Graduate students at the University of Rhode Island have successfully attained competitive regional, national, and international fellowships.
External fellowships are opportunities offered by various public and private entities, including government agencies, nonprofit foundations, and corporate sponsors. The criteria for funding often differs depending on the applicant’s discipline and prior experience, as well as the rigor of their application materials.
Applying for fellowships requires close attention to detail and extensive research to determine whether the program is a good fit and whether the timeline and other constraints might bolster or detract from one’s candidacy.
To assist you in this process, the Office of Professional Development has organized the following links and resources. We encourage you to contact us with any further questions.
University Policy on External Awards
Please see the Graduate School Manual section 12 for more information pertaining to your specific fellowship or award.
Understanding the Terms of External Fellowships
Students are responsible for understanding and complying with the terms required by particular fellowships or awards. For example, you might consider the following:
- Award Duration: The timeline of external awards varies between support for one year, several years, or less than one year.
- Award Amounts and Terms: The amount awarded by a particular fellowship as well as the expectation for students’ work, graduation timeline, and location of residence differs depending on the type of fellowship.
- Payment: Funds allocated for the purpose of an external fellowship are either distributed directly to the student or the University to be administered on behalf of the student. The manner in which funds are distributed can vary, and thus require discretion when you apply.
Explore External Funding
| Fellowship Databases and Lists | Description | URL Link |
|---|---|---|
| URI Office of National Fellowships and Academic Opportunities | Direct Application Scholarships (Multidisciplinary) | Click Here |
| URI Endorsed Scholarships | Fulbright Fellowship (URI Endorsed Scholarship) | Click Here |
| American Association for the Advancement of Science | Varied Fellowships in Sciences and Engineering; Fellowships for Underrepresented Scholars in Science Fields | Click Here |
| NASA RI Space Grant Consortium (RISG) | The NASA RI Space Grant Consortium (RISG) goals are: (1) to encourage undergraduate and graduate university students (especially women and minorities) to explore NASA-related science research and engineering as careers; (2) to use space-related science as a vehicle for enhancing scientific literacy among educators and their students in Rhode Island; and (3) to provide seed grants for NASA-relevant research. | Click Here |
| American Society for Cell Biology (ASCB) Grants and Awards | ASCB recognizes accomplished scientists at various levels with prestigious awards presented at an annual meeting | Click Here |
| GRAPES Database UCLA | Database of Graduate and Post-Doctoral Support Administered by UCLA | Click Here |
| Illinois Graduate College | Database of Grants and Fellowships for Graduate Students (Multi-Disciplinary; Masters and Ph.D. Opportunities) | Click Here |
| National Endowment for the Humanities Grants | NEH Fellowships are competitive awards granted to individual scholars pursuing projects that embody exceptional research, rigorous analysis, and clear writing. Applications must clearly articulate a project’s value to humanities scholars, general audiences, or both. | Click Here |
| National Science Foundation (NSF) | Database for NSF Grants, Fellowships, and Supplemental Awards | Click Here |
| NIH Fogarty International Center | Non-NIH Funding Opportunities for Predoctoral and Graduate Researchers | Click Here |
| Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education (ORISE) (Various locations including NOAA; Oak Ridge National Lab; CDC; US Army Environmental Center) | Offering a diverse collection of research opportunities for graduate students in STEM disciplines | Click Here |
| Pathways to Science – Fellowships and Awards | Fellowships, awards, and application resources for scholars interested in pursuing graduate work in the sciences offered by professional organizations, national laboratories, universities, and other institutions | Click Here |
| National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Fellowships and Awards (NOAA) | Wide-ranging database of fellowships, internships, and other work opportunities for graduate students whose scholarship engages the following fields: international ocean studies, fisheries, climate research, atmospheric studies, and weather policy | Click Here |
| ProFellow Humanities | There are many fields of study within the humanities, and just as many fellowships to help you pursue academic work in those fields. Learn more about these unique humanities grants and research fellowships, spanning from summer workshops to funding for a humanities degree or scholarly research. | Click Here |
| ProFellow Short-Term Fellowships | Looking for a unique opportunity to pursue your research interests outside of the classroom? These short-term fellowships for graduate students take place all over the world and offer hands-on experience in your field without requiring a break in your graduate work. This list includes opportunities to conduct independent research in Mongolia, Germany, Japan, Norway, and Jordan and covers a myriad of disciplines. If one of these sounds exciting to you, make sure to bookmark it to your ProFellow account! | Click Here |
| Smithsonian Institution Fellowship Opportunities | The Smithsonian Institution Fellowship Program offers opportunities for independent research or study related to Smithsonian collections, facilities, and/or research interests of the Institution and its staff. Fellowships are offered to graduate students, predoctoral students, and postdoctoral and senior researchers to conduct independent research and to utilize the resources of the Institution with members of the Smithsonian professional research staff serving as advisors and hosts. These fellowships are offered through the Smithsonian’s Office of Academic Appointments and Internships, and are administered under the charter of the Institution, 20 U.S. Code section 41 et seq. | Click Here |
| Reedsy | Database of wide-ranging scholarships and awards for creative writers | Click Here |
| Rhode Island Sea Grant | National fellowship opportunities for graduate students interested in coastal and ocean science and policy, including NOAA’s Coastal Management Fellowship, the NMFS-Sea Grant Fellowship in population and ecosystem dynamics and marine resource economics, and the Knauss Marine Policy Fellowship | Click Here |
| Texas State University Graduate Funding Database | This database includes both internal and external funding opportunities for current and prospective graduate students | Click Here |
| Individual Fellowships | Description | URL Link |
