• Must have passed comprehensive examination (in exceptional cases, students may be scheduled to take examination no later than September of the year in which application is submitted). An exception is made for students for whom clinical internships are a requirement of the doctoral program. All coursework, however, must be completed.
  
  
• Intent to Propose or Dissertation Proposal must be approved no later than May 31 of the year in which grant is allocated. (If Intent or Proposal has not been completed by the April 8 application deadline, a draft or outline should be attached to the application).

(1) Students may nominate themselves by submitting the following application materials electronically to the Associate Dean of Student Services through the Online Lynch School Dissertation Grant - Application:

• Letter outlining plans for use of the fellowship funds
• 1000-word abstract of their Intent to Propose or Dissertation Proposal
• Copy of Intent to Propose or Dissertation Proposal
• Curriculum vitae

(2) Students should request a Letter of Support from their Dissertation Chair.  The letter should be submitted electronically to the Associate Dean of Graduate Student Services and address:

• Applicant's record of academic excellence
• Applicant's readiness to complete dissertation in timely fashion
• Quality of design of study and its appropriateness to the research question
• Quality/excellence of Proposal or Intent

(3) Students should have one copy of their official transcript delivered to or sent to the Graduate Office on or before March 1

• Application materials should be submitted on or before March 1 (or the following Monday if this falls on a weekend).
• Application materials are reviewed by the Faculty Awards Committee and recipients will be announced by the Graduate Office no later than March 31 (or the following Monday if this falls on a weekend).

Note: Students who are awarded the Summer Dissertation Development Grant are eligible for paid employment during the summer they receive the grant, and are also eligible for graduate assistantships and teaching fellowships in the following academic year.

There are two fellowships each year.

The Fellowship is intended to support the students' completion of their dissertation.   It is expected that Fellowship recipients will dedicate themselves full-time to working on their dissertations.  Priority will be given to those nominees who, in the opinion of the Faculty Awards Committee, will have a high probability of completing the dissertation during the academic year of the award.

• Must be enrolled in a Lynch School Ph.D. program
  
  
• Must have passed comprehensive examination (in exceptional cases, students may be scheduled to take examination no later than September of the year in which application is submitted). An exception is made for students for whom clinical internships are a requirement of the doctoral program. All coursework, however, must be completed.
  
  
• Must receive approval for Intent to Propose or Dissertation Proposal no later than April 1 of academic year preceding year in which award is granted.
  
  
• Must provide a statement setting forth his or her plans for using the Dissertation Fellowship and clarifying any plans he or she may have for employment during the award period. If the candidate intends to be otherwise employed during the course of the fellowship, he or she should include a description of the position and the weekly time commitment it requires.

Note: Dissertation Fellowship recipients are not eligible for any additional Boston College-based employment during the course of their Fellowship, including graduate or teaching assistantships, internships, or instructor positions.  Any exceptions to this must be approved by the Associate Dean of Student Services.

(1)  Only the Chair of the Dissertation Committee may nominate a student.  Given the competitive nature of the award, Dissertation Chairs are requested to present the case for their nominee in some detail, recognizing that the persuasiveness of their arguments will be central in advancing the nomination. The letter of nomination should address each of the following five points, elaborating where appropriate:

• Nominee's record of scholarly achievement (e.g., awards, honors, publications, presentations at conferences, collaboration with professionals in the field, excellent grades, etc.)
  
  
• Nominee's skills, conceptual ability, knowledge, and capacity to complete the study
  
  
• Nominee's likelihood to complete dissertation within the year in which the award is given
  
  
• Quality of the design of the study and its appropriateness to the research question
  
  
• Significance of the research question

Dissertation Chairs should submit the Nomination Letter electronically to the Associate Dean of Student Services on or before the March 1st deadline date

(2)  Nominated students should submit the following application materials electronically to the Associate Dean of Student Services on or before the March 1st deadline date.  NOTE: Students will recieve a direct link to the online application form once their Dissertation Chair informs the Associate Dean of Student Services of their nomination for the fellowship:

• Statement setting forth plans for using the fellowship, including any details regarding planned employment during the fellowship period *
  
  
• 1000-word abstract of Intent to Propose or Dissertation Proposal
  
  
• Intent to Propose or Dissertation Proposal
  
  
• Curriculum vitae

*Due to the competitive nature of this fellowship, students are advised to indicate whether they are willing to be considered for a Summer Dissertation Development Grant if they are not chosen for the Dissertation Fellowship, and, if so, how they would use such funds.

(3)       Students should deliver one copy of their official transcript to the Graduate Office on or before March 1st

Nomination Letters and application materials are reviewed by the Faculty Awards Committee and recipients will be announced by the Graduate Office no later than March 31st (or the following Monday if this falls on a weekend).