Fellowships and Travel Awards

Fellowship Tuition Policy

This policy allows for degree-seeking students pursuing graduate degrees (this does not include students solely pursuing Certificates) to take courses beyond degree requirements without additional financial burden to the student and little or no cost to the University. Such courses, referred to as "fellowship" courses, can broaden the educational experience of graduate students by allowing them to pursue studies based on their intellectual desires.

The Fellowship Course Application is required to be completed and returned to Graduate Studies before the end of late registration (Add/Drop period). The application requires you to obtain the signatures of the instructor of the fellowship course as well as your advisor. Also, you be in good standing and meet course prerequisites. 

In the fall and spring, you are not charged for fellowship courses as long as you are registered for the minimum number of credit hours per semester for your degree program. In the summer, there is no minimum registration required to qualify for the tuition policy. All policies relating to drop/add and withdrawal apply to fellowship courses. Up to eight fellowship courses may be permitted in aggregate.

Please note that courses will not be allowed to count as Fellowship Courses retroactively. Thesis research (651 an 701) and similar courses cannot be taken as fellowship courses. Fellowship courses may not be audited; the grade received will not impact your degree program GPA.

Graduate Student Travel Award

The School of Graduate Studies (SGS) is pleased to sponsor a program designed, in part, to facilitate mentorship between graduate students and faculty mentors.

SGS will provide funds to sponsor full-time graduate student enrolled in the School of Graduate Studies to attend conferences at which a paper or poster will be presented. Academic departments are required to contribute funds, a 50/50 match, to demonstrate support of the application.

The maximum matching contribution from SGS is $500 for travel within the United States and $1,000 for travel outside of the United States in support of conference-related expenses such as registration, lodging, meals, and transportation. The applicant is responsible for making the necessary travel arrangements.

Applications must be approved by a faculty member who serves as a mentor to the student applicant and should include a brief description of that relationship (research agenda extension, joint or co-authorship, etc.).

Applications will be processed on a first-come, first-served basis and are subject to budgetary considerations. You will receive an email indicating a complete submission.

Eligibility Requirements:

• Applicant must be enrolled in a program housed under the School of Graduate Studies as a full-time, degree-seeking student. (This does not include students solely pursuing Certificates.)
• All materials must be submitted two weeks prior to travel. No funds will be awarded after the paper or poster presentation has occurred. 
• The student's department or advisor must provide funds for travel to conference in order to receive the grant.

Restrictions:

• The Graduate Student Travel Award is a matching fund. Academic Departments are expected to contribute funds, a 50/50 match, to demonstrate support of the application. This means the School of Graduate Studies will match a department's contribution up to $500 for a conference in the United States and up to $1,000 for travel outside of the United States. 
• Applicants may receive only one grant-in-aid during their graduate career.
• Applications will be processed on a first-come, first-serve basis for as long as funds are available.
• No funds may be awarded to pay for tuition, fees, fines or memberships in professional societies.
• No funds will be awarded for attending a conference in which the applicant does not present a paper/poster.

Required Materials:

1. A completed GSTA Departmental Approval Form including signatures from the student applying, the student’s advisor, and the financial authority of the department or program sponsoring the student’s travel. This form must include both the amount the department is pledging to support the student’s travel as well as the source of funding.
2. An estimate of the direct costs (registration, transportation, lodging, meals, etc.) associated with the conference. This information will be entered onto the online form but please prepare your estimate ahead of submission.
3. An abstract of the paper that was accepted for presentation with documentation of that acceptance (association letter, program schedule, etc.). Please note: The abstract and proof of acceptance must be uploaded as a single document. If you are submitting a proof of acceptance that does not include the abstract please save the two documents as one file and upload only the combined document.
4. If traveling internationally, prior approval from the Center for International Affairs must be obtained by emailing studyabroad@case.edu for authorization. This applies to both domestic and international students if traveling outside the United States.

All required materials must be completed and ready to be uploaded prior to submitting the online application.

Deadline:

Completed applications (including all the required documentation, signatures, and completed online application form) are required at least two weeks prior to travel. Applications will be reviewed from the start of the fiscal year (July 1) and continue until available funds for the year have been exhausted - which may happen at any time depending upon rate of applications.

Applications should be submitted as soon as the student has confirmed their intent to present at a conference and are able to complete all documentation and the application form. While applications must be received at least two weeks prior to travel, please submit as early as possible even if your travel is still several months later in the year as funding may run out at any time.

Please review the GSTA Checklist before beginning your application. Students should complete the online application only after they have all the required supplemental materials listed above and in the Checklist.