|---|---|---|
| URI Boren Scholarship and Fellowship | National merit-based scholarship for US students to study languages in world regions critical to U.S. interests, and underrepresented in study abroad | Click Here |
| URI Demers Foreign Language Fellowship | Awarded to Rhode Island residents and anyone who is a student at a Rhode Island college or university who wishes to pursue foreign language study | Click Here |
| URI Energy Fellows Program | In response to a growing need for student experiential learning opportunities in energy, URI Cooperative Extension created the Energy Fellows Program in 2008 to engage and train students passionate about a career in sustainable energy | Click Here |
| URI Enhancement of Graduate Research Awards | Provision of small grant awards to support research, creative or artistic projects. This program underscores the value URI places on graduate students’ research opportunities and broader scholarly work | Click Here |
| American Educational Research Association Dissertation Grants | AERA invites education-related dissertation proposals using NCES, NSF, and other federal databases. Dissertation grants are available for advanced doctoral students and are intended to support the student while writing the doctoral dissertation. Applications are encouraged from a variety of disciplines, such as but not limited to, education, sociology, economics, psychology, demography, statistics, and psychometrics | Click Here |
| American Museum of Natural History | Postdoctoral Research Fellowships – Biology, Fauna, Marine Research, Bioinformatics, Ornithology | Click Here |
| American Psychological Association Minority Fellowship Program | A Federally funded training and support program for ethnic and racial minority researchers and service providers. Open to Masters and Ph.D. candidates | Click Here |
| American Psychological Association Predoctoral Fellowship in Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services | To support the training of practitioners in behavioral health services and prevention. This fellowship program is designed for students in clinical, counseling, and school psychology, and other psychology doctoral students whose training prepares them for careers in behavioral health services | Click Here |
| National Institutes of Health (NIH) SubstanceUse/Substance Use Disorder Dissertation Research Award | The goal of this Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) is to support doctoral candidates from a variety of academic disciplines for up to two years for the completion of the doctoral dissertation research project. Research projects should align with the NIDA Strategic Plan (2022-2026 NIDA Strategic Plan Director’s Message | National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) (nih.gov). This award will facilitate the entry of promising new investigators into the field of substance use/substance use disorder (SU(D) research, enhancing the pool of highly trained SU(D) researchers. Applications are particularly encouraged from individuals from diverse backgrounds, including those from underrepresented groups as described in the Notice of NIH’s Interest in Diversity (NOT-OD-20-031). | Click Here |
| Danone North America | Fellowship Grant in biology, health sciences, nutrition, microbiome, yogurt, and probiotics | Click Here |
| The Data Incubator: Where Data Scientists Are Made | Data Science Fellowship Program | Click Here |
| EDGE Fellowship Program | Funding, training, and one-to-one support from Zoological Society of London for early-career conservation biologists to undertake applied research or conservation project on types of frog, salamander, or coral species | Click Here |
| The Editing Press | The Laura Bassi Scholarship provides editorial assistance to postgraduates and junior academics whose research focuses on neglected topics of study, broadly construed, within their disciplines | Click Here |
| ETS Research | Internship, Fellowship, and Visiting Scholar Programs in Research | Click Here |
| Ford Foundation Fellowship | Fellowship aimed to increase diversity among the nation’s university faculties and to enrich education for all students. Predoctoral, Dissertation, and Postdoctoral fellowships awarded in a national competition administered by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine on behalf of the Ford Foundation | Click Here |
| Foundation for Women’s Wellness | FWW Research Awards provide financial support for small, short-term studies with promise for advancing women’s health. FWW also believes in investing in the future through Fellowship Awards to support emergent physician-scientists dedicated to women’s health fields | Click Here |
| James A. Ferguson Emerging Infectious Diseases Fellowship Program | CDC-funded summer program providing education and professional development opportunities for graduate students interested in infectious diseases research and health disparities | Click Here |
| The Link Foundation | Ocean Engineering & Instrumentation Ph.D. Fellowship Program | Click Here |
| The Mohamed bin Zayed Species Conservation Fund | The Fund has been established to provide targeted grants to individual species conservation initiatives, recognize leaders in the field and elevate the importance of species in the broader conservation debate | Click Here |
| NIH Office of Intramural Training and Education | Summer Internship Program in Biomedical Research | Click Here |
| NSF Graduate Research Fellowships Program (GRFP) | Recognizes and supports outstanding graduate students in NSF-supported science, technology, engineering, and mathematics disciplines who are pursuing research-based master’s and doctoral degrees at accredited US institutions | Click Here |
| Office of Science Graduate Student Research (SCGSR) Program | DOE Office of Science Graduate Fellowship Program | Click Here |
| Sallie Mae | Bridging The Dream Scholarship for Graduate Students | Click Here |
| Sandstone Care Scholarship | Sandstone Care specializes in helping teens, young adults, and their families overcome challenges with substance use, addiction, and mental health conditions. The Sandstone Care Scholarship offers $5000 to current or upcoming undergraduate and graduate students who are dealing with or have dealt with substance use/mental health struggles. The scholarship was created to reward students for their continued commitment to recovery because Sandstone Care understands the courage and bravery it takes for young adults to seek help. | Click Here |
| Sea Grant | 2020 Application Process Open for NMFS-Sea Grant Joint Fellowship Program | Click Here |
| The Paul and Daisy Soros Fellowships for New Americans | Fellowship program for immigrants and children of immigrants pursuing full-time graduate degrees at US institutions | Click Here |
| University of New Hampshire | Postdoctoral Diversity and Innovation Scholars | Click Here |
| Women’s Congressional Policy Institute | Congressional Fellowships on Women and Public Policy | Click Here |