The goal of the Ford Foundation Fellowship program is to increase the presence of under-represented minorities on American college and university faculties, including Native Americans, Black Americans, Mexican Americans, and Puerto Ricans. Forty Predoctoral Fellowships will be awarded in a national competition conducted by the National Research Council on behalf of the Ford Foundation. Annual stipends for the Predoctoral Fellowships include $16,000 to the fellowship winner and $7,500 to the fellowship institution. Only U.S. citizens are eligible.
Ford Foundation Fellowships are awarded to college seniors, first-year graduate students, or others who have completed a limited amount of graduate work and plan to work toward the Ph.D. or Sc.D. degree. Awards will be made for research-based doctoral programs in the behavioral and social sciences, humanities, engineering, mathematics, physical sciences, and biological sciences, or for interdisciplinary programs comprised of two or more eligible disciplines.
Predoctoral Fellowships are for three fellowship years. Fellowship recipients must begin graduate study no later than the September following application. Each fellowship will include an annual stipend to the fellowship winner, and an annual institution grant to the fellowship institution in lieu of tuition and fees. The evaluation of predoctoral fellowship applications will be based on achievement and ability, as evidenced by academic records, the proposed plan of graduate study, four letters of recommendation, GRE General Test scores, and other indications of academic promise. The suitability of the proposed institution for the plan of graduate study, and the applicant's ability to present a well-written, thoughtfully-prepared application will also be considered.
Application materials will be available in September. Preliminary applications may be obtained from the Boston College Campus Coordinator for the Ford Fellowship, or directly from the Fellowship Office, National Research Council, 2101 Constitution Avenue, Washington, DC 20418.
The application procedure will be conducted in two stages: 1) In response to the applicant's request for application materials, the Fellowship Office in Washington will send a Program Announcement (information brochure), Office Card (preliminary application), instructions, and an addressed envelope for return of the Office Card no later than the first week of November. 2) Upon receipt of the Office Card, the Fellowship Office in Washington will review, for eligibility, the information provided by the applicant and, if the candidate is eligible, will send a full multi-form application packet, which must be completed and returned to the Fellowship Office by the specified deadline.
Applicants for Predoctoral Fellowships are required to submit scores from the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) General Test. All applicants will be notified by the National Research Council by the first week in April as to the action taken on their applications.
To get additional information about the Ford Foundation Fellowships for Minorities and the application process before talking with the Campus Coordinator, consult the National Research Council web site.