You'll be amazed at how many great funding opportunities you can find at Wellesley and beyond!
Through the ES Department, Career Education, and numerous off-campus programs you'll be able to find extensive resources to help fund a variety of academic and personal experiences. We're happy to help you navigate your way through the options available.
ES Funding
Other Wellesley Funding Sources
- Career Education
- Social Science summer research program
- Science Center summer research awards
- Science Center student travel to conferences or research
- Albright Institute for Global Affairs
- Wellesley in Washington
- Botanic gardens environmental horticulture and sustainable agriculture
Off-Campus Funding Sources
ES Funding
Conference Support
Academic Programming
Thesis & Independent Study Support
Opportunity Fund
- All applicants must have met with an ES Advisory Faculty member who will serve as an advisor/mentor to the project if awarded. Please refer to the list of advisory faculty at the ES Department website.
- Is your project related to a course or independent study project? If so, please indicate what course.
- Recipients of this award will also be expected to share the results of their grant with the college community in one of the following ways:
- Giving a Tanner or Ruhlman Conference presentation
- Submitting/sharing a written, video, or creative arts piece
- Another mechanism agreed to by the student and advisor
- Please provide contact info for three references (at least one of whom is at Wellesley). No recommendation letters are required.
Other Wellesley Funding Sources
Career Education
Wellesley's Career Education office offers a variety of internships, fellowships, and grants which are directly related to ES. An updated list of these opportunities is coming soon!
Social Science Summer Research Program
Students should contact faculty directly to consult about the research position they are interested in exploring, based on the list of projects available. Students will attend workshops on public speaking, ethics, bibliographic tools, and visual design, and present their research to the other students and faculty advisors at a seminar series. Students will also present the results of their research at the all-campus summer research poster session during the first week of August.
Eligibility: All full time students and Davis Scholars
Award: $4600 ($3100 stipend, $1500 housing/commuting supplement)
Deadline: Late February
Science Center Summer Research Awards
Students interested in conducting scientific research this summer should check online for the full list of projects available and consult with faculty to make sure it's the right project for you. In addition to the project you'll be researching, the program also involves attending seminars by faculty and outside speakers, giving presentations of your own research to their peers and faculty, discussing graduate school with a panel of current graduate students, participating in field trips, discussing career options with a panel of professionals who majored in science as undergraduates and who now work in non-academic, non-medical science-related fields. Students will present the results of their research at the all-campus summer research poster session during the first week in August.
Eligibility: All full time students and Davis Scholars
Award: $4600 ($3100 sStudents will receive a weekly housing/transportation allowance for a maximum of 9 weeks at $150/week (total: $1,350). Summer stipends provide a living allowance of at least $3,250 for full participation in all program activities.
Deadline: Early March
Application found on the Science Center website
Science Center Student Travel to Conferences or Research
The purpose of this program is to support student-faculty collaboration and student research. Students who are traveling to scientific meetings and presenting their work as posters or talks (as first or second authors) are eligible to apply.
Eligibility: All full time students and Davis Scholars
Award: Total awards will normally not exceed $750/student in any year or $500/student from any one source
Deadline: Students should apply in advance of attending the conference for which support is being requested. There are three application deadlines each year in September, January and April.
Application found on the Science Center website
Albright Institute for Global Affairs
The Madeleine Korbel Albright Institute for Global Affairs will foster appreciation for the forces of globalization, the complexities of leadership, and the importance of citizenship. The program will combine the intellectual resources of faculty from Wellesley College, researchers from the Wellesley Centers for Women, and leading alumnae and practitioners in the fields of international relations and public policy. This intensive, three-week non-credit course will culminate with lectures and informal conversation with the Institute’s Distinguished Visiting Professor. The Institute will take place annually during Wintersession. Deepening a student’s curricular experience with the significant learning that can take place off campus, Albright Fellows will pursue college-funded internships during the summer following their participation in the Institute Wintersession program.
Eligibility: Open to Wellesley College juniors and seniors, with priority given to juniors
Award: Funding for summer internships provided
Deadline: Late March
Application found on the Albright Institute website
Wellesley in Washington
This summer internship program provides an opportunity for students with a wide variety of interests to be placed in venues in Washington D.C. that provide fascinating opportunities for them to advance academic and career goals. Interns experience hands-on work opportunities to advance intellectual and career aims through quite demanding placements in government offices, political and public interest groups, media organizations, and research and cultural institutions.
Eligibility: Open to Wellesley College juniors and Davis Scholars
Award: $3000 stipend plus housing costs (usually $3000 per student)
Deadline: October
Application found on the Political Science Department's website
Botanic Gardens environmental horticulture & sustainable agriculture internships
The Wellesley College Botanic Gardens and the Wellesley Center for the Environment
offers an internship program that includes opportunities at the student farm, the botanic
gardens, and an Italian Renaissance food garden on campus. Interns each have a
primary responsibility in one of these areas, but also work together on projects in each area. The internships involve a lot of outdoor work in often hot, muggy conditions – pulling weeds, mulching, watering, etc. – as well as workshops on such topics as composting and pruning, and periodic farmers markets. They also hire a summer farm leader – someone who has experience working on a farm and is involved with Regeneration; this intern has a higher salary, depending on experience and added responsibility.
Eligibility: Open to all Wellesley College Students
Award: $225/week, $150/week for college housing for 10 or more weeks
Deadline: Late March
Application found on the Botanic Gardens website. Contact Kristina Jones for more information.
The Class of 1957 Fund was established by the Class of 1957 to provide funding for initiatives designed to enhance sustainable practices at Wellesley, to reduce Wellesley's environmental impact, and to raise awareness about environmental issues on campus. Anyone can apply for a grant if they have an idea for a sustainable initiative.