Ph.D. Financial Support
The majority of our Ph.D. students receive funding during their program of study. While there is some variation in the funding level depending on the funding source and appointment responsibilities, all funding includes the following components: tuition coverage, health insurance and stipend. To be eligible for funding, students need to maintain full time student status.
Provost’s Fellowships
Provost’s Fellowships are one-year awards with a stipend level to be determined by the Fellow’s respective college. These Fellowships are designed to help in college and departmental efforts to recruit outstanding new doctoral students to NC State University. Prospective students cannot apply directly for these fellowships, but are nominated by their respective colleges.
Only doctoral students are eligible to receive a Provost’s Fellowship. Fellowships cover tuition and health insurance. The out-of-state portion of tuition (where applicable) also is covered by the fellowship. Tuition and health insurance associated with the Fellowship will be covered in accordance with Graduate Student Support Plan (GSSP) guidelines.
Wilson College and NC Textile Foundation Scholarships / Fellowships
The Wilson College, in conjunction with the North Carolina Textile Foundation, provides a number of scholarships in the form of fellowships to recruit top students. These fellowships are sometimes paired with a teaching assistantship. The funding level varies from $17,000-$20,000 depending on the form of funding. In addition to the stipend, the scholarship also provides tuition and health insurance coverage in accordance with Graduate Student Support Plan (GSSP) guidelines.
These stipends are mainly for first year students. Beyond the first year, students work with their advisers to secure funding in the form of Teaching Assistantship (TA) or a Research Assistantship (RA).
Graduate Research Assistantships (RA)
Research assistantships are awarded by an individual faculty researcher to doctoral students who are interested in working on research projects in the faculty member’s area for which the researcher has external funding. If you are interested in pursuing a RA with a faculty member, please reach out to them directly. Often, faculty members hire students for whom they serve as dissertation committee chair (adviser). Research Assistantships are either 9- or 12-month appointments; have a stipend award which varies depending upon funding source; and includes tuition and health insurance in accordance with Graduate Student Support Plan (GSSP) guidelines.
Graduate Teaching Assistantships (TA)
A teaching assistantship is provided to a student to participate in teaching as an instructor of record, lab instructor, lab or lecture assistant, or to provide general support to the teaching mission of the department or program. Teaching assistantships have a stipend award which varies depending upon the appointment of 10 hours/week or 20 hours/week; and also include tuition and health insurance coverage in accordance with Graduate Student Support Plan (GSSP) guidelines.
Teaching assistantships are offered by the two academic departments in the Wilson College: Textile Engineering, Chemistry and Science and Textile and Apparel, Technology and Management. Students interested in applying for a teaching assistantship, please contact the departments accordingly.
Scholarships at the Graduate School
External Funding Opportunities
Dissertation Fellowships
AAUW Educational Foundation Dissertation Fellowships
Female U.S. citizens or permanent residents may apply for this fellowship.
American Anthropological Association Minority Dissertation Fellowship Program
Provides dissertation funding for minority students studying anthropology.
Kauffman Dissertation Fellowship Program
Awards fellowships for doctoral students to support dissertations in the area of entrepreneurship.
National Science Foundation SBE Doctoral Dissertation Research Improvement Grants
Dissertation funding for students enrolled at U.S. institutions for up to 24 months. Supports research in the social, behavioral, economic and biological sciences
Resources for the Future: Joseph L. Fisher Doctoral Dissertation Fellowships
These fellowships support doctoral dissertation research on issues related to the environment, natural resources, or energy. Preference is given to students in economics or social sciences, but students in physical or biological sciences may apply if their research has immediate and obvious link to environmental policy matters.
Spencer Foundation Dissertation Fellowships for Research Related to Education
Applicant is not required to be a U.S. citizen, but doctorate must be sought at a U.S. university.
Awards two one-year fellowships to doctoral candidates whose research concerns U.S. environmental public policy and/or environmental conflict resolution.
