University Fellowships
Relevant Downloadable Forms
Rules and Procedures
University Fellowships are awards aimed at recruiting outstanding students newly admitted to graduate programs at UIC. Students who have previously been admitted to a graduate program at UIC may be eligible if it can be demonstrated that this award would be part of a genuinely new recruitment effort (transitioning from a MS to a PhD program in the same department does not meet this criterion). Questions about eligibility can be directed to Mia Johnson – 413-2540; mimi@uic.edu. Applicants will be reviewed by the Graduate Awards Committee and evaluated for academic excellence on the basis of post-secondary record, letters of recommendation, personal statement, standardized tests, and other criteria as deemed appropriate by the committee.
University Fellowships offered to incoming masters students are one-year awards. Departments are required to support masters students receiving the University Fellowship during their second year of graduate study. Ph.D. students who receive University Fellowships are eligible to receive an additional year of support when they begin their dissertation research (after completing their preliminary examination, but not before their fourth year of study), providing they meet the following criteria: (1) The student must be making good progress in the program; (2) The student must have received a minimum of two years of support from his or her department. The Graduate College must be informed by April 15 of the year before the renewal year that students have passed their preliminary examination and plan to renew.
Terms of the Award
Recipients of the University Fellowship will receive a stipend of $20,000 per academic year or $1666.67 per month in the first year. Renewals will be funded at current University Fellowship stipend rates for the renewal year. Recipients may accept part-time assistantships or other awards related to their field of study up to a total of 50% time. Work unrelated to the field of study is not allowed. Graduate hourly appointments are also not permitted.
University Fellowship recipients also receive a tuition and fee waiver from the Graduate College. The waiver covers all tuition (including differential, if any) service fee, health service fee, academic facilities maintenance fund assessment, library and information technology assessment, and a $100/ per academic year towards Campus Care, if applicable. All other fees are the responsibility of the student.
Students supported by these fellowships are required to complete at least 12 semester hours each semester unless expressly authorized by the Dean of the Graduate College to carry a reduced program. Fellows are not required to register for the summer session by the Graduate College; however, individual departments may require summer registration. Fellows who register in the summer must enroll in at least 6 hours to be eligible for a summer tuition waiver. Fellows should check with the department to ensure that summer registration is not required for the degree program.
The Graduate College will assign University Fellows Graduate College Mentors and sponsor occasional fellowship-related events. University Fellows are required to meet with their mentors twice a year, and are expected to participate in fellowship events.
Fellowships and Student Loans
A fellowship will affect federal student loan or work-study. Typically, students with fellowships may not be permitted to borrow small amouns of federal loans due to cose of attendance regulation. Check with the Office of Student Financial Aid on eligibility requirements.
If you have already received a refund for the current year in federal loans and you acccept a fellowship, you may be responsible to return this refund to UIC. Contact the Office of Student Financial Aid for further information.
If applying for loans and/or work-study a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) must be completed. See the Graduate Student Guide from the Office of Student Financial Aid for more information.
Nomination Instructions
Eligible students may be nominated for a University Fellowship by their programs. Programs may submit up to 15% of their total fall enrollment. Programs in which 15% of the enrollment is less than 2 students, may nominate a maximum of 2. Programs in which 15% of enrollment is greater than 10 students, may only nominate a maximum of 10 or 15% whichever is less. Programs should refrain from submitting nominations that are clearly not competitive.
To nominate a student for the University Fellowship programs must submit an original plus five (5) copies of a nomination packet (described below) for each nominee to the Graduate College (MC 192) by 4:00 p.m. February 1, 2010. No extensions will be granted. Hand delivery is recommended.
Nomination packets consist in the following materials compiled in the order specified.
- A completed University Fellowship Transmittal Form;
- A completed Rating Form;
- DGS Nomination Letter (The Award's Committee is interdisciplinary, so it is important to explain to non-specialists what is particularly compelling about this applicant);
- A completed Application for Graduate Appointment with all questions answered including the personal statement;
- Three letters of recommendation written within twelve months (these may be the letters of recommendation submitted for admission);
- A statement of financial support for years 2 and 3 signed by the Department Head. (Use form provided. Not required for one year awards.);
- Copies of transcripts of all post-secondary academic work;
- Standardized test scores, e.g., GRE, MCAT, GMAT, MAT, TOEFL, etc.
- Proof of TOEFL (for international students from non-English-speaking countries).
When reporting examination scores, please report both the raw score and the percentile rank. When calculating GPA, use the last 60 SH (90 QH) of undergraduate work and all graduate hours at all institutions. Students from non-English-speaking countries must meet the minimum TOEFL requirement: 550 (paper-based); 213 (computer-based); Reading 19, Speaking 20, Listening 17, Writing 21, and a Total score of 80 (minima for the TOEFL). Proof of TOEFL must be supplied as a part of the application packet.
Please prepare nomination packets carefully. Poorly packaged nominations are a common cause of otherwise deserving students failing to receive fellowship awards.
The Awards Committee of the Graduate College has established the following deadlines for submitting nominations:
RECRUITMENT ROUND
February 1, 2010
Department Nominations Due In Graduate College
February 26, 2010
Announcement of Awards
April 15, 2010
Last Day to Inform Graduate College of Acceptance
OPEN ROUND HAS BEEN CLOSED, EFFECTIVE SPRING 2007
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