In This Section The Heller Ph.D. in Social Policy

Applicants are encouraged to explore a variety of outside funding sources in addition to Heller funding. Many professional associations, government agencies, private organizations, foundations and institutions offer funding opportunities in the forms of grants, fellowships, scholarships, and prizes.

Some of these sources of funding target particular disciplines, specific student populations, or research projects focusing on a certain theme or geographic location. Many sources are more general in nature. Researching these opportunities could be well worth the effort due to their vast number and range. On this webpage, we have attempted to list examples of places where funding information and resources may be found. However, this information is not exhaustive, and applicants should expand their search beyond these resources.

Non-Brandeis Funding Opportunities for Ph.D. Students
Click on the listed name for details on the program

Funding Opportunities for Both Ph.D. and Masters Students
Click on the listed name for details on the program

Ford Foundation Pre-Doctoral Fellowships for Minorities

Offers support for three years in research-based programs in social and behavioral sciences, humanities, physical and biological sciences, engineering, and mathematics. Annual stipend is $17,000. Applicants must use the on-line application process at the following web address:

Ford Foundation Pre-Doctoral Fellowships for Minorities: Fellowship Office Policy and Global Affairs (PGA)

Telephone: 202.334.2872

Email: infofell@nas.edu

Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality:
The National Research Service Award Pre-Doctoral Fellowship for Minority Students

For minorities, who are U.S. citizens or citizen nationals. Awards provide up to five years of support for research training leading to a Ph.D. or equivalent research degree; the combined M.D./Ph.D. degree; or other combined professional degree and research doctoral degree in the biomedical, behavioral sciences, or health services research. Application receipt dates are May 1 and November 15 annually.

Website:
Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality:
NIH PREDOCTORAL FELLOWSHIP AWARDS FOR MINORITY STUDENTS

Telephone: 301.435.0714

Email: grantsinfo@nih.gov

American Sociological Association, Minority Fellowship Program

Supports the development and training of minority sociologists in mental health. Primarily designed for minority students entering a doctoral program in sociology for the first time or for those in the early stages of their graduate programs. An annual stipend of $16,500 is provided. Fellowship award is for 12 months with a possible extension of up to 3 years.

Website: Minority Fellowship Program

For information regarding application deadlines and forms, e-mail minority.affairs@asanet.org.

The National Institutes of Health

NIH offer several fellowship and training awards including:

Individual Pre-doctoral Fellowship Awards for Minority Students   information

Individual Pre-doctoral Fellowships for Students with Disabilities   information

Individual Pre-doctoral Fellowships for Nursing Research
(Applicant must be a registered nurse)   information

For more information, see the NIH website at:
National Institutes of Health: Grant and Funding Opportunities

Email: grantsinfo@nih.gov.

Ford Foundation Dissertation Fellowships for Minorities

Fellowship is intended for the final year of dissertation writing. In 2004 the Dissertation Fellowship will support individuals completing a Ph.D. in Education; individuals pursuing Ed.D. are not eligible for this award. $21,000 stipend for one year. Applicants must use the on-line application process at the following web address:

Website: Fellowship Office Policy and Global Affairs (PGA)

Telephone: 202.334.2872

Email: infofell@nas.edu

The Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation - Johnson & Johnson Dissertation Grants in Women's Health

$6,000 awards encourage original and significant research on issues related to women's health, especially the implications of research for the understanding of women's lives and significance for public policy or treatment.

Website: WW Johnson & Johnson Dissertation Grants in Women's Health

Telephone: 609.452.7007

To request an application, email: wswh@woodrow.org

The Woodrow Wilson Dissertation Grants in Women's Studies

Fellows receive $3,000 to be used for expenses connected with the dissertation. These may include, but are not limited to, travel, books, microfilming, taping, and computer services. The deadline for receipt of applications in the 2007 Women’s Studies competition will be in early October 2006; the exact date will be announced in late summer. Fellows will be named in late January 2007.

