Graduate Dean's Dissertation Fellowship

Purpose

To provide one year financial assistance to students nearing completion of a terminal (PhD, EdD, or MFA) degree.

Eligibility for Nomination

Candidates will be considered only through nomination by their academic unit. They must be in the process of writing the dissertation, and anticipate completion by the end of the fellowship year. Previous recipients/nominees will not be eligible. The Dean’s Dissertation fellow may hold up to a .25 graduate assistantship assignment during the fellowship year. Students work with your department as nominations must be submitted by your department through InfoReady.

Nomination Procedures

The department will submit their nomination through InfoReady. Graduate units may not submit more than one nomination in a given year. Nomination forms must be accompanied by:

• • UNM Dean's Dissertation Fellowship Nomination Form
  • Finalized dissertation committee membership.
    • Please upload a copy of your program / department committee membership form or other documentation with the names, titles, and department / program affiliations listed.
  • A transcript of the candidate's graduate work.
  • Current CV or resume (list all previous funding awards)
  • A 3 page dissertation proposal, summary, and timeline. The summary should be written so that a general audience can easily understand the objectives, methods, and significance of the project.
  • A statement written by the candidate, describing the impact of funding to facilitate the completion of the dissertation by the end of the fellowship year and describing how the dissertation will contribute to other fields in academia.
  • 2 Letters of Support. Letters are assessed as part of the review process. These two letters should provide information that directly relates to the student's expected completion date and their ability to complete the dissertation by the end of the fellowship year.
    • One from the candidate's dissertation chair
    • One from their graduate unit chair or faculty coordinator
  • IRB (submitted)

Stipend

The stipend consists of $10,200 for the academic year. Half of the award is given in the fall semester.  Recipients are required to submit a written progress report at the end of the fall semester. The spring term stipend will not be disbursed until the progress report is submitted. The previous practice of providing each nominee a scholarship will be discontinued due to funding limitations.

Nomination Deadline

Nomination materials must be submitted in InfoReady no later than 11:59 p.m (MT) on March 6, 2026. Nomination materials are evaluated based on the quality of statement and and letters of support, including the ability to convey contributions of the dissertation to other fields, financial need, and ability to complete the dissertation by the end of the fellowship year.

For additional information email grad@unm.edu.