funding available to them to support the project, and how crucial receiving cognitive science funding is to the viability of the project. Applications are due in November.
Boren Fellowships: Boren Fellowships, an initiative of the National Security Education Program, provide unique funding opportunities for U.S. graduate students to study less commonly taught languages in world regions critical to U.S. interests, and underrepresented in study abroad, including Africa, Asia, Central and 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 vital pool of highly motivated individuals who wish to work in the federal national security arena. In exchange for funding, Boren Fellows commit to working in the federal government for at least one year after graduation. Applications are due in January.
Charlotte W. Newcombe Doctoral Dissertation Fellowships: The Charlotte W. Newcombe Doctoral Dissertation Fellowships are designed to encourage original and significant study of religious and ethical values in all areas of human endeavor. Eligible proposals have religious or ethical values as a central concern. Previous Fellows have explored such topics as disability and modern medicine, technologies of famine relief, the normalcy of difference, and devotion and the formation of a new urban base. Ph.D. candidates in the humanities or social sciences who will be in the final year of dissertation writing during the 2018-2019 academic year may apply. Applications are due in November.
Ford Foundation Fellowships: Full eligibility information and online applications are available on the Ford Foundation website. U.S. citizens, nationals, permanent residents (holders of a Permanent Resident Card), or individuals granted deferred action status under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals Program (DACA) program, and political asylees and refugees regardless of race, national origin, religion, gender, age, disability, or sexual orientation are eligible to apply. Individuals must be planning a career in teaching and research at the college or university level in a research-based field of science, social science or humanities. Applications are due in December.
Josephine De Karman Fellowships: De Karman fellowships are open to students in any discipline, including international students, who are currently enrolled at a university within the U.S. Only candidates for the Ph.D. who will defend their dissertation in or about June 2019 are eligible for consideration for a 2018-19 fellowship. Special consideration will be given to applicants in the Humanities. To be competitive, graduate applicants should have outstanding letters of recommendation, significant publications, and have completed several chapters of the dissertation at the time of application. Applications are due in January.
Mellon/ACLS Dissertation Completion Fellowship: This fellowship supports a year of research and writing to help advanced graduate students in the humanities and related social sciences in the last year of PhD dissertation writing. Applicants must be prepared to complete their dissertations within the period of their fellowship tenure and no later than August 31, 2019. A grant from The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation supports this program. Completed applications must be submitted through the ACLS online fellowship administration system (ofa.acls.org) no later than 9 pm Eastern Daylight Time, October 25, 2017.
Microsoft Research Ph.D. Fellowship Program: This program recognizes the best and brightest Ph.D. students. Applicants must be enrolled full-time in their second or third year in an eligible Ph.D. program in the fall semester or quarter of 2017, with a research focus in Computer Science, Mathematics, or Electrical Engineering. All applications must be submitted through the office of the department chair. Applications must be submitted via the online application tool between October 2 and 16, 2017.
PD Soros Fellowships for New Americans: The Paul and Daisy Soros Fellowships for New Americans is a $90,000 merit-based fellowship exclusively for immigrants and children of immigrants who are pursuing graduate school in the United States. To be eligible, you must be a New American who is 30 years of age or younger as of the application deadline, and who is planning on starting or continuing an eligible graduate degree program full time in the United States in the 2018-19 academic year. Applicants may apply at the same time they are applying to graduate school, or after they are enrolled in graduate school and must not have started or passed the third year of the graduate program by the deadline. The application deadline is November 1, 2017.
SSRC – International Dissertation Research Fellowship (IDRF): The IDRF offers nine to twelve months of support to graduate students in the humanities and humanistic social sciences who are enrolled in PhD programs in the United States and conducting dissertation research on non-US topics. Sixty-eight fellowships are awarded annually. Fellowship amounts vary depending on the research plan, with a per-fellowship average of $21,000. The fellowship includes participation in an SSRC-funded interdisciplinary workshop upon the completion of IDRF-funded research. The deadline to apply is November 7th.
Woodrow Wilson School funding: https://www.princeton.edu/news/2017/10/02/wilson-school-funding-available-creative-quantitative-research-projects-education
Woodrow Wilson Dissertation Fellowships in Women’s Studies: The Woodrow Wilson Dissertation Fellowship in Women’s Studies encourages original and significant research about women that crosses disciplinary, regional, or cultural boundaries. Previous Fellows have explored such topics as transnational religious education for Muslim women, the complex gender dynamics of transidentity management, women’s electoral success across racial and institutional contexts, women’s sports, militarism and the education of American women, and the relationship between family commitments and women’s work mobility. The deadline to apply is October 15.