Website:
WW Johnson & Johnson Doctoral Dissertation Fellowships in Women's Studies

Telephone: 609.452.7007

To request an application, email: wswh@woodrow.org

Jennings Randolph Program for International Peace-Senior Fellow and Peace Scholar Programs-Peace Scholar Dissertation Fellowships

$17,000 award to support students at U.S. universities researching and writing doctoral dissertations on international conflict and peace. The deadline for receipt of applications for the 2007- 2008 Senior Fellowship program is September 15, 2006.

Website:
United States Institute of Peace: Senior Fellowships and Peace Scholars Awards

Telephone: 202.429.3886

Email: jrprogram@usip.org

Housing and Urban Development Doctoral Dissertation Research Grant Program

HUD annually awards up to 15 one-time grants of $15,000. Eligible students must have fully developed and approved dissertation proposals that address issues in housing and urban development and can be completed within a 2-year period. Students must also have completed all written and oral Ph.D requirements by September of the year in which the grant begins.

Program announcement for 2007-2008 will be posted on the HUD website. Application deadline is usually mid-January.

Website:
Housing and Urban Development Doctoral Dissertation Research Grant Program

Telephone: 202.708.1112

Brookings Institute Governance Studies Pre-Doctor Fellowship Program

Brookings Institution awards a limited number of resident fellowships for policy-oriented pre-doctoral research in governance studies. Fellowships carry a stipend of $22,000 and are designed for doctoral candidates whose dissertation topics are directly related to public policy issues.

Candidates must be nominated by a graduate department; sponsorship by individual faculty members cannot substitute for the formal designation of the department. Departments should nominate no more than two persons.

For more information please refer to the Institute's website:
Brookings Institute Governance Studies Predoctoral Fellowship Program

Email: sbinder@brookings.edu

The Melissa Institute Dissertation Research Award

The Melissa Institute for Violence Prevention and Treatment is a non-profit educational, training and consultative organization that was established to honor the memory of Melissa Aptman, a Miami native who was murdered in May 1995. The Melissa Institute provides scholarship awards to support violence prevention research.

The Melissa Institute is offering four awards at $2,000 each. The awards are available to graduate students from any discipline who address issues of violence prevention and/or treatment. The award must be used to support expenses that are directly related to the dissertation research (e.g., subject fees, computer time, equipment). It may not be used for tuition, personal travel or personal expenses.

Website: The Melissa Institute Dissertation Awards

Telephone: 786.662.5210

Fahs-Beck Fund for Research & Experimentation: Doctoral Dissertation Grant Program

Grants of up to $15,000 are available to help support doctoral dissertation expenses of students in the United States or Canada. Proposals must have clear relevance to major social problems affecting families or individuals, including education and literacy issues, or to interventions designed to assist individuals, couples, or families in their functioning and well being. Application deadlines are May 1 and November 1 annually.

Website: Fahs-Beck Fund for Research & Experimentation

Email: Fahsbeck@nonprofitpages.com

National Institute of Justice, Graduate Research Fellowship Program

Fellowship provides dissertation research support to doctoral students undertaking independent research on issues in crime and justice. $20,000 stipend. Currrent applications are due by November 28, 2006.

Download application materials from the web at http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/nij/funding.htm.

Phone 202.307.3516

American Association of University Women
American Fellowships - Dissertation Fellowships

One of the world's largest sources of funding exclusively for graduate women, the AAUW Educational Foundation supports aspiring scholars around the globe, teachers and activists in local communities, women at critical stages of their careers, and those pursuing professions where women are underrepresented. Dissertation Fellowships of $20,000 are made available annually.

2007-2008 applications are available online. Full information is available at www.aauw.org/fga/fellowships_grants.

Harry Frank Guggenheim Foundation Dissertation Fellowships

Several fellowships of $15,000 each are designed to contribute to the support of the doctoral candidate to enable him or her to complete the thesis in a timely manner, and it is only appropriate to apply for support for the final year of Ph.D. work. Applications are evaluated in comparison with each other and not in competition with the postdoctoral research proposals. Applicants may be citizens of any country and studying at colleges or universities in any country.

