Obtaining an advanced degree doesn’t have to mean more out-of-pocket or student loan costs. Fellowships and research grant opportunities can help you pay the bills while continuing your studies.
Databases such as ScholarshipAdvisor include many listings for fellowship and research awards, as well as traditional undergraduate and graduate scholarships. Use the search terms “fellowship,” “grant,” or “research” to get general results, or search for specific programs that you’re interested in.
Get started with these 12 fellowships and research grant opportunities with deadlines this fall.
1. Charles A. Ryskamp Research Fellowship: $64,000, Deadline: September 24, 2014
These fellowships support advanced assistant professors and untenured associate professors in the humanities and related social sciences whose scholarly contributions have advanced their fields and who have well-designed and carefully developed plans for new research.
2. ACLS Fellowship: $35,000–$70,000, Deadline: September 28, 2014
The American Council of Learned Studies fellowship program invites research applications in all disciplines of the humanities and related social sciences. The ultimate goal of the project should be a major piece of scholarly work by the applicant. The tenure will be six to twelve consecutive months devoted to full-time research, to be initiated between July 1, 2015 and February 1, 2016
3. Henry Luce Foundation/ACLS Dissertation Fellowship in American Art History: $20,000, Deadline: November 10, 2014
Ten fellowships are available for a nonrenewable, one-year term beginning between June and September 2015 for the 2015–16 academic year for graduate students in any stage of PhD dissertation research or writing.
4. American Cancer Society Grants: $ varies, Deadline: October 15, 2014 (and April 1, 2015)
The American Cancer Society funds grants for special initiatives, independent investigators, mentored research, health professional training, professorships, and international programs. Grant applications are accepted twice a year.
5. Hench Post-Dissertation Fellowship: $ varies, Deadline: October 15, 2014
This is a special year-long residential fellowship at the American Antiquarian Society for students to revise their dissertation for publication. Any topic relevant to the Society’s library collections and programmatic scope—that is, American history and culture through 1876—is eligible.
6. Marshall Scholarship: $24,000, Deadline: October 16, 2014
Marshall Scholarships finance young Americans of high ability to study for graduate degrees in the United Kingdom. Up to 40 Scholars are selected each year in any field of study.
7. O.H. Ammann Research Fellowship in Structural Engineering: $5,000, Deadline: November 1, 2014
This fellowship is bestowed annually to a member of the American Society of Civil Engineers for the purpose of encouraging the creation of new knowledge in the field of structural design and construction.
8. Helen M. Woodruff Fellowship: $10,000, Deadline: November 1, 2014
This program supports a pre- or post-doctoral fellowship for study of archaeology and classical studies in Rome.
9. Paul Beeson Career Development Award: $ varies, Deadline: November 3, 2014
The program,aimed at addressing the current and severe shortage of clinically trained faculty (primarily physicians) who have the combination of medical, academic, and scientific training to improve the care of our nation’s older people. It provides three to five years of mentored career development support to enable investigators to gain skills and experience in aging research and to establish an independent program of research in this field.
10. Kaplan University 50/50/50 Grant: 50% tuition, Deadline: November 3, 2014
Kaplan University is offering the first 50 enrolled students who are at least 50 years old a 50 percent tuition reduction toward a variety of post-graduate and professional certificate programs. Choose from a wide range of fields, including business, IT, nursing, health care, and education.
11. Fulbright-Hays Doctoral Dissertation Research Abroad Fellowship: $40,000, Deadline: November 24, 2014
The US Department of Education’s Fulbright-Hays Doctoral Dissertation Research Abroad Program is open to applications that propose research focusing on one or more of the following world areas: Africa, East Asia, Southeast Asia and the Pacific Islands, South Asia, the Near East, East Central Europe and Eurasia, and the Western Hemisphere (excluding the United States and its territories).
12. NPSC Graduate Fellowship: $20,000, Deadline: November 30, 2014
The National Physical Science Consortium Graduate Fellowship is unique in that it is 1) open to all American citizens, 2) lasts for up to six years, 3) provides a $20,000 annual stipend, 4) covers tuition, 5) allows a fellow also to hold a research or teaching assistantship, 6) includes one or two paid summer internships with a government agency, and 7) provides a mentor and the opportunity for a lasting relationship with the sponsor.