Internal Funding
Important—Please read carefully:
To ensure your application is considered, please keep the following in mind:- Some funding opportunities listed below use an online form to receive applications. If you have problems with those forms, please take a screenshot and email it to helpdesk@utep.edu. Note that links may not work during system maintenance on the third Thursday night of each month;
- Many applications require the approval of a faculty mentor and/or the submission of letters of support by the application deadline. For electronic forms, the faculty mentor and/or referees will receive an email with a link to the form task once the student submits their part of the application;
- Students should communicate with their faculty mentor and/or referee(s) to ensure that the faculty approval and any other supporting documents are submitted before the deadline;
- Incomplete and late applications will not be reviewed. In order for an application to be considered "complete," the form, any requested supporting documents, and the faculty component(s) must be completed according to the instructions and submitted by the deadline.
Travel Grants
The UTEP Graduate School has funds available to assist students with the cost of travel to such meetings (and for other similar activities involving professional development).
Next Cycle Deadline: September 30, 2019
Travel Grant Details & Instructions
Dodson Research Grants
The Graduate School manages a pool of funds to support graduate student research. These funds are intended primarily to assist students who are actively working on dissertations, theses or final projects, although support of other projects may be considered. A faculty committee will review proposals and make recommendations to the Dean of the Graduate School. Individual awards will be made up to $3,000.
Next Cycle Deadline: October 25, 2019
Dodson Research Grant Details & Instructions
Application portal will be available in September.
Three Minute Thesis
Post-candidacy PhD and EdD students and post-proposal MA/MS students completing a thesis have three minutes to present a compelling oration on their dissertation or thesis. 3MT challenges students to consolidate their ideas and present them concisely to a non-specialist audience. Students can win up to $750.
Next Competition: Spring 2020
2019 Finalists & Winners:
| Kathryn Wedemeyer-Strombel | 1st Place | Environmental Science & Engineering (PhD) | Tarla Rai Peterson, Mentor |
| Marisol Dominguez | 2nd Place | Geology (PhD) | Hugo Guitierrez, Mentor |
| Angel I. Solis | People's Choice | Computer Engineering (MS) | Patricia Nava, Mentor |
| Jessica R. Bray | Finalist | Psychology (PhD) | Stephen Crites, Mentor |
| Robert Diaz | Finalist | History (MA) | Brad Cartwright, Mentor |
| Grecia Daniela Medina | Finalist | Biology (MS) | Kyung-An Han, Mentor |
| Daniel Michael Mejia | Finalist | Computer Science (PhD) | Natalia Villanueva Rosales, Mentor |
| Mahdi Saghafi | Finalist | Civil Engineering (PhD) | Soheil Nazarian, Mentor |
| Erick Benjamin Saldes | Finalist | Biological Sciences (PhD) | Kyung-An Han, Mentor |
| Ana Margarita Vargas | Finalist | Biomedical Engineering (PhD) | Luis R. Martinez, Mentor |
2018 Finalists & Winners:
| Bing Yu | 1st Place | Materials Science & Engineering (PhD) | Devesh Misra, Mentor |
| Rocio Acevedo | 2nd Place | Teaching, Learning, & Culture (PhD) | Alberto Esquinca, Mentor |
| Anna Mwangi | People's Choice | Geological Sciences (PhD) | Laura Serpa, Mentor |
| Marisol Dominguez | Finalist | Geological Sciences (PhD) | Hugo Gutiérrez, Mentor |
| Mohammad Shafinul Haque | Finalist | Mechanical Engineering (PhD) | Calvin Stewart, Mentor |
| Yashwanth Injeti | Finalist | Materials Science & Engineering (PhD) | Devesh Misra, Mentor |
| Miguel Juarez | Finalist | History (PhD) | Paul Edison, Mentor |
| Venkata Vignesh Natarajan | Finalist | Materials Science & Engineering (PhD) | Devesh Misra, Mentor |
| Paloma A. Valenzuela | Finalist | Biological Sciences (PhD) | Giulio Francia, Mentor |
| Emmanuel Zubia | Finalist | Environmental Science & Engineering (PhD) | Mahesh Narayan, Mentor |
Natalicio Dissertation Fellowship
The Natalicio Dissertation Fellowship is awarded on a competitive basis to an outstanding PhD student for the final stage of completing a dissertation. The Fellowship provides $10,000 to support a student for the last semester of dissertation work. The award process occurs in the spring for students completing in the subsequent academic year. One student is nominated per doctoral program. The Graduate Program Director submits the application packet (one single .pdf) on behalf of the nominating doctoral program. A faculty panel reviews all of the applicants and selects the final recipients of this prestigious award.
Next Cycle Deadline: April 2020
Nomination Instructions & Cover Sheet
Summer Research Grant
The UTEP Graduate School 2019 Summer Research Grant assists doctoral students with general expenses and tuition while conducting research or writing for their dissertation. Graduate programs nominate students for this competitive opportunity; the Graduate School provides awardees a $3,000 stipend and $1,000 towards summer tuition. A faculty mentor must commit to supervising the student’s summer work, which may or may not contribute to that faculty member’s research program. We thank the Office of the Provost and the Division of Student Affairs for its contribution to this award.
Nomination Deadline: April 2020
Summer Research Grant Details & Instructions
Outstanding Teaching Award
As part of its commitment to promoting excellence in higher education, the Graduate School recognizes graduate students who have had an outstanding influence on the educational experience of undergraduate students. Each year, two students are recognized with a certificate at Spring Honors Convocation and an award of $500.
Next Cycle Deadline: February 2020
UTEP Graduate Scholarships
Applications are accepted in the spring of each year for a pool of institutional scholarships. The UTEP Office of Scholarships manages the application and evaluation process and automatically matches recipients to appropriate funds.The ScholarMine portal provides access to other opportunities as well; requirements and deadlines vary.
Next Cycle Deadline: February 2020
Scholarmine is currently down for maintenance. Visit www.utep.edu/scholarships for details and paper-based application form.
Doctoral Excellence Fellowships
The goal of the Excellence Fellowships is to recruit outstanding Texas resident students into UTEP PhD programs. If funds are available, support for students in other, equivalent, programs may be considered.
The Graduate School will work closely with the individual programs to facilitate timely Fellowship offers.
Selection of Recipients
- The Excellence Fellowships are offered on an annual cycle. Recipients must be Texas residents and have financial need. The Fellowships are renewable for a total of four years, subject to full time enrollment and satisfactory program performance. The Fellowships are offered as part of a financial package that includes an assistantship. The Fellowships are sufficient to cover the cost of tuition and mandatory fees for the academic year.
- The Excellence Fellowships are advertised to the individual programs and to potential applicants through the Graduate School and program websites and communication with applicants and potential applicants.
- Individual PhD programs nominate potential recipients, who must be Texas residents and submit a FAFSA form to be considered.
- The Graduate School in consultation with the individual programs determines the award of the Fellowships, with preference given to those nominees who meet the coordinating board definition of financial need and whose cost for tuition and required fees is not met through other non-loan financial assistance programs.
- Awards are announced early in the spring semester for the following fall and are attached to multi-year funding offers.
- If funds are available awards may be made, on an annual basis, to other PhD students or students in equivalent programs who meet the criteria stated above.
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