Awards & Grants
Scholarships & Awards
Departmental
Throughout the year, calls for applications will be sent out to eligible students in the Department of Anthropology. Additional scholarships, awards, and funding opportunities for graduate students can be found on the Graduate School website, linked below. Additional scholarships, awards, and funding opportunities for undergraduate students can be found on the Student Services site, linked below.
Simon Beckett Student Paper Prize
The Simon Beckett Student Paper Prize awards $1,000 for the best paper (podium or poster) at an Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Forensic Sciences. The presentation must be submitted to the Forensic Anthropology Center (FAC) one month before the meeting. The FAC faculty will judge the papers and the award will be announced shortly after the annual meeting. Open to all graduate students in the Department of Anthropology.
Kneberg/Lewis Scholarship
The Kneberg/Lewis Scholarships consist of two (2) $1,500 scholarships to anthropology doctoral candidates to defray expenses during the dissertation write-up period, including costs incurred by research and travel. Open to all PhD Candidates in the Department of Anthropology.
Applications are due on February 15th each year.
William M. Bass Endowment Fund
The William M. Bass Endowment Fund disburses funds to forensic anthropology graduate students. Funds may be used to defray research expenses, especially thesis or dissertation research, for travel to professional meetings, and occasionally for research equipment purchases. These requests are considered on a case-by-case basis by the forensic anthropology faculty. Open to all graduate students in the Department of Anthropology who are conducting forensics research.
Charles H. Faulkner Travel Award
Each Fall and Spring semester, up to two (2) $500 awards are distributed to anthropology graduate students presenting papers or posters, preferably at national and/or international meetings. Open to all graduate students in the Department of Anthropology, with the limitation that the same student can only receive this award every other year.
The Fall deadline is September 15th by 5pm ET. The Spring deadline is February 15th by 5pm ET. In either case, if the 15th falls on a weekend, the application will be due the immediate following Monday by 5pm ET.
The Department of Anthropology may also match, up to $200, travel awards provided by the Graduate School. In addition, the College of Arts & Sciences may match up to $100 for travel funds awarded by the department (once per student per academic year). Additional funding for travel is also available through the Graduate Student Travel Fund administered by the Graduate Student Senate.
Patricia Black Archaeological Research Award
The Patricia Black Archaeological Research Award is available to support outstanding archaeology students’ research projects. Funds are disbursed on a case-by-case basis decided by the archaeology faculty. Open to all graduate and undergraduate students in the Department of Anthropology who are conducting archaeological research.
Applications are due on October 15th by 5pm ET. If the 15th falls on a weekend, the application will be due the immediate following Monday by 5pm ET.
Jonathan C. Spear Memorial Scholarship
The Department of Anthropology awards the Jonathan C. Spear Memorial Scholarship in memory of Jonathan C. Spear who was an undergraduate student in the 1990s. As established by his family to honor him, the award is specifically for students studying the prehistoric archaeology of America.
The Award: Up to $1,500 towards tuition and fees for one semester. In the event the committee recognizes multiple awardees the money will be shared.
Eligibility: Undergraduate students currently enrolled in the College of Arts and Sciences, Department of Anthropology at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville with a concentration of study in prehistoric archaeology of America.
The student awarded this scholarship must be completing his/her junior year or entering his/her senior year. The student awarded this scholarship shall have demonstrated successful performance in the study of prehistoric archaeology of America. The award is based on academic achievement. Financial need is not a determining factor; however, it may be a consideration. Students who apply for this scholarship may not apply for the Jeffers scholarship during the same award cycle. Previous winners may not apply again.
Deadline for Submission: Applications must be received by April 10th.
Selection of Recipient(s): Applications will be reviewed by the Undergraduate Curriculum Committee who will make a recommendation for final selection by the Anthropology faculty.
Sandy Jeffers Memorial Scholarship
The Department of Anthropology awards the Sandy Jeffers Memorial Scholarship in honor of Sandy Jeffers, who received her undergraduate degree in 2003 and was admitted to the MA program in anthropology. Because of her interests, her family established the award to support undergraduate students studying historic archaeology or forensic anthropology at UTK.
The Award: Up to a maximum of $1,000 towards tuition and fees for one semester. In the event the committee recognizes multiple awardees the money will be shared.
Eligibility: Undergraduate students enrolled in the College of Arts and Sciences, Department of Anthropology at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville with a concentration of study in historic archaeology or forensic anthropology.
The student awarded this scholarship shall demonstrate a strong interest and evidence of accomplishment in the study of historic archaeology or forensic anthropology. The award is based on academic achievement and demonstrable financial need. Students who apply for this scholarship may not apply for the Spears scholarship during the same award cycle. Previous winners may not apply again.
