Graduate School Fellowships in Support of Diversity

• Graduate School Deans Excellence Fellowship — for recruitment of new research degree students across all graduate fields
• SUNY Graduate Diversity Fellowship—for recruitment of new research degree students in graduate fields within contract colleges (open only to U.S. citizens and permanent residents)
• Deans McNair and McNair SUNY Graduate Diversity Fellowships — for recruitment of new research degree students who were McNair Scholars at their undergraduate institutions
• Deans Mellon Mays and Mellon Mays SUNY Graduate Diversity Fellowships — for recruitment of new research degree students who were Mellon Mays Undergraduate Fellows at their undergraduate institutions
• Cornell Colman, Lance R. Collins, and Robert F. Smith Fellowships (College of Engineering) — for recruitment of new research degree students in engineering related fields    
• Cornell Bowers Computing & Information Science (CIS) Deans Excellence and Hopper-Dean Fellowships — for recruitment of new research degree students based in Ithaca in computing related fields 
• College of Agriculture and Life Sciences (CALS) Stadtman Fellowship — for recruitment of new research degree students in fields affiliated with academic departments in CALS
• College of Human Ecology Deans Excellence Fellowship — for recruitment of new research degree students fields affiliated with academic departments in CHE 
• Cornell Tech Deans Excellence Fellowship — for recruitment of new research degree students based at Cornell Tech in computing related fields 
• College of Veterinary Medicine (CVM) Deans Excellence Fellowship — for recruitment of new research degree students in fields affiliated with academic departments in CVM

Applicants who wish to be considered for these fellowships must indicate their interest within the Graduate School application. Admitted students awarded a fellowship in support of diversity are recognized as Graduate School Dean’s Scholars and invited to participate in community and professional activities sponsored by the Office of Inclusion and Student Engagement and its partners. 

Through the Personal Statement, applicants should address how their experiences influenced their decision and ability to pursue a graduate degree. Drawing from their lived experiences, service, leadership, or scholarly activities, applicants should also provide insights into their potential to contribute to Cornell University’s founding principle and core value to provide a community of inclusion, belonging, and respect where scholars representing diverse backgrounds, perspectives, abilities, and experiences can learn and work productively and positively together.

How to apply:

• Prospective doctoral students apply for Diversity Recruitment Fellowships through the Graduate School admissions application.
• To be considered for nomination for a Diversity Recruitment Fellowship, eligible applicants must respond “yes” to the question on the admissions application asking whether they would be interested in being considered for a Diversity Recruitment Fellowship. 
• The director of graduate studies for the graduate field to which the applicant is applying must submit a letter of nomination and a mentoring plan to the Graduate School for consideration by the associate dean for inclusion and faculty and student engagement and the assistant dean for access and recruitment in the Graduate School.

Provost Diversity Fellowship for Advanced Doctoral Students

The Provost Diversity Fellowships are competitive one‐semester (fall or spring) or summer dissertation completion fellowships. They are available on a competitive basis to domestic advanced Ph.D. students who are U.S. citizens, permanent residents, Indigenous peoples of Canada eligible to register as domestic students under the Jay Treaty, or students holding DACA, TPS, refugee, or asylee status who have made significant contributions to Cornell’s core value to provide a community of inclusion, belonging, and respect where scholars representing diverse backgrounds, perspectives, abilities, and experiences can learn and work productively and positively together and/or have successfully navigated significant barriers to accessing graduate education. 

Eligibility

To be eligible for an award, nominees must have received at least one year of support (e.g. teaching assistantship, training grant, etc.) from their graduate field or special committee chair and meet the following conditions:

1. Enrolled in a Cornell doctoral program for a minimum of three years by the time of nomination;
2. Will have passed the A exam prior to the award period for the fellowship. 

Priority consideration is provided to nominees expected to complete all requirements for the doctorate within three terms (spring, summer, or fall) from the semester of nomination.

Submission Guidelines

A complete nomination consists of three separate Qualtrics survey submissions:

Student Application Form

Includes submission of

• • Personal Statement (500 words maximum) Cornell University is founded on the principle of being “an institution where any person can find instruction in any study” and remains committed to our core value of providing a community of belonging. In your personal statement, please provide insight into how you have contributed to advancing this founding principle and institutional core value. You may draw from your lived experiences, service, leadership, or scholarly activities that demonstrate your commitment to:
    • Expanding access to education and opportunity
    • Fostering inclusive, supportive communities
    • Cultivating equitable learning and research environments

    Within your statement, you may also include:

    • Any relevant context around barriers you’ve encountered on your path toward doctoral degree completion
    • Ways in which you have demonstrated resilience and persistence in navigating these challenges

    Your statement should reflect your unique perspective and experiences while illustrating how they have shaped your potential to contribute meaningfully to Cornell’s academic and community life.

  • Dissertation Completion Plan
    • Including a timeline for work to be completed
    • Developed in collaboration with the nominee’s committee chair. 

Committee Chair Nomination Form

Includes confirmation of the committee chair’s approval of the dissertation completion plan submitted by the nominee and the submission of a letter of nomination that includes a mentoring and funding plan detailing how the committee chair will support the nominee through the successful completion of their doctorate and help them access postgraduate opportunities. The letter should also include a funding plan detailing how the nominee has been funded to date and how they will be funded through completion if the fellowship is not awarded. The mentoring plan may be informed by the FAIM Mentoring in Graduate Education content provided via the FAIM (Faculty Advancing Inclusive Mentoring) Resource Center.

Director of Graduate Study (DGS) Nomination Form

Includes confirmation of review and approval of the dissertation completion plan submitted by the student nominee and the mentoring and funding plan submitted by the committee chair.

Nomination Deadlines

Fall Application Cycle: The student application and the nomination forms from the committee chair and DGS must be submitted no later than 11:59 p.m. on October 7. (If the application deadline falls on a holiday or weekend, applications will be due the next business day.) Fellowship award decisions will be announced by early November.

Spring Application Cycle: The student application and the nomination forms from the committee chair and DGS must be submitted no later than 11:59 p.m. on May 30. (If the application deadline falls on a holiday or weekend, applications will be due the next business day.) Fellowship award decisions will be announced by late June.