Graduate Fellowships and Scholarships

The Graduate School offers support to graduate students in the form of fellowships and scholarships. Two-year fellowships are awarded to students who have been admitted to a doctoral program or who have been admitted to a master's program that is a required step in the progression towards a doctorate. One-year scholarships are awarded to students who are enrolled in professional or terminal master's programs, such as Business Administration or Architecture , or in certain master's programs, such as Classics or Conservation Biology , in which the doctorate is the highest degree of the profession, but is not awarded on this campus. The Graduate School also holds an annual competition for the Ann G. Wylie Dissertation Fellowships, awarded each year to outstanding students working on the final stages of their dissertations.

Graduate fellowships and scholarships are awarded on the basis of academic merit, intellectual ability, and the student's potential to make a unique contribution to the diversity of the educational experience on this campus. Fellowships and scholarships are awarded to students by their graduate program using Block Grant funds awarded to them by the Graduate School . The Graduate School also sponsors a university-wide competition for year-long dissertation fellowships. In addition, fellowships and scholarships are awarded by federal and state governments, private foundations, and industry. Regardless of the source of funding, the rules and policies in this handbook apply to all students who hold fellowships and scholarships.

Status

Fellowships and scholarships are offered only to graduate students admitted to or enrolled in graduate degree programs at the University of Maryland . Fellows and scholars are expected to devote themselves full time to graduate study and to register full time as defined by the unit system. Students on fellowships and assistantships must be registered for 48 units. Audited courses do not generate units and cannot be used to determine full-time status. Fellows who also hold half-time assistantships need only register for 36 units to maintain full-time status.

Doctoral Candidates need only register for Candidacy Tuition (899) in each semester. This will satisfy the unit requirement for full-time status.  

Qualifications

Students whose records indicate superior academic achievement and promise and who will increase diversity in their graduate program may be nominated for fellowships and scholarships. The determination of academic merit is based on undergraduate and graduate Grade Point Averages (GPA); scores on such national tests as the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) , Graduate Management Admissions Test (GMAT) , and the Miller Analogies Test (MAT ); the judgment of academic professionals in letters of recommendation; the nominee's Statement of Goals and Research Interests; and the nominee's Statement of Experiences. Individual departments and graduate programs administer fellowships and scholarships funded by the Graduate School , designated departmental funds, or external sources such as government agencies and private foundations.

External Funding for Fellowships and Scholarships

The National Scholarship Office (NSO) has information regarding external funding opportunities for pre-doctoral study, theses, and dissertations. Upon request, the NSO will generate a customized listing of funding sources focused on a particular research project or idea. Information will include agency priorities, application restrictions, and contact information.

 
Transfer of Fellowships and Scholarships

A graduate school fellow is awarded a fellowship by a particular program. Fellows or scholars awarded a departmental award may not transfer that support when changing departments or programs . This includes all University-funded fellows whose support starting in or after Fall 2004.

A fellow whose support started before Fall 2004 may transfer from one program to another after going through the normal admissions procedure. He or she must request, however, in writing, permission from the Dean of the Graduate School to continue the support in the new program. Permission is not automatic and will be determined by the student's academic record in his or her original program, as well as by the appropriateness of his or her academic background for study in the new program.

Duration of Fellowships and Scholarships

The term of a one-year scholarship is one academic year, both fall and spring semesters. Students in professional or terminal master's programs (MBA, MLS, MFA, etc.) are offered one-year appointments only.

Students eligible for two-year fellowships are those admitted to doctoral programs or those who intend to pursue a doctoral degree; the latter have been admitted to master's programs that are required in progression to the doctorate. The continuation of the second year of the fellowship for a student with a two-year offer is dependent upon the following two factors:

• The student must apply and be accepted to the doctorate program
• The student's continuing academic performance should be deemed satisfactory by the department.

