American Studies Funding and Fellowships
Students in Saint Louis University's Department of American Studies can see funding and fellowships to aid in their research.
American Studies Alumni Research Fund
The American Studies Alumni Research Fund at Saint Louis University offers financial support for research travel undertaken by current American Studies graduate students and undergraduate majors. This support is made possible in large part through the generosity of SLU American Studies alumni donors.
Grants totaling up to $1,000 per year, with a maximum per recipient of $500, are awarded. The department faculty reviews applications in fall and in spring. Awards are made in the spring semester only if the fund has not been exhausted during the preceding fall semester's application cycle.
Preference is given to applications proposing research travel with a clear relationship to a significant requirement within the applicant's program of study (e.g. senior capstone project, M.A. thesis, pre-dissertation exploratory work, or Ph.D. dissertation research).
Application Deadlines
- October 1: Fall-semester award cycle
- February 1 Spring-semester award cycle
If a listed due-date falls on a weekend or a University holiday, applications will instead be due on the University's next regular business day.
Application Requirements
Applications are considered on a competitive basis. To apply, send the department chairperson a proposal containing:
- Your name and contact information
- The title of your research project, a brief abstract and an explanation of the project's relationship to your trajectory through your American studies degree program
- Projected dates of travel
- The archive(s) you will visit or the other research activity requiring travel
- Which collections you expect to examine, or what other primary sources you expect to consult or collect, and an explanation of these sources' relevance to your project
- An itemized funding request, along with a basic budget showing cost estimates for travel, lodging and research expenses
- Travel expenses are on a reimbursement basis. Coordinate with the department administrative secretary before incurring any expenses for which you expect reimbursement. All funded travel must be completed within six months of your original application due-date. Recipients must submit a one-page report to the department chairperson within one month of the completion of the funded travel.
SLU Dissertation Fellowship: American Studies Nomination Procedure
Each year the University offers a limited number of eleven-month dissertation fellowships for doctoral candidates whose work "demonstrates outstanding academic achievement and whose dissertation will significantly extend the body of knowledge within their discipline." Recipients are chosen by the Graduate Education Office on a competitive basis. Among other Graduate Education Office eligibility criteria, applicants must have completed the dissertation proposal process.
Every SLU department may put forward two nominees for this annual award. Eligible American Studies doctoral candidates wishing to be considered should express interest to a department faculty member in writing at least fourteen days ahead of the Graduate Education Office's announced deadline. They should also furnish the department faculty with draft versions of the documents required of nominees by that office, though such documents need not be the final versions that would accompany an eventual nomination packet.
American Studies faculty will select the department's two annual nominees from among those eligible doctoral candidates who express interest and provide the requisite documents in a timely fashion. The department's selection criteria include promise, creativity and rigor of the dissertation project and nature of the research or writing progress made thus far. However, faculty may also take into account relevant factors unrelated to the quality of the student's dissertation work; particularly, the Graduate Education Office's stated policy that students who have formally proposed during the preceding two semesters will be given preference during the University selection process.
Learn More About the Dissertation Fellowship
Saint Louis University Graduate Fellowships
In addition to graduate assistantships as assigned by Department of American Studies, Saint Louis University awards several fellowships on a competitive basis: the Dissertation Fellowship, Diversity Fellowship and the Presidential Fellowship.