The School of Liberal Arts Doctoral Dissertation Completion Fellowship (DCF) provides funding for up to ten advanced doctoral candidates in the School of Liberal Arts for a 9-month award of $25,000. The DCF is a highly competitive fellowship designed to enable PhD candidates to benefit from intensive mentoring during the fellowship period and focus full-time on the writing of their dissertations, thereby improving the quality of the dissertation and enabling the completion of their doctoral degree requirements.
The fellowship period begins at the start of each fall semester (mid-August). DCF recipients are expected to dedicate the fellowship period to finishing the dissertation and commit to submitting the complete, final copy of the dissertation within 1 year of the start date of the fellowship.
Eligibility:
To qualify for the DFC, students must satisfy all of the following eligibility requirements:
- Students must be a doctoral candidate (ABD) in a School of Liberal Arts PhD program.
- Students are no longer eligible for departmental stipend support.
- Priority will be given to students who are entering their 6th or 7th year at the start of the fellowship period. For compliance with visa requirements, students attending on a Visa should not be beyond their 7th year. Students in the 8th year or beyond will be considered but must provide a brief overview of obstacles impeding dissertation progress addressed in the required letter of recommendation from their dissertation chair.
- Students must be ABD and have completed all major archival and/or field research, collected all data, and be within 12 months of completion and submission of their PhD dissertation.
Application Process:
This is a nomination process initiated by the faculty. Students do NOT apply directly for the award but are invited to apply by faculty. Students who believe that they are eligible for the DFC (i.e., they meet all of the requirements detailed above) may contact their dissertation chair or Director of Graduate Students (DGS) at the end of the fall semester/beginning of the spring semester to discuss their nomination.
Nomination Deadline:
Department DGSs submit completed application packets for nominated students by February 28 each year and all nominees are notified of fellowship decisions between March 15 and March 30.