Program
Description and objectives: The Graduate Research Grant (GRG) is intended to help PhD and MFA students in historically underfunded disciplines meet expenses related to scholarly research and creative endeavors.
Award amount: The maximum award amount is $3,000.
Award period: Awards are for a twelve-month period.
Eligibility: PhD and MFA students in Divisions II and III (social sciences and humanities) of the Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences, the School of Education and Social Policy, the School of Communication (humanities and social science projects), and the School of Music are eligible for the GRG. For a list of WCAS Graduate Programs by Division, see the web at http://www.wcas.northwestern.edu/graduate. At the time of application for a Graduate Research Grant, the student must have completed 3 quarters of full-time full tuition registration toward the PhD or MFA degree in The Graduate School. Students who are on an extension of the deadline for the completion of all PhD or MFA requirements are not eligible for a Graduate Research Grant. A student may receive only one grant under this program during his or her graduate career at Northwestern. Awards will not be granted for retroactive payments. Applicants who have applied before and have not received an award may apply again.
2006-07 GRG recipients: Recipients of grants during the 2006-07 academic year may reapply during the 2007-08 academic year for a second grant of up to $1,500. To do so they should follow the same application procedures from the previous year. If their original estimated budget in 2006-07 was less than the total combined request for both 2006-07 and 2007-08, they must include a written explanation of the new, additional costs along with an updated budget. The required materials and applicant responsibilities are the same as those from the original application. Electronic submission of an application by the designated department or program person constitutes confirmation that the application has been vetted and endorsed by the department or program.
Department approval: Electronic submission of an application by the designated department or program person (see below) constitutes confirmation that the application has been vetted and endorsed by the chair of the department or program.
Deadline and Notification dates: Grants are awarded three times during the academic year. Deadlines for receipt of proposals are noon on October 5, January 4, and April 4. Awards will be announced within 2 months of each deadline.
Final report: A brief final report is required. It should include a description of your accomplishments. Submit this to Mary Pat Doyle in The Graduate School at the expiration of the project period.
Review Process, Criteria for Selection, Budget
Review process and criteria for selection: Recipients of grants are determined at the quarterly meetings of the University Research Grant Committee (URGC). Because committee members are drawn from across the university, proposals must be intelligible to non-specialists. Decisions are based on the committee’s final evaluations and the availability of funds.
Criteria for selection include:
• The significance of the research topic or aesthetic exploration to thought and knowledge in the applicant’s field.
• The clarity and quality of the project proposal.
• The extent of research or creative work already completed and the likelihood that the applicant will complete the project in a timely fashion.
• The quality and breadth of the applicant’s preparation and the potential or demonstrated productivity of the applicant.
Budget – allowed costs, non-allowed costs:
Allowable Costs:
• Essential travel. Travel must be for well-defined research, creative and/or field work, using the least expensive mode of transportation and accommodation.
• Acquisition of research materials unavailable locally or via microfilms, photographs, photocopies, etc.
• Payment for services. On rare occasions, funds may be approved to reimburse subjects from outside the university for tests and experiments or to pay technical or clerical aides if their services are essential to the research project.
• Artistic supplies beyond what would be considered normal and customary in the field.
• Construction, rental or purchase of special equipment not available on campus. The possibility of renting or leasing, rather than purchasing, such items as audiovisual and photographic equipment should be explored.
Non-allowable Costs:
• Tuition fees.
• Costs of preparing the dissertation.
• Travel to professional meetings, including symposia, conferences, colloquia, summer institutes, and seminars.
• Travel to consult with members of the dissertation committee.
• Retroactive charges for expenditures incurred or committed prior to review and approval of the application.
Nomination process
The materials described below must be collected into a single pdf file and submitted by the designated TGS nominator for your department/program. Applications not adhering to the page, font, and format restrictions--which are intended to ensure a level playing field for applicants across disciplines--will not be considered.
Materials required: The following materials are required, in the order specified:
-
The completed GRG Application Form. You may download a WORD version of this form by clicking the link at the bottom of this webpage.
- If required, the Human Subjects or Animal Use Approval or Exemption, or the certified Chemical, Biological and Radiation Form.
- A description of the research project, not to exceed five double-spaced pages in Times New Roman 12-point font. The description should present the conception, definition and organization of the work and plan of study. Include information about sources used, the thesis, and the interpretive stance of the research. If the grant is for work on the dissertation, include a chapter outline and a summation of progress to date, such as research already completed or chapters already drafted. The description of the proposed study should be written in plain language, free of jargon. Applications will be evaluated by committee members who may not have specialized knowledge of an applicant’s area of study. Endnotes, bibliography, or pictures do not count toward the 5-page limit, but these may not exceed a total of two additional pages.
- A budget that itemizes the estimated expenses and shows the total amount requested, not to exceed one single-spaced page. Be specific. Justify any item not clearly explained or self-evident. Airfares must be for economy class travel; per diem and lodging must be listed separately. Round to the nearest dollar.
- A statement of previous or current support from the University or other sources, not to exceed one double-spaced page. If other support is currently available, explain why it may not be used for your proposed project and why additional support is being requested.
- A curriculum vitae, not to exceed two single-spaced pages, that includes educational history, awards, presentations, publications, professional honors, memberships and experience.
- An unofficial Northwestern transcript. Unofficial transcripts may be obtained from CAESAR. After logging in to CAESAR, you can view your unofficial transcript by selecting “For Students”-> “Academic Information”-> “View Unofficial Transcript.” Select “Switch to printer-friendly view” from the top of the screen. To save your unofficial transcript as an electronic document, cut and paste the entire transcript into a Word (or equivalent) file.
- A letter of recommendation from your advisor. Please provide your advisor with a copy of the GRG Guidelines for Writers of Recommendation Letters (included in the GRG Application Instructions below).
Applicant’s responsibilities: The student applying for the grant is responsible for preparing items 1-7 above as electronic documents and providing these to the designated nominator for the department or program. In addition, the student is responsible for requesting that his or her advisor prepare the recommendation letter in electronic form and deliver it to the designated nominator.
Department nominator’s responsibilities: The designated department or program nominator is responsible for assembling all the documents, including the letter of recommendation and the applicant’s unofficial transcript, into a single pdf file and submitting the application to The Graduate School through the web interface.
Instructions for web site: Each department or program should have a designated person who submits the pdf file through the web interface. This would normally be the Chair, Director of Graduate Studies or Program Assistant. This person should contact Bill Rett, IT Manager for The Graduate School, for access to the system or for other technical related questions (491-8538, w-rett@northwestern.edu ). For other questions, please contact Mary Pat Doyle (847/491-8497, mdoyle@northwestern.edu).
To submit the application the nominator should go to https://fellowships.gsad.northwestern.edu and use her/his current netid and password to log into the site. After logging in, the designated submitter should fill in the data fields requested and click “Browse” to select the assembled pdf file. For Program, select the Academic Program that is nominating the student. For Award, select the correct competition the student is being nominated for. When everything is complete, click the “Submit Application” button at the bottom of the page.
Proposals involving human subjects, use of animals, or chemical/biological/radioactive materials
All research at Northwestern University involving human subjects, the use of animals, or chemical/biological/radioactive materials must be either approved or exempted by the appropriate office, and the approval or exemption must be included with the proposal. The applicant involved in such research must comply with all current University guidelines. For additional information contact or see:
Download the 2007-08 Graduate Research Grant Application Instructions.
Download the 2007-08 Graduate Research Grant Application Form.