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (NIH), Health Services Research Dissertation Awards (R36)
Funding for dissertation work on topics such as healthcare, medicine, social or behavioral sciences, health services research, social sciences, epidemiology, biostatistics, health policy and health informatics.
Fellowships for Women
American Association of University Women Foundation
Administers various scholarship programs. Each program has its own eligibility criteria, open/close dates and required documents.
Association of Women in Science Education Foundation Fellowships
Provides several fellowships for women pursuing doctoral degrees in science fields such as behavioral science, life science, physical science, social science or engineering.
Scholarships and Graduate Fellowships for Women and Minorities
A listing of minority scholarships for college and graduate school students, fellowships, internships and grants.
General / Multi-field Fellowships
Administers various scholarship programs. Each program has its own eligibility criteria, open/close dates and required documents.
Ford Foundation Dissertation and Predoctoral Fellowships
For U.S. citizens and legal residents pursuing a Ph.D., diversity criteria is viewed as a positive factor. Predoctoral students receive three years of funding, while postdoctoral and dissertation students receive one year of funding. The application requires three essays.
Fellowships are awarded to graduate students pursuing careers or research in liberty-advancing fields, including economics, philosophy, law, political science, history and sociology.
International Foundation for Ethical Research (IFER) Graduate Fellowship Program
Provides funding for graduate students at the master’s or PhD level who are working for the development and implementation of scientifically valid alternatives to the use of animals in research, product testing and education. The foundation will consider students in fields such as sciences, humanities, psychology and journalism.
International Research and Exchanges Board (IREX) Awards
Several funding opportunities related to international development.
Dolores Zohrab Liebmann Fellowships
Provides graduate school fellowships in any recognized field of study in the humanities, social science or natural sciences, including law, medicine, engineering, architecture or other formal professional training.
Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation
Fellowships that support the development of future leaders at a variety of career stages in several critical fields.
Fellowships in the STEM Field
American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics Fellowships
The objective of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics is to advance the arts, sciences and technology of aeronautics and astronautics. The AIAA Foundation Graduate Award program was established to promote graduate student and university research interest in technical fields.
Bullitt Environmental Leadership Fellowship
This is a two-year, $50,000/year fellowship for graduate students interested in pursuing leadership positions within the environmental field.
Christine Mirzayan Science & Technology Policy Graduate Fellowship Program
Fellows develop basic skills essential to working or participating in science policy at the federal, state, or local levels. Areas of study may include any social/behavioral science, medical/health discipline, physical or biological science, any field of engineering, law/business/public administration, or any relevant interdisciplinary fields.
DOE Office of Science Graduate Fellowship Program
Program to support outstanding students to pursue graduate training in basic research in the areas of physics, biology, chemistry, mathematics, engineering, computational sciences and environmental sciences relevant to the Office of Science and to encourage the development of the next generation of scientific and technical talent in the U.S.
Department of National Defense Science and Engineering Graduate Fellowship Program
Fellowships are awarded to applicants who will pursue a doctoral degree in, or closely related to, an area of DoD interest.
EPA National Network for Environmental Management Studies Fellowship Program
This is a comprehensive fellowship program that provides graduate students an opportunity to participate in a fellowship project that is directly related to their field of study.
Funds research grants and graduate fellowships in numerous environmental science and engineering disciplines.
Fannie and John Hertz Fellowships in the Applied Physical Sciences
The Hertz Foundation Graduate Fellowship empowers outstanding young people pursuing a PhD degree in the applied physical, biological, and engineering sciences with the freedom to innovate and explore their genius in collaboration with leading professors in the field.
Howard Hughes Medical Institute Grants
Fellowships and grants supporting biomedical research.
Graduate Fellowships for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics Diversity (GFSD)
Fellowships and internship opportunities in science fields such as astronomy, chemistry, computer science, geology, materials science, mathematical sciences, physics and related engineering fields: chemical, computer, electrical, environmental, mechanical.
