Divisions of Social Sciences, Arts & Humanities
Graduate Fellowships 2020-21
Eligibility
Each eligible department in the Arts & Humanities and Social Sciences may nominate one student per fellowship. Preference will be given to recruiting outstanding incoming students who have not received fellowship support from the campus. Additional eligibility guidelines are included in the fellowship descriptions below.
Grant Provision
Funds will be allocated to departments following award payments to students on a quarterly basis. Units may make awards in any combination of tuition, fees, or stipend at the department’s discretion. The fellowship funds may only be used for the student named and will be forfeited if the student loses eligibility to receive fellowship funding or withdraws from campus for any reason. Awards made for the 2020-21 academic year should be spent by August 31, 2021. Deferrals may be considered by exception.
Application Deadline
Complete submissions for the 2020/21 cycle were due Friday, February 28, 2020. Awards will be announced by April 8, 2020. Applications for the 2021/22 cycle may be submitted via the L&S Graduate Fellowships online form (please return here in early 2021 for the link).
Submission Guidelines
All required documents, including supplemental materials, should be submitted as a single PDF.
For incoming students, please submit a copy of the PDF application download from SLATE (including a nomination letter, statement of purpose, GRE scores if available, and letters of recommendation). A copy of the letter submitted for other campus fellowships is preferred; new letters are not required.
For continuing students, please submit a PDF file containing a copy of the student's Berkeley transcript and a nomination letter from the department chair or graduate adviser which includes specifics on the support the student currently has and what is being requested.
Available Fellowships
The Gan Aston Fellowship Fund
The purpose of this fellowship is to support high-achieving students whose research focuses on the economic and/or social history of China or Chinese communities abroad since 1750.
Additional Submission Requirements:
Department Chairs should submit letters of nomination (up to three per department). Each nomination should include:
- The amount of support the chair recommends
- The project/purpose for which the funds are intended
The Catherine and William L. Magistretti Graduate Fellowship
The Magistretti Fellowship provides support to graduate students proposing to conduct research in the broad area of the languages, cultures, history, and societies of all the Asian Continent, including the Near East, South Asia, Southeast Asia, East Asia, and Central Asia. Because the departments of East Asian Languages and Cultures, South and Southeast Asian Studies, and Near Eastern Studies have dedicated Magistretti endowments, students in these three departments are not eligible to receive support from these funds. The amount of each Magistretti Fellowship will range from $20,000 to $40,000, depending on availability of funds and the number of awards made.
The Metro New York Leaders’ Fellowship Fund
All incoming and continuing graduate students in the Division of Social Sciences who are from the New York Metro area are eligible. The purpose of this fellowship is to provide support for a graduate student from the New York metropolitan area and link the CAL community in metro New York with Berkeley’s reputation for academic excellence by creating “Ambassadors” from varied social science disciplines. The amount of the award will be determined by the annual payout of endowment; in past years the distribution has varied from $15,000 to $20,000.
Additional Submission Requirements:
Department Chairs should submit letters of nomination to the dean. Each nomination should include:
- The nominee’s potential to act as an Ambassador for Cal
- The specific area of the Metro NY Area where the nominee was raised or completed an undergraduate degree.
- The student’s current year & field of study (or, intended field, if incoming)
The Barbara and Arnold Silverman Graduate Fellowship
The Silverman Fellowship is available to students in any area of specialization within the Social Sciences who demonstrate a high level of academic distinction. The amount of the Silverman Fellowship will be approximately $3,000, depending on availability of funds and the number of awards made.
The R. Kirk Underhill Graduate Fellowship
The Underhill Fellowship provides support to graduate students proposing to undertake research that focuses upon any of the constituent parts of the British Isles, the British Empire and its legacies, or Britain’s relationship with the European Community and the United States. Nominees need not necessarily have Britain as the primary focus of their research; work on any part of the world that requires substantial research in Britain may be eligible for an Underhill Fellowship, although preference will be given to those that are concerned with Britain’s imperial or transnational influence and impact. The amount of the Underhill Fellowship will be approximately $20,000, depending on availability of funds and the number of awards made.
The David and Aileen Wang Family Fellowship
The Wang Fellowship is available to students in any area of specialization within the Arts & Humanities and the Social Sciences, with the award rotating between the divisions annually (Arts & Humanities in odd academic years, and Social Sciences in even years). For 2020-21 the Wang Fellowship will be awarded within the Arts & Humanities division. The amount of the Wang Fellowship will be approximately $20,000, depending on availability of funds and the number of awards made.