Graduate Research Fellowship FAQ

You must be an MA student in the college of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences (LAS) and first seek to be nominated by a faculty mentor in the College of LAS. Faculty in LAS have been alerted to the existence of this fellowship, and your professors might approach you to ask if you are interested in applying for this opportunity. After a faculty member nominates you, the STRC will contact you and ask you to submit the application materials listed in the Application Guidelines packet.

Fellows will receive $4000 over the summer (between June 15-August 30) and $2000 in the fall (between September 1 and December 15), in regular bi-weekly payments. Continued funding will be contingent on Fellows making expected progress on their projects, as established in the timeline found in the application packet, and participating in all post-award required activities.

Yes.

Yes, but to be competitive, proposed projects must engage the humanities in significant and substantive ways.

No. Only students already enrolled at DePaul may apply.

Yes.

Not usually, but there are some exceptions to this rule. Please be sure to check with the Office of International Student and Scholar Services to confirm your status in this respect.

No.

You may apply, but you must identify a different faculty sponsor. The fellowship requires that you and your faculty mentor not only meet regularly with one another, but with the STRC faculty directors, to make sure that you are making good progress on your project. This is an essential aspect of the award.

If you are awarded, the fellowship will impact the number of hours you may work on campus. In the summer, you may work no more than 40 hours/week at an on-campus job; in the autumn quarter, you may work no more than 25 hours/week. International students are limited to 25 hours/week. The hour limit includes all campus jobs. 

Please note: if you are an international student, you must check with ISS to make sure that your visa allows you to work over the summer.

All graduate fellows must follow standard institutional guidelines governing what expenses may be reimbursed. The following expenses are usually allowable, but Fellows are strongly encouraged to review the full guidelines provided as part of your award letter:

• Conference registration fees;
• Airfare/Train fare—from the applicant’s location at the start of the approved travel period only;
• Automobile rental expenses, provided rental is made in name of the fellow, and only if the cost of the rental is less expensive than air or train travel;
• Mileage for travel by personal vehicle, only if the cost of mileage is less expensive than air or train travel;
• Lodging costs (strictly limited to the duration of the conference or research activity;
• Ground transportation to/from the airport and lodging, and/or to/from lodging to research site or conference location;
• In the case of approved activities in the city of Chicago and suburbs, conference registration or research related fees only;
• Fees charged for photocopying or digitizing archived materials on research trips.

Non-reimbursable activities and expenses include:

• Coursework provided by another institution;
• Attendance at a conference where one is not presenting original research or creative work;
• Food, drink, or incidentals;
• Books, copy fees, or technology purchases;
• Ground transportation within the city of Chicago (exceptions may be made in the case of late-night travel should safety be a concern—please note any such request for an exception in an email to strc@depaul.edu);
• Any expenses incurred outside the approved travel dates;
• Any expenses incurred before the awarding of the Fellowship.

All expenses must abide by DePaul and LAS policy and procedure. Further details about the process for seeking pre-approval of expenses and for submitting receipts for reimbursement will accompany the Fellow’s award letter.

Please email strc@depaul.edu to explain your circumstances. If there is financial hardship to being able to book the charges and being reimbursed we can coordinate with you to pre-pay the expenses on your behalf.

No.

No.

While there may be opportunities to adjust deadlines slightly with the approval of your faculty mentor and the STRC faculty directors, the main features of the research and writing timeline is not alterable. It is designed to help you manage your time effectively so that you can develop a robust research plan and prospectus, incorporate feedback from your faculty mentor, and revise and refine your final project, all by December 15.

Failure to meet these key benchmarks in the timeline may result in the fellowship being terminated early.

It depends. All such awards are subject to rules governing hourly work maximums; if the other grant also pays for travel or research, the two grants may not be used to pay for the same expenses. If you are unsure, please email strc@depaul.edu to clarify.

It depends. Please check with the non-STRC grant to confirm that it does not prohibit multiple grants. Also review the answer above for restrictions.

No, students may only hold one of these roles at a time.

No, students are not required to be in a credit-bearing course related to their fellowship project in the Autumn Quarter, but they may elect to do so. Please work closely with your faculty sponsor to determine the best plan for your circumstances. Bear in mind that international students must maintain enrollment of at least 8 credits hours per quarter during the regular academic year.