National Water Research Institute Fellowships
Fellowships to graduate students in the U.S. in the areas of water resources and treatment.
NIH: Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Awards
Support for promising doctoral candidates who will be performing dissertation research and training in scientific health-related fields relevant to the missions of the participating NIH Institutes and Centers.
The program awards grants of up to $1,000 to students from all areas of the sciences and engineering.
Underrepresented Minority Fellowships
American Indian College Fund (AICF)
Disburses approximately 6,000 scholarships annually for American Indian students seeking to better their lives through higher education.
American Indian Science & Engineering Society (AISES)
The American Indian Science and Engineering Society (AISES) is a national, nonprofit organization focused on substantially increasing the representation of American Indians, Alaska Natives, Native Hawaiians, Pacific Islanders, First Nations and other indigenous peoples of North America in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) studies and careers.
American Psychological Association Minority Fellowship Program (MFP)
Provides financial support, professional development activities and guidance to promising doctoral students and postdoctoral trainees with the goal of moving them toward high achievement in areas related to ethnic minority behavioral health research or services.
A.T. Anderson Memorial Scholarship
Scholarships are awarded to members of American Indian Science and Engineering Society (AISES) who are American Indian/Alaskan Native college students pursuing academic programs in the sciences, engineering, medicine, natural resources and math.
The Gates Millennium Scholars (GMS) program supports African American, American Indian/Alaska Native, Asian Pacific Islander American and Hispanic American students with high academic and leadership promise who have significant financial need, in order to increase the representation of these target groups in the disciplines of computer science, education, engineering, library science, mathematics, public health and the sciences.
Hispanic Scholarship Fund (HSF)
Administers various scholarship programs. Each program has its own eligibility criteria, open/close dates and required documents.
Minorities in Government Finance Scholarship
Scholarship for minority students in one of the following fields: public administration, accounting, finance, political science, economics or business administration.
National Consortium for Graduate Degrees for Minorities in Engineering and Science
Provides fellowships for minority students at the master’s and doctoral level in science and engineering fields. The fellowship also provides access to internships in research and development, product development and other high level technical careers.
Paul and Daisy Soros Fellowships for New Americans
Provides fellowships for graduate students in all fields of study who are permanent residents, naturalized citizens or children of naturalized citizen parents.
Scholarships and Graduate Fellowships for Women and Minorities
A listing of minority scholarships for college and graduate school students, fellowships, internships and grants.
United Negro College Fund (UNCF)
Administers various scholarship programs. Each program has its own eligibility criteria, open/close dates and required documents.
U.S. National Institutes of Health Individual Predoctoral Fellowships to Promote Diversity
This program encourages students from underrepresented racial and ethnic groups, individuals with disabilities and individuals from disadvantaged backgrounds to seek research doctoral degrees in the biomedical and behavioral sciences.
U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) Minority Postdoctoral Research Fellowships
In an effort to increase the participation of underrepresented groups in selected areas of science in the U.S., these fellowships support training and research in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM).
International Fellowships / Opportunities
Alexander von Humboldt Foundation’s German Chancellor Fellowship for Prospective Leaders
The German Chancellor Fellowship offers you an opportunity to take the next career step in Germany – irrespective of your field of work.
American Institute of Indian Studies Fellowship
Fellowships for graduate students conducting research for their doctoral dissertations in India.
Chateaubriand Fellowship – for PhD’s in Humanities & Social Sciences
The Chateaubriand Fellowship is a grant offered by the Embassy of France in the United States. It supports outstanding Ph.D. students from American universities who wish to conduct research in France for a period ranging from 4 to 9 months.
Confucius China Studies Program Joint Research Ph.D. Fellowship
The Confucius China Studies Program is a fellowship program that offers generous funding to doctoral students focusing on China.
Provides stipends, language training, and individualized professional placement in Asia for students who have limited exposure to Asia.
Social Science Research Council Dissertation Fellowships for Area Research
Funding in the social sciences, humanities; graduate students must be enrolled in U.S. institutions.