UIC Pipeline to an Inclusive Faculty (PIF) Program

PIF Objective

Acknowledging the lack of diversity in faculty around the country, we wanted to build a program at UIC to recruit and support outstanding historically underrepresented PhD students, who are interested in pursuing careers as faculty members. Our intent is to support these students with competitive funding packages, skills and professional development opportunities and mentoring in order to ensure their success in graduate school and in their future careers. ONE nomination per doctoral program.

Overview of PIF Program

  • Selection Process: Normally, during the recruitment season, we select five historically underrepresented scholars in PhD programs in any discipline from among the Access and University Fellowship applicants. This competition seeks to add to our existing cohorts.
  • Funding: Scholars will receive adequate funding so that they will be able to concentrate on their scholarship and skills development and progress to degree in a timely fashion. PIF Scholars will receive three years of funding at $28,000 and one year of top-off funding at $10,000 to add to the stipend provided by a teaching assistantship.
  • Mentoring: Scholars will be paired with both a senior student peer mentor from their program and a faculty mentor who is outside of their department and who is not their research advisor. They will also be part of a peer-mentoring network, including students at all stages of their graduate programs, and participate in research presentation seminars, writing groups and community building events.
  • Grant Writing Experience: Scholars will apply for the Provost’s Graduate Research, Provost’s Graduate Internship Award, the Award for Graduate research funding, and/or external funding by their third year in the program.
  • Teaching Experience and Training: Scholars will serve as teaching assistants to build their teaching skills. Scholars will also enroll in at least one semester of an approved teaching course and will be encouraged to complete the GC Foundations of College Instruction certificate.
  • Mentoring skills: To build their mentoring skills, scholars will serve as “Research Team Leaders” in the Summer Research Opportunities Program (SROP) for one summer or participate in another mentoring extended mentoring experience.
  • Networking in Field: Scholars will be provided with funds to attend discipline specific meetings (or travel for their research) in order to build a national presence and network for job placement.
  • Professional development: Scholars will be expected to fulfill all professional development requirements in their own department and in addition attend other selected workshops.

PIF Fellow Profiles

Pipeline to an Inclusive Faculty Fellowship (PIF) Selection FAQ

  1. Applicants must be nominated by their departments through the Access Fellowship and University Fellowship.
  2. PIF fellows are nominated from the outstanding University Fellowship and Access Fellowship applications and are selected based on academic achievement, promise, and future faculty career goals.
  3. At this time, only PhD students will be considered. Thank you.
  4. If students are PIF eligible AND do not address their career goals in their personal statement, include a one-page document to the Access or University Fellowship that state the applicants career goals.
  5. Please see University/Access Fellowship information below for all other requirements and recommendations in order to be considered for the PIF fellowship.

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