   

Deferral of Support

Fellows and scholars may defer the start of their fellowship or one or more of their fellowship years. They must, however, declare when the fellowship or assistantship is to resume at the time of their deferral. The Graduate School will regard this resumption date as binding; additional deferrals will not be granted except in extraordinary cases and with a strong recommendation from the Graduate Director or Department Chair.

The second year of a fellowship may not be taken until the student has been accepted into a doctoral program. Thus, students who are required to enter in a master's program as a required step in the progression towards a doctorate may not take their second year of fellowship support until they have completed the master's component and have been admitted into the doctoral program.

  Matching Requirement

All doctoral students who are offered two-year fellowships must be given at least two years of assistantship support by their graduate programs. The Graduate Council Committee on Fellowships requires this two-year matching support from the graduate program. No matching support from the department is required for one-year scholarships.  

Offer Letters

A formal letter of a fellowship or scholarship offer from the Dean of the Graduate School is sent to the student in the spring semester. This letter specifies the stipend level, the duration of the appointment (one or two years), the amount of tuition remitted, and the details of the fellowship or scholarship. In the case of a two-year fellowship, a letter confirming the second-year appointment will be sent to the student following verification from the department that the student is making satisfactory academic progress. A sample offer letter is available at http://www.gradschool.umd.edu/gss/forms .
 

Duties

No service of any kind, either during the tenure of a scholarship or fellowship or in the future, is to be required of a fellow or scholar by their mentor or their graduate program. Fellows and scholars will carry out independent research under the supervision and guidance of-and sometimes in collaboration with-their mentors. Typically, at the start of their tenure as fellows or scholars, inexperienced students will require more supervision and guidance. Eventually, however, fellows in particular, should be treated as junior research associates. Under no circumstances are they to be assigned routine technical or administrative duties or given teaching assignments during the years in which they are supported by fellowships or scholarships.

Duplication of Support

Students are not allowed to hold two full fellowships or scholarships, either internal or external awards, or a combination of both, simultaneously. Fellows or scholars who receive offers of external fellowships, such as National Science Foundation , Ford Foundation Fellowships , or any other private or university-administered fellowships may defer their Graduate School fellowship or scholarship offer until such time as their other fellowship expires. Assuming satisfactory academic progress at that time, the student may again resume the Graduate School fellowship or scholarship.
 

Supplementation of Fellowships and Scholarships

Gifts, departmental fellowships, or other special funds may provide additional support, in an amount not to exceed half the stipend of the fellowship or scholarship. A fellowship or scholarship may be supplemented by an appointment to a position such as a half-time or quarter-time graduate assistantship, or by hourly employment not to exceed 10 hours per week. International fellows should consult the Office of International Education Services by phone at 301-314-7740, regarding supplementary employment.
 

Additional On-Campus and Outside Employment

According to university policy, full time fellows and scholars may work on-campus or off-campus for a maximum of 10 hours per week in addition to holding the fellowship or scholarship. In other words, fellows may be hired on a half-assistantship (which requires 10 hours per week) or work 10 hours per week on an hourly basis. This restriction on employment is intended to assure that students make rapid progress toward their degrees.
 

Overload Payments for Graduate Fellows

If a circumstance arises that a fellow must work over the 10 hours per week, an overload form is necessary. This includes the winter term. Overload requests should be for temporary, short-term arrangements only. The request must be limited to one semester per request and must be received and approved prior to the beginning of the appointment.
 

Stipends

Graduate School fellowships and scholarships are awarded for the academic year only, with the term of contract lasting 9.5 months from August 17 to May 31 of each year. For disbursement purposes, the stipend is paid over a 9-month period, for US citizens and Permanent Residents. This disbursement is processed through the student financial aid system. For international students, those on a J1 or F1 visa, the disbursement is processed through payroll over a 22 equal pay schedule, mid August to mid June. Graduate School fellows and scholars receive stipends within the ranges below. Step I is for students in their first year of support who have no advanced degrees; Step II, for students in a second year of support at UMCP or for students in their first year of support who possess a master's degree; and Step III, for students who have been advanced to candidacy for the doctoral degree.