Please include the following statement of acknowledgment at the bottom of the first page of the paper or poster: Statement of Acknowledgement: This presentation was made possible, in part, through financial support from the School of Graduate Studies at Case Western Reserve University.

Sign into CampusGroups to complete your online application: cglink.me/2cS/s29904

For more information, please email gradtravelawards@case.edu.

The Verhosek Fund

V-Fund Expanded: January 2023!

The Verhosek Fund (V-Fund) endowment provides funds to assist graduate students enrolled in the School of Graduate Studies with financial expenses incurred while presenting at a conference or other expenses that benefit the student's academic and research goals.

Eligibility Requirements:

1. Applicant must be enrolled in the School of Graduate Studies as a full- or part-time, degree-seeking student. (This does not include students solely pursuing Certificates.)
2. Applicant must have completed at least twelve (12) credit hours of graduate-level coursework.
3. Application must be for only one of the following approved expenses:
   1. Presenting at a conference (including oral presentation or poster);
   2. Fees for workshops that enhance your academic career or research goals (cannot be workshops held at conferences where applicant is not presenting);
   3. Travel to a research site (including research collections and archives);
   4. Research materials (including scholarly books, equipment, software, or data sets);
   5. Article, manuscript, journal processing fees;
   6. Certificates (not from CWRU);
   7. Subscription to scholarly journals; or
   8. Translation or transcription of research materials.
4. Application must be completed and submitted no later than sixty (60) days after:
   1. returning from travel for conferences, events, and other approved travel; or
   2. date of expense for other approved items.

Restriction:

1. The maximum amount of funds awarded for any application is $350 (note increase for 2023).
2. Applicants may receive only one grant-in-aid during their graduate career regardless of which expense type is submitted.
3. Applications will be processed on a first-come, first-serve basis for as long as funds are available during a fiscal year (July to June). If funding is exhausted, new funding may become available in or after July.
4. No funds may be awarded to pay for tuition, fees, fines, or memberships in professional societies (except in cases where a membership is required and included in a conference registration as part of the same bill).
5. No funds will be awarded for attending a conference in which the applicant does not present a paper/poster. Requests to reimburse any expenses (including workshops, certificates, etc.) during a conference in which the applicant is not presenting will not be approved.
6. No funds will be awarded for certificates given by Case Western Reserve University; only Certificates from other institutions are permissible.

Required Materials:

1. Digital copy or scan of all receipts and expenses: A copy of original itemized receipts is required for every expense to be reimbursed. Please remember that your receipts need to be detailed receipts. For many receipts (especially large value items) proof of purchase must be shown, often indicated by the last four digits of the credit card used or an otherwise indication of payment. An invoice from the vendor of payment still due is NOT acceptable documentation. You can submit receipts whose sum is greater than $350 but you will only be reimbursed up to $350.
2. Enrollment Status: A copy of your unofficial Case Western Reserve University transcript or other proof, such as a copy of the online registration page, of required credit hours. See here how to view your unofficial transcript.
3. Additional Documentation may be required depending upon which expense type you select. Further details will be reviewed on those pages of the submission form.
4. If traveling internationally, prior approval from the Center for International Affairs must be obtained by emailing studyabroad@case.edu for authorization. This applies to both domestic and international students if traveling outside the United States.

All required materials must be uploaded into the application before submission.

Sign into CampusGroups to complete your online application: https://cglink.me/2cS/s61466 (updated link)

For more information, please email gradtravelawards@case.edu.

The Eva L. Pancoast Memorial Fellowship

The Eva L. Pancoast Memorial Fund helps graduating undergraduate senior women students of the College of Arts and Sciences and/or women students in the School of Graduate Studies in programs instructed by departments in the College of Arts and Science extend their education by foreign study or foreign travel, or both. It may be used any time during the twelve months following graduation, or, in the case of graduate students, in the twelve months following the current academic year. Recipients of the fellowship must report on the completed project with reasonable documentary evidence of major expenditures.

Award Amount:

The amounts of the fellowships vary, but generally range from $1,000-$3,500.

Additional information and application may be obtained by contacting the dean of Undergraduate Studies at 216.368.2928.

Phi Beta Kappa Research Grants

APPLICATION DEADLINE: April 15

The Case Western Reserve University Alpha of Ohio chapter of the Phi Beta Kappa national honor society sponsors research grants reaching up to a few hundred dollars to support student research projects.

Eligibility:

• Actively enrolled undergraduate or graduate student in the College of Arts and Sciences
• Research proposal related to a students academic work
• Funds must be used for a well-defined aspect of a student’s project including specialized equipment, supplies, travel, etc.

Application:

• Statement of the proposed use of funding
• Brief description of the research project
• Itemized budget for the amount requested
• Letter of support from a faculty sponsor