GradFund Checklists Series
By Fellowship Advisor
This post is the first in a series that will propose checklists for graduate students to use as they navigate the external funding landscape and pursue resources to support their studies and research. These checklists, while not comprehensive, feature suggested tasks to help guide students in the process of developing and implementing an individualized funding plan, in coordination with their advisors and graduate program directors.
Checklist No. 1: Tips for Identifying Funding Opportunities
__ Schedule a Planning Meeting with GradFund.
__ With your advisor(s) and graduate program director, review the award list from your Planning Meeting and make note of funding opportunities in the near-term and long-term that you are interested in pursuing. Inquire about additional funding opportunities they may recommend.
–– Develop a list of keywords relevant to your field(s) and research areas (topics, sites, etc.). Organize this list roughly from general to specific, and include single words as separate entries (e.g., “gender studies” but also “gender”).
__ Using your keywords, conduct your own award searches using the GradFund Fellowships and Grants and Pivot databases. When you sign up with Pivot, begin by adding at least 8–10 keywords to your profile.
__ Review your program’s past announcements to see which awards your colleagues have previously received.
–– Consider becoming a member of professional associations pertinent to your field(s) and research, and review any award competitions (e.g., conference travel grants) they may fund/administer.
__ Check to see whether any journals in your field(s) fund/administer award competitions.
__ Review the acknowledgments sections of books and articles you consult as part of your studies and research. Some of these acknowledged funding sources could be among those you consider pursuing.
–– Subscribe to email lists, such as newsletters of academic research centers and institutes, relevant to your field(s) and research. These emails may contain periodic award announcements.
–– Develop a year-by-year timeline, broken into semesters, for the duration of your anticipated time in your program. Note deadlines of awards you are interested in, as well as their duration and, if this information is available, when award announcements are generally made.
For further guidance, see “4 Things to Do Before Applying for Funding” and “Where to Find Information on Grants and Fellowships as a Graduate Student.”