Fellowships, Scholarships & Assistantships

Financing Your Education

Students finance their education in several ways, including fellowships, scholarships, and assistantships offered by the GSE. In addition, GSE students may be eligible for awards provided by Rutgers. Funding for graduate education is also available from external sources. Please see below for information on these various funding options.

Information on other merit-based and need-based financial aid, including loans and college work-study programs within and external to Rutgers, may be obtained from the Office of Financial Aid. Learn more about financial aid options. 

GSE Fellowships and Scholarships

The GSE has several fellowship and scholarship programs that are administered and awarded within the school. These programs are competitive but qualified students are encouraged to apply. Awards typically range from $500 to $3,000 annually. Please see below for award criteria and application instructions. All application materials are due to your department chairperson by February 1.

 

Charles Sumner Crow Endowed Scholarship

Description: GSE students demonstrating achievement
Award: $3,000
Requirements: GSE Scholarship and Fellowship application

Clarence E. Partch Memorial Fellowship

Description: Full-time GSE students
Award: $1,500
Requirements: GSE Scholarship and Fellowship application

Dr. Evelyn Morrison Endowed Scholarship

Description: GSE graduate students demonstrating academic merit and financial need
Award: Amount varies
Requirements: GSE Scholarship and Fellowship application. Demonstrated financial need.

Edna Laird Hartzel Endowed Scholarship

Description: GSE graduate students demonstrating academic merit and financial need
Award: Amount varies
Requirements: GSE Scholarship and Fellowship application. Demonstrated financial need.

Edward Fry Endowed Graduate Fellowship

Description: Doctoral students in literacy demonstrating scholarly promise at the middle or near the end of their program.
Award:  Amount varies
Requirements: GSE Scholarship and Fellowship application

Graduate Assistance in Areas of National Need (GAANN)

Description: Doctoral fellowship in Educational Assessment, Research and Evaluation with Cognitive Diagnosis Modeling Emphasis
Award: Up to $30,000 stipend, tuition, health insurance, summer internship at ETS
Requirements: Full-time Ph.D. student. U.S. citizen/permanent resident. Demonstrated financial need.

Graduate School of Education Alumni Association Endowed Scholarship

Description: Full-time GSE graduate students demonstrating academic merit and financial need
Award: Up to $5,000
Requirements: GSE Scholarship and Fellowship application. Demonstrated financial need.

Graduate School of Education Alumni and Friends Scholarship

Description: The scholarship is awarded to U.S. citizen students enrolled in a minimum of six credits per semester. Award is based on financial need, academic merit, and demonstrated professional/ community/ school accomplishments and statement of career goal.
Award: Amount varies
Requirements: GSE Scholarship and Fellowship application

Graduate / Law School

Description: Awards are based on academic merit
Award: $2,000 plus tuition
Requirements: GSE Scholarship and Fellowship application

Hand to Hand Scholarship

Description: GSE students in a master’s degree with certification program who are entering the student teaching component of their program in the fall semester. Awards are based on academic merit with a preference for those demonstrating financial need.
Award: Minimum $500
Requirements: GSE Scholarship and Fellowship application

Jean Griswold Scholarship in Personnel & Guidance and Entrepreneurship

Description: Full-time GSE graduate students enrolled in the Ed.M. school counseling program who may be interested in starting a business in the future. Awards are based on academic merit with a preference for those demonstrating financial need.
Award: $2,500
Requirements: GSE Scholarship and Fellowship application

Madelyn McCarthy Miller Memorial Scholarship

Description: GSE students in the field of special education planning a career in teaching who are good academic standing with a GPA of 3.0 or better
Award: $1,500-$2,000
Requirements: GSE Scholarship and Fellowship application

Martin Luther King, Jr. Scholarship

Description: Open competition with first consideration to minority students, based on financial need and academic merit.
Award: Amount varies
Requirements: GSE Scholarship and Fellowship application. Applicant must submit a paper on “The Philosophy of Martin Luther King, Jr.: Its Relevance for Education.”

