Fellowships--FAQs
Basic Questions About Fellowships
What is a fellowship?
A fellowship is a monetary award offered by an institution, foundation or other
organization to support academic work, research or specialized training in
areas of particular interest to the granting organization. Eligibility guidelines
and required qualifications for various fellowships are as varied as the
many organizations that sponsor them. Generally, fellowships are granted
to those with a high level of achievement in a given area, such as academic,
athletic or artistic talent. Awards are also available for students who are
interested in particular fields of study, who are members of under-represented
groups, who live in certain areas of the country or who demonstrate financial
need.
How is a fellowship different from a
grant? From a scholarship?
All three of these types of awards provide funding to support academic study,
community service projects or other endeavors. The term "fellowship" usually
indicates a post-graduate study or professional training experience and is
often highly specific in its requirements for awardees. "Scholarship" is
a more general term referring to any award given in support of academic study.
And the term "grant" most often denotes an award to support a specific
project or community service activity. All are usually competitive.
How will I know if I qualify for a fellowship?
Every fellowship has basic guidelines for eligibility--a few examples: some
are open only to U.S. citizens, some only to women, some only to minorities.
The awarding institution can set any eligibility requirements it wishes; public
institutions are expected to have broader eligibility expectations whereas
private foundations can set more specific requirements.
Where can I find information on fellowship
opportunities that would be appropriate for
my own situation?
It's up to you to research these possibilities, although the Career Center
has many resources to help. In addition to resources you can find in the Career
Center Library, you can find information on this
web page , and by searching for fellowships by topic on the web.
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What
different types
of fellowships
are available?
There
are two basic
kinds of fellowships
available to
those who wish
to pursue degrees
beyond the baccalaureate
level:
--Fellowships offered by colleges and universities
to their own graduate
students.
These are the most common fellowships for graduate study. Often, a graduate
program will offer a fellowship (often a teaching fellowship) to a talented
student as part of a financial aid package; usually, this means that the student
will work for the school, taking on certain teaching duties in addition to
completing his or her own graduate coursework. Depending on the institution,
these stipends may include a housing allowance and other benefits. Often these
fellowships are given to students who have proven themselves capable in their
various graduate school departments, but matriculating graduate students can
express their interest for them as part of the application process to the school.
Amherst College also supports graduate study through the Amherst
College Fellowships Program,
for graduating seniors and alumni pursuing graduate study--contact Denise
Gagnon of the Fellowships Office for information on this program.
--Fellowships offered by foundations, institutions
or organizations
for graduate study.
Like other fellowships, these are awards for highly qualified individuals for
which you must apply to the sponsoring organization. Some of these fellowships
require that you be nominated by Amherst , and the College will have an internal
application process to determine nominees; others allow you to apply directly
to the sponsoring organization. Denise
Gagnon of the Fellowships Office (213 Converse Hall)
handles the internal nomination processes for prestigious awards such
as the Fulbright, Rhodes, Watson, and several others.
Fellowships for Study Abroad
Certain foundations or organizations whose mission is to foster global connectedness
offer fellowships for study abroad.
Fellowships in Government/Public Policy/Public
Service
There are a variety of fellowship opportunities in these areas, offering specialized
training and valuable leadership experience for further service in the public
sector.
Fellowships for Research
These fellowships are most often for doctoral or post-doctoral work, and there
are many fellowships of this kind offered to professional researchers for
work in which the sponsoring organization is particularly interested.
Work Experience Fellowships (sometimes called
Professional Internships)
Many organizations offer one- to two- year employment in positions which are
especially designed to immerse a fellow in a given field, providing intensive
training, excellent career experience and valuable networking contacts.
Professional Fellowships
Amherst alumni may find fellowships to support Ph.D. work or to provide support
for postgraduate work. There are also numerous fellowships available for
people who have established careers in certain fields.
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Tips on Applying
If
you're interested
in pursuing a national
competitive fellowship (like the Watson,
Rhodes, Fulbright
and others which
require institutional
nomination), or an
Amherst College
Fellowship you must make your
application through
the Amherst Fellowships
Office. Please see Denise
Gagnon for all the information
you'll need to apply,
including helpful
suggestions from
past Amherst winners
of these prestigious
awards.
If you wish to pursue other fellowship opportunities
for which you apply on your own, the paragraphs below outline
the process. Assistance and advice are always available for
preparing your direct-apply award application
by contacting Debra Krumholz the Career Center, or calling
x2265 to request an appointment with her.
Research all appropriate opportunities to find fellowships and
scholarships appropriate for your circumstances.
Carefully review the information available, and
be sure that you meet the eligibility requirements
for a given award, since most award programs
are only open to certain categories of applicants.
Some categories might be: eligibility by major,
eligibility by class year, eligibility according
to planned graduate degrees or career; geographic
eligibility (for example: application open only
to residents of certain states), etc.
Carefully determine exactly what a specific
application requires. How many essays (what kind
and of what length), and how many letters of
recommendation are needed? Who needs to write
your recommendations--faculty, peers, previous
employers? Do you need to prepare a list of your
extra-/co-curricular activities, honors, and
awards, or submit a resume? Are there other application
requirements?
Plan carefully to meet the application deadline.
Does the sponsoring organization require that
your application be in their office by the due
date, or do they allow your application to be
postmarked by the due date?
Think about whom you want to ask for recommendations.
You'll want to choose those who know you well
(preferably both in and out of class) and who
will write letters which address your qualifications
for a particular award knowledgeably and in depth.
When requesting a letter from a potential recommender,
ask "if they would be willing to write a
letter" on your behalf (this allows you
to gauge their reaction – if there is hesitation,
they might not be the best person to ask), and
make sure that their schedule will allow them
to meet the application deadline. Once you have
determined who will write your letters, supply
your recommenders with a packet containing information
about yourself, including your academic and other
interests (possibly include an unofficial transcript,
a resume and a draft of your essay written for
the fellowship application), and your specific
goals regarding the fellowship or scholarship
in question. If relevant, also provide the official
recommendation form. Inform recommenders of the
deadline for submitting a letter, and be in touch
with them one to two weeks before the deadline
to be sure that they've sent it.
If a transcript is required, go to the Registrar's
Office to request that an official transcript
be sent directly to the sponsoring organization.
(Transcript request forms are available on the
Registrar's webpage). If you have studied abroad,
find out from the fellowship foundation/organization
whether you also need to request a transcript
from the U.S. institution which sponsored your
study abroad program.
Fill out any necessary application forms--you
may need to use a typewriter (available at the
Career Center ), or cut and paste from word-processed
pages, if the sponsoring organization provides
only a paper form. Be sure that you can fit all
of the required information into the space provided – you
may need to practice a few times.
When sending off your application, use a checklist
to be sure that you're
including all necessary forms, essays or other
materials in the envelope. Using an express mail
service is highly recommended, so that you can
track your envelope and ensure its arrival.
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10 Tips for Writing a Personal Essay
From Michael Rosenthal '02, Fulbright Scholar
2002-03
Click here to view
this PDF file.
Tips for Writing Letters of Recommendation
The Truman Foundation provides guidelines
on their website for
writing letters of
recommendation for
Truman Scholar candidates;
most will apply to
any fellowship.
This
PDF of guidelines is
written specifically for those writing recommendation
letters for Rhodes
scholars, but most
of the suggestions
apply to any fellowship. |