The HFG website has full details: http://www.hfg.org/df/guidelines.htm

Phone 212.644.4907

Harry Frank Guggenheim Foundation Dissertation Awards

Ten or more fellowships of $15,000 each are awarded to fund final-year dissertation projects in the natural and social sciences and the humanities that promise to increase understanding of the causes, manifestations, and control of violence, aggression, and dominance. Highest priority is given to research that can increase understanding and amelioration of these issues. Eligible are students at the writing stage of their dissertations. Deadline: February 1 annually.

Website: Harry Frank Guggenheim Foundation

Telephone: 212.644.4907

National Association of Social Workers Foundation, National Programs

Jane B. Aron Doctoral Fellowship Program
One $4,000 fellowship to a social work doctoral candidate whose dissertation focuses on health policy and practice. Eligible applicants must be NASW members.
Details are available at www.naswfoundation.org/aron_guidelines.asp

Eileen Blackey Doctoral Fellowship Program
One $4,000 fellowship to a social work doctoral candidate whose dissertation focuses on welfare policy and practice. Eligible applicants must be NASW members.
Details are available at www.naswfoundation.org/blackey_guidelines.asp.

NASW Scholarship & Awards Hotline: 202.408.8600, ext. 504

Council on Social Work Education Underrepresented Mental Health Minority Research Fellowship Program

The fellow is expected to develop a dissertation that has strong mental health relevance that will generate information pertaining to research on mental and behavioral disorders, the underlying behavioral processes, the maintenance of mental health, and the improvement of mental health services. A completed M.S.W. is required for applications.

Website: Council on Social Work Education - click on 'Programs & Services'.

Telephone: 703.683.8080

Email: info@cswe.org

American Psychological Association Royce Scrivner Small Grant Award

Funding up to $1000 is available for expenses legitimately associated with conducting an empirical research project from all fields of the behavioral and social sciences on lesbian and gay family psychology and lesbian and gay family therapy. Strong preference will be given to students at the dissertation stage of their graduate career.

Completed applications each year must be received by November 1.

Website:
Roy Scrivner Small Grant Award .

Telephone: 202.336.5814

Email: foundation@apa.org  or  scrivner@hookerprograms.org

Harvard University Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study,
Henry A. Murray Research Center Awards

Adolescent and Youth Dissertation Award
Offers grants up to $5,000 to doctoral students. Proposals should focus on youth or adolescent development. Projects drawing on the center's data will be given priority, although use of the center's resources is not a requirement.

Jeanne Humphrey Block Dissertation Award
Offers a grant of up to $5,000 to a woman doctoral student. Proposals should focus on sex and gender differences or some developmental issue of particular concern to girls or women. Projects drawing on the center's data will be given priority, although use of the center's resources is not a requirement.

Henry A. Murray Dissertation Award Program
Offers grants of up to $5,000 to doctoral students. Projects should focus on some aspect of "the study of lives," concentrating on issues in human development or personality. Projects drawing on the center's data will be given priority, although use of the center's resources is not a requirement.

NOTE: The Henry A. Murray Research Center has moved to become part of the Harvard-MIT Data Center. Award information may change.

For information, email mra@help.hmdc.harvard.edu .

The Gerontological Society of America,
Hartford Doctoral Fellows Program in Geriatric Social Work

At least four fellows will receive two-year grants of $20,000 per year each review cycle. The Program is for full-time doctoral students committed upon graduation to seeking full-time faculty positions in a geriatric program accredited by the Council of Social Work Education. Applicants must have an approved dissertation proposal and are expected to complete the dissertation within the fellowship timeframe.

Website: Hartford Doctoral Fellows Program in Geriatric Social Work

For more information and about this program please contact:
James Lubben, D.S.W., M.P.H.
National Director of Hartford Doctoral Fellows
Phone: 617-552-1366
Email: lubben@bc.edu

Rural Policy Research Institute, Rural Poverty Research Center

Fellowships carrying a 12-month stipend of $20,000 support Ph.D. dissertation research addressing causes and impacts of poverty in rural areas of the United States or policy options that might reduce poverty or its negative impacts. Preference is given to those topics that have policy implications regarding poverty reduction and increased self-reliance in rural areas.