Nancy Higginson Dorr Prize

Description: GSE teacher education students who are nominated by their student teaching supervisors for demonstrating promise to be outstanding teachers
Award: $500-$1,000
Requirements: GSE Scholarship and Fellowship application submitted to the Office of Teacher Education. Brief biographical summary related to the selection of teaching as a profession. Recommendation from one professor.

Norma Nevola Sutera Memorial Endowed Scholarship

Description: Full-time GSE students studying literacy education who intend to pursue a career in education as a reading specialist or in a related field
Award: Amount varies
Requirements: GSE Scholarship and Fellowship application

Ruth and Stanley Kosensky Fellowship

Description: GSE graduate students majoring in social and philosophical foundations
Award: $450
Requirements: GSE Scholarship and Fellowship application. Demonstrated financial need.

Samuel D. Proctor Scholarship

Description: GSE graduate students. Awards are based on financial need, talent, and high potential for service to education in urban areas
Award: $1,500
Requirements: GSE Scholarship and Fellowship application

Samuel D. Proctor Fellowship

Description: GSE students pursuing their Doctorate of Education (Ed.D.) who are outstanding African American and Latino teachers, principals, and graduate students who go on to become positive role models and agents of change
Award: $3,000-$5,000
Requirements: GSE Scholarship and Fellowship application. Three letters of recommendation on a variety of perspectives on a candidate to the respective department chair by March 1. Finalists for this fellowship will be required to make a 15-minute oral presentation to the committee.

 

Applying for an Award

Scholarship and fellowship awards are made on the basis of outstanding academic promise or achievement and/or unusual financial circumstances or need. To be considered for an award, you must submit the following materials as a single packet to your department chair:

  • A GSE Scholarship and Fellowship Application
  • Two letters of recommendation from individuals, especially GSE faculty with whom you have studied or worked, who can describe your scholarly potential
  • A one- to two-page statement of your professional goals
  • A copy of your Rutgers transcript (if you are a current student). This may be an unofficial transcript printed from your online records.
  • For a Martin Luther King, Jr., Scholarship, which is available to any student, a short essay (limited to two pages, double spaced) on “The Philosophy of Martin Luther King, Jr.: Its Relevance for Education”
     

To be considered for an award based on financial need, applicants must also complete a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) form and attach a copy to their GSE scholarship and fellowship application.

Information contained in your student folder, including your admissions materials, may be considered in the application process. Award decisions are made by the GSE Scholarships and Fellowships Committee.

Deadline for Applications

All materials must be submitted to your department chairperson by February 1. Applicants will be notified about awards by mail by April 1. Questions about the application process should be directed to your department chairperson.

Graduate and Teaching Assistantships

Graduate students in assistantship positions have the opportunity to work with GSE faculty and staff, collaborating on a variety of research and professional projects, teaching, or assisting in courses. Assistantships provide full tuition remission and an annual stipend. Please see your academic adviser or departmental office for information on assistantship opportunities.

Rutgers Programs

Many students will be eligible for the Ralph Bunche Fellowships. The Bunche Fellowship program provides stipends for 16 students (one or two-year awards). Master's, professional-degree, and doctoral students are eligible. Candidates are presented to the graduate school by the relevant degree granting units. For more information, visit the Graduate School New Brunswick webpage or email waterman@rutgers.edu.

Students in the Ph.D. program may be eligible for additional awards and should consult the Rutgers Graduate School–New Brunswick website.

External Resources

Several external funding programs provide financial aid to graduate students in education. The GSE connects students to these outside sources by sending information to academic departments and posting it to the GSE student listserv. Recent examples include:

  • Spencer Foundation Dissertation Fellowships
  • Paul and Daisy Soros Fellowships for New Americans
  • Gates Millennium Scholars Program
  • Jacob Javits Fellowships (U.S. Department of Education)
  • ETS Fellowship Program