Spencer Foundation Grant

Basic criteria for selection include: the importance of the research question to education, the quality of the research approach and feasibility of the work plan, and the applicant's future potential in educational research. Must be candidates for the doctoral degree at a graduate school within the US. These fellowships are intended to support the final analysis of the writing of the dissertation (not data collection or coursework) -- thus applicants must document completion of all pre-dissertation requirements by June 1, 2008, and must provide a clear and specific plan for completing the dissertation within a one- or two-year time frame.

Specific questions the committee members consider in their deliberations:
(1) To what extent does the narrative discussion of the dissertation show an in-depth knowledge of relevant research in the field? To what extent does it display an adequate grounding in theory?
(2) To what extent are the design and the methods appropriate to answer the research questions?
(3) To what extent is the study's argued relevance to education convincing? To what extent is the study likely to yield new knowledge about an important educational issue?
(4) To what extent does the narrative discussion display strong authorship skills, with a clear organization and structure?
(5) Is the applicant likely to complete her doctoral studies within one (FT) or two (PT) year time-frame, or soon thereafter?

Sections of application:
(1) Background information of yourself
(2) Dissertation Abstract - single-spaced paragraph of no more than 200 words, summarizing substantive focus and research design of dissertation and contribution to education.
(3) Narrative Discussion of Dissertation: 10 double-spaced pages, describing dissertation: (a) goals of project; (b) contribution to field; (c) significance of work, especially as it relates to education. Describe research questions and research design, the methods of gathering and analyzing data, and interpretation techniques. Also, Abridged bibliography.
(4) Work Plan
(5) Personal Statement (400 word limit) - (a) how your educational and work experiences up to this point have prepared you for doing research on this dissertation topic; and (b) what career path you hope to pursue after completing your dissertation.

Make sure that the narrative discussion of your research has been written in a way that is accessible to readers outside your area.

Read "The Art of Writing Proposals," an article published by the Social Science Research Countil, which is available at www.ssrc.org.

Due 4 pm MST (electronically) on Friday, Nocember 2; notification in April 2008. Two letters of recommendation as well as the graduate transcript -- collect all three and mail together.

30 fellowships of $25,000.