Applications accepted from any academic discipline that can provide insight into rural poverty issues. Fellowship is granted with the expectation that the recipient will not have full-time employment during the fellowship period.

Website: Rural Poverty Research Center Dissertation Fellowships

Telephone: 541.737.1442

Influencing State Policy (ISP) Dissertation Award

$2,000 cash award to a social work Ph.D. student whose dissertation-in-process is focused on social policy research at the state (non-federal) level. Dissertation must be a research study that addresses some aspect(s) of a state-level policy and its impact or implications for social work practice or clientele. Any arena of practice is eligible (aging, mental health, disabilities, substance abuse, advocacy, health, etc.). Research outcomes or analyses will be broadly interpreted as long as there is a clear link to a state-level policy or legislative process.

Website: Influencing State Policy (ISP) Dissertation Award

Dr. Robert L. Schneider, Chair, Influencing State Policy

Telephone: 804.828.0452

Email: rlschnei@vcu.edu

Health Care Financing Administration (HCFA)
Dissertation Fellowship Grants

Grants provide financial support to graduate students while they complete their doctoral dissertations in social science disciplines investigating health care financing and delivery issues (e.g., Medicare, Medicaid, Children's Health Insurance Program). In the past three years, 30-50% of all applications have been funded. Funding has been increased to $30,000. Application deadline is October 15 each year.

For more information call: 410.786.5701

Email: mlewistaylor@hcfa.gov

Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute, Inc.

Several scholarship and fellowship opportunities.

Website: Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute Education Center

Telephone: 800.392.3532

Ethel Louise Armstrong Foundation Scholarship

The foundation is committed to expanding opportunities for female graduate students with disabilities, as well as developing future leadership in the disability community. Scholarships of between $500 - $2000 will be awarded to each year to offset tuition costs only. Application deadline each year is June 1.

Website: Ethel Louise Armstrong Foundation Scholarships

Email: executivedirector@ela.org

National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowships

The National Science Foundation aims to ensure the vitality of the human resource base of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics in the United States and to reinforce its diversity by offering approximately 1,000 graduate fellowships in this competition.

The Graduate Research Fellowship provides three years of support for graduate study leading to research-based master’s or doctoral degrees and is intended for students who are at the early stages of their graduate study. The Graduate Research Fellowship Program (GRFP) invests in graduate education for a cadre of diverse individuals who demonstrate their potential to successfully complete graduate degree programs in disciplines relevant to the mission of the National Science Foundation.

Website:
NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program

Telephone: 866.353.0905

Email: help@nsfgradfellows.org

New England Employee Benefits Council Scholarship Program

The NEEBC Scholarship program seeks to advance the knowledge and education of individuals in the employee benefits field or those aspiring to careers in employee benefits, which include but are not limited to careers in the actuarial sciences; ERISA and legal aspects of employee benefits; careers in pension design and planning; work and family issues; and careers in corporate employee benefits design, analysis and management. Annual awards of up to $5,000.

Details are on the NEEBC website:
New England Employee Benefits Council Scholarship Program

Telephone: 781.684.8700

Email: info@neebc.org

Albert Schweitzer Fellowship-Boston Schweitzer Fellows Program

The Boston Schweitzer Fellows Program offers year-long fellowships carrying a $2000 stipend to graduate students enrolled in health-related fields. Fellowships are offered to students who design community service projects that address unmet health needs in their local areas. Students are recruited from a wide range of programs and schools, including social policy, health and human services, public health, and law and diplomacy. Currently, 200 hours of direct service are required.

Website:
Albert Schweitzer Fellowship - Boston Schweitzer Fellows Program

Telephone: 617.667.3115

Email: info@schweitzerfellowship.org

Financial Aid Contact Information

Office of Admissions
The Heller School for Social Policy and Management
MS035
Brandeis University
415 South Street
Waltham, MA 02454-9110
 
Phone 781-736-3820
email: HellerAdmissions@Brandeis.edu
The Heller School for Social Policy and Management, 415 South Street, MS035, Waltham, MA 02454-9110, 781-736-3820