Fellowships and Scholarships for Graduate Study
There are more fellowships and scholarships than you might think there are to help fund graduate or professional study. It’s helpful to be creative and persistent in your search, and in your applications. This research will give you an overview of some of the fellowships out there, and tips for searching for opportunities.
Ronald E. McNair Scholars Program at Wellesley College (sophomores and juniors)
The McNair Scholars Program is a federal TRIO program funded at 187 institutions across the United States and Puerto Rico by the U.S. Department of Education. McNair participants are first-generation college students with financial need, and/or members of a group that is traditionally underrepresented in graduate education and have demonstrated strong academic potential. The goal of the McNair Scholars Program is to increase graduate education for students from underrepresented groups. At Wellesley, the McNair Scholars Program is STEM focused, and applications are typically due in November each year.
Introduction to Fellowships for Graduates
Fellowships and scholarships can fund graduate or professional study, purposeful travel, professional placements, self-designed projects, and so much more. They can help you build your experience and qualifications, help you explore a passion, and clarify a path forward. What would you do with a fellowship?
A Brief Introduction to Fellowships and Scholarships
Fellowships and scholarships offer funding to support a range of purposeful activities, including undergraduate research, language study/other study abroad, self-designed projects, teaching and service, graduate or professional study, or even internships and professional placements. They can open doors for you to things you might not be able to pursue otherwise.
There are opportunities for students and graduates of every nationality and at every stage of their careers. What might be the right fit for you?
Mellon Mays Undergraduate Fellowship (sophomores and juniors)
The Mellon Mays Undergraduate Fellowship Program (MMUF) was founded to increase diversity among minority faculty scholars in higher education. MMUF supports underrepresented minority students and others who have demonstrated commitment to eradicating racial disparities in academia by encouraging talented students to develop their academic interests, pursue and complete their doctoral training, and thrive in their faculty careers in higher education. With funding from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, MMUF undergraduates are able to conduct original undergraduate research in the humanities and social sciences. Campus deadline annually in March
The Susan Rappaport Knafel ’52 Scholarship for Foreign Study or Traveling Fellowship (seniors)
Scholarship for Foreign Study – up to $36,000
The scholarship will be awarded to a member of the graduating class who displays a desire for learning and an ability to impart knowledge and judgment to others. It will fund a year of study at a foreign institution to pursue a specific subject that requires contact with foreign scholars, libraries or other resources.
Traveling Fellowship – up to $36,000
The fellowship will be awarded to a member of the graduating class who displays an interest in and an acceptance of others, and who displays the ethos of a Wellesley education. It will fund a year of purposeful travel abroad to explore a particular interest with the requirement that the recipient not remain in the same area for more than two months.
Rangel International Affairs Graduate Fellowship Program - expected direct application deadline
Eligible: seniors and graduates who are U.S. citizens and planning to start two-year graduate programs in fall following application for the Rangel.
The Charles B. Rangel International Affairs Graduate Fellowship program seeks young people interested in making a difference in the world as Foreign Service Officers in the U.S. Department of State. The Rangel Graduate Fellowship Program provides benefits of up to $84,000 over two years toward a master's degree, arranges internships on Capitol Hill and at U.S. embassies/consulates, provides mentorship and professional development support, and leads to a career in the State Department...
Thomas R. Pickering Graduate Foreign Affairs Fellowship - expected direct application deadline
Eligible: seniors or graduates who are U.S. citizens, with a cumulative grade point average of at least 3.2, applying for eligible U.S. graduate programs to start in 2025-26.
Interested in a career serving U.S. interests abroad? If so, the Thomas R. Pickering Graduate Fellowship offers a unique opportunity to promote positive change in the world. Upon successful completion of a two-year master’s degree program and fulfillment of fellowship and Foreign Service entry requirements, fellows have the opportunity to work as Foreign Service Officers with the U.S. Department of State, in accordance with applicable law and State Department policy, serving in...
Paul and Daisy Soros Fellowship for New Americans - direct application deadline
Eligible: graduating seniors and graduates whose birth parents were born outside of the US as non-US citizens. You might have been born in the US or be a naturalized citizen, adopted from abroad, a Green Card holder, granted asylum or refugee status in the US, or have graduated from high school & college in the US (including current and past DACA recipients). You must be 30 year old or younger as of the application deadline and planning to be enrolled in graduate school full-time in the 2025-2026 academic year.
Paul and Daisy Soros Fellowships for New Americans support up to two years of graduate/professional study in any discipline at universities in the United States.
Find out if you're eligible!
(Please note the deadline for this fellowship is 2:00 pm EST.)
Did you know? Nneoma Nwogu '10, Sanja Jagesic '08,...
National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship (NSF GRFP) - expected direct application deadline
Eligible: graduating seniors and recent grads who are U.S. citizens, nationals, or permanent residents, applying for or in one of the first two years of study in an eligible graduate program.
National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowships (NSF GRFP) support up to three years of graduate study in the sciences and social sciences at a U.S. institution. Application Deadline(s) vary according to proposed field of study (& are 5 p.m. local time at applicant’s mailing address). Please note, this is the earliest of expected deadlines; see the program website for updates and details.
Read their ...