About the Fellowship Office
The Fellowships Office is available to advise and assist undergraduates, graduate students and recent alumni in applying for nationally competitive and CSU systemwide fellowships and grants.
The Fellowships Office also offers graduate writing workshops and information workshops on fellowship opportunities.
Fellowships
Fellowships are similar to scholarships in that they often provide funding to the recipient. Unlike scholarships, which are generally intended to help you complete your degree, fellowships are an investment in a person who shows promise to make a difference in their field.
Benefits of applying
Applying for fellowships involves preparing excellent essays on your research, public service, leadership or artistic activities that are competitive at the CSU systemwide, national or international level. This means that even if you do not win a particular fellowship, the process of developing and revising your personal statement, project or research proposal and of interviewing with finalist selection committees, will empower you in your academic and professional career.
Becoming a strong candidate
The advice here is intended for undergraduate and graduate students who plan to apply for nationally competitive fellowships and seek to develop themselves into attractive candidates for these awards.
The most successful fellowship applicants are thoughtful about their educational and career goals, and strategic about building the experiences and credentials that will make them attractive fellowship candidates.
To learn how to become a competitive candidate for CSU and nationally competitive fellowships, awards and grants:
- make an appointment with the Fellowships Office to discuss your goals and history and their possible match with fellowship opportunities,
- review the advice below to maximize your record of academic and professional growth.
- Advice for Undergraduates
- Advice for Graduates Students
Additional Resources
Fellowship programs may be sponsored by a foundation, governmental agency or educational institution. Depending on the focus of a particular program, it may describe their ideal candidate as a “change agent” committed to a career in public service (Truman Foundation), a “cultural ambassador” who promotes intercultural understanding in the U.S. and abroad (Fulbright U.S. Student Program) or a scientist whose research is characterized by “intellectual merit” and promises to have “broader impacts” (National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship).
Fellowship programs may ask for the following evidence of personal excellence and promise:
- excellent coursework
- strong, specific recommendations of your excellence and promise by faculty and possibly supervisors
- a record of active participation in your discipline
- a record of giving back to the academic and other communities to which you belong
- writing samples, published work or an artist portfolio
- foreign language competency
Note that some fellowships are called 'scholarships', including international fellowships such as the Rhodes Scholarship and Marshall Scholarship, which provide for academic study in the U.K.
Fellowships tend to be more competitive than scholarships and take more time to submit a competitive application. Plan for 2 to 10 months, depending on the program.
Some fellowships require colleges and universities to nominate applicants after assessing whether they are competitive for the program. Nomination is not guaranteed. When fellowships require institutional nomination, the campus deadline may be months before the national deadline. Refer to Know Your Deadlines page or contact the Fellowships Office to determine if there is a campus deadline by which you must submit a complete application for nomination.
If you are fortunate enough to win a fellowship, you may receive funding to pursue one or more years of graduate school in the U.S. or abroad, travel for professional conferences, conduct independent research, participate in a foreign language intensive, teach, intern, volunteer, gain experience in government or policy making, develop a sustainable nonprofit or pursue a creative arts project in the U.S. abroad.
The work you put in and personal mentoring you receive from the Fellowships Office as well as your faculty will significantly enhance your ability to persuasively represent your goals and strengths and effectively advocate for your insights and passions in writing and in person. In short, the process of applying for fellowships, which takes time and effort, will open up new possibilities, pay dividends as you move forward and increase your fitness to pursue your dreams.
Support for students who want to pursue a PH.D. or teach in the CSU
How to apply
Fellowship application procedures vary by program, and to apply well, you will need to fully understand the application procedure and deadline for the program to which you are applying. Unless the program forbids you to receive support in developing your application, you are encouraged to seek the Fellowships Office's feedback on your application essays. The writing and review process should begin months ahead of the application deadline.
Many CSU and national fellowship programs invite applicants to apply directly and by the deadline they publish on their website. These include the National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship (NSF GRFP), and the CSU's California Pre-Doc Program and Chancellor's Doctoral Incentive Program (CDIP).
However, some programs require applicants to apply through, or ask to be nominated by, their college or university. In some cases, a campus interview is required. With these programs, a campus process comes before the national or CSU deadline, often by months. For a list of programs that have an earlier campus deadline by which SFSU students and alumni must apply, see Know Your Deadlines.
SFSU campus deadlines for fellowships
SFSU fellowship applicants
The most successful fellowship applicants are thoughtful about their educational and career goals and strategic about building the experiences and credentials that will make them attractive fellowship applicants.
You can learn how to become a competitive candidate for nationally competitive and CSU fellowships, awards and grants by:
- Making an appointment with the Fellowships Office to discuss your goals and history and their possible match with fellowship opportunities.
- Reviewing the advice here for undergraduate and graduate students to maximize their records of academic, professional and/or artistic growth.