Minimum stipend ranges for Graduate Fellows for 2006-2007 Academic Year are available here.

 

 

Tuition Remission and Mandatory Fees

Graduate School-funded fellowships and scholarships pay for a maximum of 12 credits per Fall/Spring semester of tuition remission, which is more than the requirement to qualify as full-time. The 12 credits of remission are for 'EARNED' credits, not 'AUDITED' credits. Graduate School fellows and scholars are responsible for paying the mandatory fees charged each semester and for any additional credits over the 12 awarded. The full-time mandatory fees for 2006-2007 are $500.00 per semester; current fees are listed in the Schedule of Classes .

Students on federal fellowships or other external fellowships have tuition remission for 10 or 12 credits per semester remitted and may also have funds in the award to cover mandatory fees. Payment of tuition and fees for students on external fellowships is dependent on the terms stipulated in the fellowship awards.

Residency Classification

The official residency classification of students holding fellowships and scholarships does not change as result of their awards, but remains as indicated in the original admissions offer. Fellows and scholars who also hold a half-time graduate assistantship will be billed in-state tuition only while they hold that assistantship. Consequently, at any time when the graduate student is no longer supported by the assistantship-including summer months if the student is on a 9.5-month assistantship-he or she will be billed according to the official residency status which was assigned upon admission. Thus, a student may pay in-state rates during the academic year but out-of-state rates during the summer if that student was originally classified as out-of-state. We strongly urge all graduate students to be aware of their official residency classification status and to address any problems immediately.

Questions about residency classification and changing status for those who intend to become permanent residents of the State of Maryland should be addressed to the Residency Classification Office , Room 1113 Mitchell Building, phone 301-405-2030.
 

Tax Status

Fellows and scholars must pay tax on the stipends they receive to cover living and general expenses, but may exclude certain educational expenses. Amounts awarded in payment of tuition are not taxable for fellows. Taxes are not withheld from stipends disbursed through student financial aid so you may choose to file an estimated tax return. Please refer to the Internal Revenue Service Publication 520, Fellowships and Scholarships , for more information regarding the tax status of fellowship and scholarship stipends or call 1-800-829-1040.
 

Health Insurance

Because students on fellowships and scholarships are not required to perform any specific duties as a condition of their support, they are not considered employees of the university and are therefore not eligible to participate in the university employee health insurance program. Health insurance benefits may be obtained, however, if the fellowship or scholarship is supplemented (from one source or another) by a half-time assistantship. Fellows with non-supplemented awards may enroll in the student health plan administered through the University Health Center . This plan also allows students to enroll their spouses and children.

Two-year fellowships have a matching requirement of departmental support, usually in the form of an assistantship. These years of assistantship support are often interspersed between fellowship years. A benefit of an assistantship is that it enables a student to participate in the employee health insurance plan. It should be noted, however, that if students are beginning a fellowship semester after having held an assistantship in the prior semester, their health insurance benefits will not continue unless they hold a half-assistantship during their fellowship year. Students without supplementation should enroll in the university's health plan or contact the Benefits Office (301-405-5654) about COBRA health insurance. For further information, please see the University Health Center .

For the 2006-2007 academic year the Graduate School has secured funds to reimburse Graduate School fellows for 50% of the MAMSI health insurance plan offered through the health center. A fellow can request reimbursement for the 'Student Only Plan I' level of coverage. Please contact the Graduate School for details. This support will continue based on future availability of financing.
 

Vacation and Sick Leave

There is no policy on vacation and sick leave for fellows or scholars. Fellows and scholars are required to maintain satisfactory academic performance in order to retain their support. A fellow or scholar may request deferment of a semester or year of fellowship tenure if documented personal illness prevents him or her from satisfactorily completing academic requirements.
 

Facilities

Fellows are fully integrated into departmental activities and are to be provided with the same facilities as other graduate students, such as mailboxes, office space, access to a telephone and computer, and email and internet access.