Sociology is the systematic study of social life and social transformation. Students majoring in Development Sociology gain an understanding of societal development and factors to solve social problems, both local and global. Development Sociology majors study how societies develop and identify the social pathways that can help build a successful career. Graduate studies in the Department of Sociology focus on guiding students who have excelled as consumers of knowledge through the transition of becoming producers of scholarship.
All students who get admitted to the graduate program are offered funding, which includes a 12-month stipend, a full tuition waiver, and student health insurance. If students continue to make good progress in the program, funding typically continues for five years. This support includes tuition fees and a living stipend. Students are expected to do some teaching and/or research service as part of their funding package (usually no more than 2 years out of the five years of service are required). The department has access to a small pool of funds provided by the graduate school to support the professional development of graduate students – dues, meeting expenses, software, travel to meetings, etc. To qualify for these funds, students must have completed their Ph.D. qualifying requirements or have their paper accepted for presentation at a conference.
The departments nominate outstanding applicants for the scholarship awards, and there will no separate application process. Most funded students work as graduate assistants to the department faculty members. To support themselves beyond the usual five years of graduate assistant funding, students may work as research assistants to faculty members in sociology.
The annual interest generated out of a department of sociology is the funds that are used to support a wide range of departmental activities, including the seminar series, research support for junior faculty, a small number of graduate students’ “third-year” summer stipends, and support for graduate students to serve as Research Assistants (RA) for faculty. To apply for the third year summer stipend or to work as an RA, graduate students must be full-time, in good standing, and making good progress. Graduate students apply for summer stipends, while faculty members apply for funding for RA support.
Generally, the Department of Sociology offers four types of awards to graduate students:
- Teaching Assistantships
- Research Assistantships
- University of Iowa Fellowships
- Graduate Merit Fellowships.
Resident tuition is charged to out-of-state students who receive awards. Students who receive one-half-time teaching or research assistantships, work 20 hours each week, for faculty members on either teaching or research assignments.
Various national institutions offer fellowships that vary by applicants’ citizenship, dissertation topic, and stage of progress. Many of these external funding sources are limited to students who have completed the defense of their dissertation prospectus, but sometimes pre-dissertation fellowships are available for writing the students’ dissertation prospectus (e.g. the SSRC pre-dissertation program).
The American Sociological Association (ASA) supports the development and training of sociologists of color in any sub-area or specialty in the discipline. Funded by generous annual contributions from organizations such as Alpha Kappa Delta, Sociologists for Women in Society, the Midwest Sociological Society, the Association for Black Sociologists, Southwestern Sociological Association, as well as membership donations, MFP seeks to attract talented doctoral students to ensure a diverse and highly trained workforce is available to assume leadership roles, in research that is relevant to today’s global society. Sociologists have much to contribute to the research agendas, and many former Fellows have published or presented their work at leading conferences in their specialty area. In addition to providing financial support, MFP works with its Fellows and their faculty mentors to help prepare the Fellow for a research career. Also, MFP plans workshops and paper sessions at the ASA Annual Meeting, offers travel support to scientific conferences, and fosters the development of formal and informal networks for Fellows. Applications are reviewed and evaluated by the ASA Minority Fellowship Program Advisory Panel. Panel members are appointed by the ASA Executive Officer and approved by ASA Council.
For Reference:
http://gradschool.princeton.edu/faqpage
http://www.anthropology.northwestern.edu/chan/funding.html
http://www.anthropology.northwestern.edu/graduate/grants/index.html
http://www.asanet.org/funding/mfp.cfm
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