Department of Human & Community Development | Illinois

Information for Students

Fellowships and Assistantships

The following fellowships and assistantships are available to new and continuing graduate students in the Department of Human and Community Development. However, entering students have first priority for fellowships.

Fellowships above $5,000 per semester ($10,000 per academic year), and teaching or research assistantships between 25% and 67% will automatically generate a full tuition waiver for  the student.

The below listed fellowships and assistantships are completely separate from state and federal financial aid. Students interested in grant and loan opportunities should click here.

Fellowships

College of ACES Jonathan Baldwin Turner (JBT) Fellowships

Each year up to 4 of our students are awarded a Jonathan Baldwin Turner Fellowship (JBT). The JBT Fellowships are competititve, and only students with high GRE percentiles and corresponding GPAs are eligible for consideration. The JBT Fellowships are awarded for multi-year periods (given adequate progress in the degree program) and provide a monthly stipend plus tuition and fee waivers.This is a College of ACES fellowship; candidates are nominated by the department. The annual stipend for this scholarship is $17,500 for Master's students and $20,000 for Doctoral students.

Recipients of the JBT Fellowship work on a faculty-sponsored research project as an apprenticeship. JBT recipients are allowed to accept additional assistantships within JBT guidelines, if such funding is available.

HCD Clareta Walker Graduate Fellowship

As a result of a generous donation from Clareta Walker in January 1996, the Clareta Walker Endowment Fund was established to provide graduate fellowships in the Department of Human and Community Development. A fellowship of approximately $5,000 will be awarded annually to an entering or continuing graduate student in HCD with interests in applied research and/or outreach in community-based programs with older youth.

Other Graduate Fellowships

In addtion to these fellowships, the Department also has several addtional fellowships including the Janice Smith Graduate Fellowship, and the Emily Schroeder Graduate Fellowship that are given to new and/or continuing students. Many students in the Department have also qualified for Graduate College Underrepresented Minority Fellowships.

Assistantships

The department appoints teaching (TA), research (RA), and other graduate assistantships (GA). Most assistantships are for at least 25% time and several assistantships are 50% time. Currently, students earn $7,125.00 with a 25% appointment for work in the Fall and Spring. With a 50% assistantship a student will earn $14,250.00. All research and teaching assistantships that are at least 25% and less than 67% for three-quarters of both semesters include a tuition and a partial fee waiver. A TA or RA during the academic year provides for a tuition and a partial fee waiver for summer school. Currently, the value of the tuition waiver would be about $10,000 for in-state students and $24,000 for non-resident students.

For more information about assistantships see the HCD Graduate Handbook.

Assistantships and hourly positions from other units on campus can be found on the Graduate Student Advisory Council Assistantship Clearinghouse Web site.

Research and Travel Funds

The University of Illinois Graduate College offers a number of fellowships and small grants on a competitive basis for graduate students research or travel to deliver papers accepted at conferences. Applications are generally considered twice a year for most awards. In order to be considered, students must first submit their applications to their departments for evaluation and ranking. Each department then forwards a limited set of nominations on to the Graduate College for further consideration. The Director of Graduate Programs will provide information on eligibility and deadlines when announcements are forwarded by the Graduate College. Information on these fellowships and awards can be found at the Graduate College Web site.