Deadline for Submission: Applications must be received by April 10th.
Selection of Recipient(s): Applications will be reviewed by the Undergraduate Curriculum Committee who will make a recommendation for final selection by the Anthropology faculty.
University of Tennessee
Graduate Student Senate (GSS) Travel Awards
Graduate students who will be presenting research on behalf of UT at in-person or virtual professional
conferences may receive support to help with travel costs. Only students who are presenting as first
authors will be funded through this mechanism.
The Department of Anthropology will match up to $200 for travel awards provided by the Graduate
School.
Center for Global Engagement (CGE) W.K. McClure Scholarship
The W.K. McClure Scholarship Program offers UT students financial awards up to $5,000 to support
research and creative projects abroad aimed at enhancing and promoting education for world
responsibility.
The Scholarship can be applied to any project which offers the potential for the development of
knowledge relative to significant issues or problems associated with world affairs and the reduction of
international conflict, principally through legal, cultural, political, economic, social, and scientific studies.
The McClure Scholarship application typically opens Late Fall Semester with a deadline at the end
of February or beginning of March. Decision letters are sent out the first week in April.
Graduate School, Graduate Student Research Award (GSRA)
Grants up to $5,000 are awarded to the selected students to help support their research, scholarship, and
creative activity; give students experience writing grants; and foster the mentoring relationship between
faculty and graduate students.
GSRAs are announced and awarded in the Fall and Spring semesters each academic year.
Office of Research, Innovation, & Economic Development (ORIED), Funds to Archive & Share Data
This fund assists UT Knoxville researchers in openly archiving and preserving data sets in the data
repository Dryad, an international open-access repository of research data.
The Data Archiving and Sharing Fund is open to anyone at UT Knoxville with originally-created research
data. The funding maximum per project is $250, which will cover up to 70 gigabytes of data in Dryad.
Graduate students may seek funding for thesis and dissection data, and should apply in conjunction with
a professor; the fund does not support archiving of data related to class assignments or projects.
Applicants are asked to defer application until their data is ready to be archived.
External to UT
US Citizens or Permanent Residents Only
American Academy of University Women (AAUW)
American Fellowship
For women pursuing full-time study to complete dissertations; applicants must be in their final year.
Candidates are evaluated based on scholarly excellence; quality and originality of project design;
and active commitment to helping women and girls through service in their communities,
professions, or fields of research.
Deadline: November 15.
National Academy of Science (NYAS)
Ford Foundation Fellowships
The Ford Foundation Fellowships are designed to increase the diversity of the nation’s college and
university faculties by increasing their ethnic and racial diversity, maximize the educational benefits of
diversity, and increase the number of professors who can and will use diversity as a resource for
enriching the education of all students. Ford achieves these goals through a series of fellowships that
span multiple stages of an academic career as well as mentorship, professional development, and an
expansive network of alumni who enable peer support and community building.
Eligibility: U.S. citizens, U.S. nationals, and U.S. permanent residents (holders of a Permanent
Resident Card); individuals granted deferred action status under the Deferred Action for Childhood
Arrivals Program (DACA) program.
The Ford Foundation offers several relevant fellowships for graduate students:
- Predoctoral Fellowship, providing three (3) years of support for individuals working to
complete a research-based, dissertation-required PhD. - Dissertation Fellowship, providing one (1) year of support for individuals working to complete a research-based, dissertation-required PhD. The fellowship is intended to support the final year of writing and defense of the dissertation.
- Postdoctoral Fellowship, providing one (1) year of support for individuals engaged in postdoctoral study after the attainment of the PhD.
National Institutes of Health (NIH)
NIH programs help prepare individuals for careers in biomedical, behavioral, social, and clinical research.
R36 Dissertation Award
Supports dissertation costs of students in accredited research doctoral programs in the US and its
territories.
National Science Foundation (NSF)
Graduate Research Fellowship Program (GRFP)
The GRFP recognizes and supports outstanding graduate students who have demonstrated the potential
to be high achieving scientists and engineers, early in their careers. Applicants must be pursuing full-
time research-based master’s and doctoral degrees in science, technology, engineering, and
mathematics (STEM) or in STEM education at accredited US institutions.
Eligibility:
- Must be enrolled in an eligible program at an accredited United States graduate institution, with a US campus, by fall following selection.
- Must have completed no more than one academic year of full-time graduate study (or the equivalent).
- Graduate students are limited to only one application to the GRFP, submitted either in the first year or in the second year of graduate school.
