Graduate Fellowships
A graduate fellowship is a form of financial assistance awarded on a competitive basis. Recipients typically receive a tuition waiver and a monthly stipend (amount varies by program). Although duties vary, most fellowships offer some portion of time that is non-service in nature, allowing you to focus more attention on your graduate study.
Doctoral Fellowships
At UL Lafayette, our University Doctoral Fellowships presently offer a stipend of $20,000 for the academic year as well as a waiver of tuition and most fees. These fellowships are available to students pursuing a Ph.D. degree and fund three or four years of study, depending upon whether you enter with or without the master’s degree in hand.
University Doctoral Fellowship Eligibility
- 3.5 GPA on undergraduate work, or a 3.7 GPA if graduate hours have been pursued.
- Must be a first-time doctoral applicant pursuing a Ph.D. degree. A current doctoral student who first enrolled at UL in the immediately preceding spring or summer semester may be eligible for the fellowship beginning in the fall semester.
Southern Regional Education Board Doctoral Scholar Fellowships
The SREB Doctoral Scholar Fellowships are funded jointly by UL Lafayette and the Louisiana Board of Regents as an initiative to promote graduate student and faculty diversity. These competitive fellowships are open to underrepresented minoritized doctoral students who are pursuing a Ph.D. degree and planning for a career in academia. In addition to an annual stipend, tuition waiver, research and travel funding, and guaranteed funding for five years, these fellowships include membership in the SREB Doctoral Scholars Program and, with it, participation in the annual Institute on Teaching and Mentoring. Learn more about the availability, eligibility requirements, and application process for our SREB fellowships here.
How to Apply for a Fellowship
- Make sure you meet the minimum eligibility requirements above.
- Complete the Doctoral Fellowship application.
- Submit your application by uploading it to your application portal.
Fellowship Application Deadline
University Doctoral fellowships are awarded only in the fall. All required application materials, including the fellowship application, must be submitted by February 1.
External Fellowships
Applicants and current graduate students are encouraged to apply for external fellowships funded by non-university partners that select recipients through a national or international competition. Typically, external fellowships are supported by government agencies, corporations, and foundations. In addition to offering distinction and prestige for the recipient, these fellowships provide generous financial support, mentorship, and networking opportunities.
There are many external fellowship opportunities, including:
- American Council of Learned Societies Mellon/ ACLS Dissertation Completion Fellowships
- Ford Foundation Predoctoral Fellowship Program
- National GEM Fellowship Program
- NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program
- Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation
- Hertz Foundation Graduate Fellowship Awards
- National Defense, Science, and Engineering Graduate (NDSEG) Fellowships
- Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council Doctoral Fellowships
- U.S. Department of Energy: Computational Science Graduate Fellowships
Consult with your graduate coordinator and other mentors about applying for any of these external fellowships.