Applying for Theology Fellowship

Guide for the Perplexed

The Graduate School of Arts and Sciences (GSAS) offers three distinguished fellowships that increase your funding, reduce your work responsibilities, and strengthen your CV. These fellowships also provide a means of extending your funding beyond the five years guaranteed by the Department of Theology.

Specific information about these fellowships, including deadlines, is posted by the end of November. The submission deadline is typically around the beginning of the spring semester in mid-January.

Keep the following tips in mind as you write your application for any of these fellowships:

  • Most of the faculty reading your application are probably not closely familiar with your discipline. Avoid jargon in your statements or proposals. Imagine you are writing for Commonweal rather than Theological Studies.
  • Keep your recommender in the loop and be considerate about deadlines. Give as much notice as possible. Send draft narratives or statements for your recommender’s reference several weeks before the deadline. Write a thank-you email or note when you learn whether you have received a fellowship.
  • Seek out advice! Ask students in the department who have attained fellowships for tips. Be in touch with your advisor, and don’t hesitate to seek feedback on your application materials.

There are three full-year fellowships. Specific information about each is listed below.

  • Senior Teaching Fellowship

    Benefits:

    • Gives you a higher stipend (generally $3000 more)
    • Eliminates your 3-hour weekly service commitment so that you can focus on refining your teaching
    • Serves as a useful CV line for demonstrating quality teaching

    Who can apply: PhD students who have students who have already completed a teaching fellowship in the department or who have completed a Graduate Teaching Assistantship assignment in which the level of teaching responsibility was sufficient to demonstrate the exemplary nature of the student's teaching ability

    Application process: Generally, you need to include the following elements in a single PDF file. See these tips on combining files into one PDF file.

    • A Statement of Teaching Philosophy (recommended 2-3 pages)
    • SEEQs for each semester you have taught or a copy of your department's evaluation of your service as a Graduate Teaching Assistant and/or a Teaching Fellow
    • Your CV

    You will submit these materials as part of your annual GSAS Merit Based Funding Application, which you can access on the Student tab of fordham.edu.

    You also need to ask your teaching mentor to submit a letter of recommendation. The teaching mentor will email this to the Department Chair by the deadline.

  • Research Fellowship

    Benefits:

    • Gives you a higher stipend (generally $3000 more)
    • Eliminates your teaching and 3-hour weekly service commitment so that you have more time to do research related to your dissertation
    • Serves as a useful CV line for demonstrating commitment to scholarly research

    Who can apply: PhD students who have passed comps

    Application process: Generally, you need to include the following elements in a single PDF file. The file name should begin with the student's last name_first name_Dept_Fellowship name - (e.g., Doe_Jane_HIST_RF). See these tips on combining files into one PDF file.

    • Your CV
    • A project narrative and bibliography
    • A 300-500 word statement explaining the nature of the research and how it relates to the objectives, methods, and original contribution of the doctoral dissertation. It should be written in jargon-free language. (Remember that your application will be reviewed by faculty members outside of your disciplinary area.)

    You will submit these materials as part of your annual GSAS Merit Based Funding Application, which you can access on the Student tab of fordham.edu.

    You also need to ask your teaching mentor to submit a letter of recommendation. The teaching mentor will email this to the Department Chair by the deadline.

  • Alumni Dissertation Fellowship

    Benefits:

    • Gives you a higher stipend (generally $5000 more). This funding begins over the summer.
    • Eliminates your teaching and 3-hour weekly service commitment so that you can focus on finishing your dissertation, which is a requirement of this award
    • Serves as a useful CV line for demonstrating top-notch scholarly work

    Who can apply:

    • PhD students whose dissertation proposals have been approved.
    • Students who can affirm (along with their mentors) that they will finish their dissertations within the year. The university takes this point seriously: the department is penalized if recipients of this fellowship do not actually complete their work during the fellowship year.

    Application Process: Generally, you need to include the following in a single PDF file. See these tips on combining files into one PDF file.

    • Your CV
    • A 300-500 word statement that addresses the dissertation’s contribution to the scholarly field, indicates the status of the dissertation research and writing, and outlines a timetable for completion. Remember that your application will be reviewed by faculty members outside your department, who will not know the stages of and time requirements for a dissertation in your field.
    • Your dissertation proposal

    You will submit these materials as part of your annual GSAS Merit Based Funding Application, which you can access on the Student tab of fordham.edu.

    You also need to ask your teaching mentor to submit a letter of recommendation. The teaching mentor will email this to the Department Chair by the deadline.