Doctoral Dissertation Research Improvement Grants (DDRIG)
U.S. Department of Education
Foreign Language and Area Studies Fellowship Program (FLAS)
The Foreign Language and Area Studies (FLAS) Fellowships program provides allocations of
academic year and summer fellowships to institutions of higher education or consortia of institutions
of higher education to assist meritorious graduate students undergoing training in modern foreign
languages and related area or international studies. Eligible students apply for fellowships directly to
an institution that has received an allocation of fellowships from the U.S. Department of Education.
U.S. Department of State
Fulbright US student Program
Funds US citizens to study, conduct research, or teach English abroad. The Program is in partnership with over 140 countries worldwide.
Eligibility: US citizens or nationals; permanent residents are not eligible.
Deadline: October of each year.
International (non-US) Only
American Academy of University Women (AAUW)
International Fellowship
For women pursuing full-time graduate or postdoctoral study in the US, who are not US citizens or permanent residents, and who intend to return to their home country to pursue a professional career. Both graduate and postgraduate studies at accredited US institutions are supported.
Applicants must have earned the equivalent of a US bachelor’s degree by the application deadline and must have applied to their proposed institutions of study by the time of application.
Eligibility: Women, including people who identify as women, with citizenship in a country other than the US.
Deadline: November 15.
Open Citizenship/Residence Status
American Philosophical Society
Lewis & Clark Fund for Exploration and Field Research
The Lewis & Clark Fund encourages exploratory field studies for the collection of specimens and
data and to provide the imaginative stimulus that accompanies direct observation. Applications are
invited from disciplines with a large dependence on field studies, such as archaeology, anthropology,
biology, ecology, geography, geology, linguistics, paleontology, and population genetics, but grants
will not be restricted to these fields.
Eligibility: Applicants must be Doctoral Candidates (ABD) by the time the proposed research.
Deadlines: November 15, 2024, for applications; letters of support due November 12, 2024.
John Hope Franklin Dissertation Fellowship
Support an outstanding doctoral student at a US university or an exceptional US doctoral student
abroad who is completing the dissertation.
Questions concerning this fellowship program and its requirements should be directed to Linda
Musumeci, Director of Grants and Fellowships, at lmusumeci@amphilsoc.org or 215-440-3429.
The Geological Society of America
Graduate Student Research Grants
Supports graduate student research in the geosciences and ultimately enhance the geoscience
workforce. The research focus can be any subject matter within the geological sciences, such as
paleontology, organic geochemistry, paleoecology, paleogeography, and more.
Eligibility is restricted to GSA members who are currently enrolled in a North American or Central
American university or college in an earth science graduate degree program.
Deadline: February 1.
National Institutes of Justice (NIJ)
NIJ fosters and disseminates knowledge and tools derived from objective and rigorous scientific research
to inform efforts to promote safety and advance justice.
Eligibility: must be enrolled in a research-based program at an accredited U.S. university.
Graduate Research Fellows (GRF) Program
The NIJ Graduate Research Fellowship (GRF) program supports doctoral students engaged in
research that advances NIJ’s mission. The goal of the GRF program is to increase the pool of
scholars engaged in research that addresses the challenges of crime and justice in the United States,
particularly at the state and local levels.
The official applicant is the academic institution, not the student. Therefore, the student’s citizenship
does not affect eligibility. GRF awards are made only to degree-granting academic institutions in the
U.S. and its territories.
Research Assistantship Program (RAP)
The NIJ Research Assistantship Program (RAP) offers highly qualified doctoral students the
opportunity to bring their expertise to NIJ to work across offices and program areas to obtain a
practical and applied research experience. The RA program is a research-focused professional
development opportunity for doctoral students. We welcome students from all academic disciplines to
apply who wish to connect their research to the criminal justice field. This unique assistantship is an
opportunity to learn and contribute to the breadth and depth of science research in which NIJ
engages. NIJ provides funds to participating universities to pay salaries and other costs associated
with research assistants who work on NIJ research activities.
Sigma Xi, The Scientific Research Honor Society
Grants in Aid of Research (GIAR)
Provides graduate students with valuable educational experiences. By encouraging close working
relationships between students and mentors, the program promotes scientific excellence and
achievement through hands-on learning.
Deadlines: March 15 and October 1.
Wenner-Gren Foundation for Anthropological Research
Dissertation Fieldwork Grant
This grant program funds doctoral or thesis research that advances anthropological knowledge. The
goal is to support vibrant and significant work that furthers our understanding of what it means to be
human. There is no preference for any methodology, research location, topic, or subfield. The
Foundation particularly welcomes proposals that integrate two or more subfields and pioneer new
approaches and ideas.