Awards

Graduate Division

Dissertation-Year Fellowship Award (DYFA)

The DYFA is designed to assist graduate students in completing the dissertation requirement for the Ph.D. and to enhance their qualifications as candidates for university faculty teaching and research appointments. Dissertation-Year Fellowships are awarded to eligible graduate students whose doctoral work is completed by the end of the academic year, those who demonstrate strong potential for university teaching and research. Minimally, students must have advanced to candidacy for the Ph.D. at the time of nomination. Because DYFA is an extremely competitive program, resources are limited to three awards.

Objective:  A key objective of the diversity DYFA is to release candidates, who are writing their dissertations, from employment obligations that might impede full completion of the Ph.D. by the end of the academic year.

Eligibility:

The recipient must

  • Be a citizen or permanent resident of the US.
  • Show interest in university teaching and research.
  • Recipient must enhance the diversity of the department.
  • Be able to complete the Ph.D. requirements by the end of the academic year in which the  fellowship is awarded.
  • Have agreement on a timeline from all committee members.
  • Complete and submit the "Diversity Award Nomination Form" or Supplemental pages 4a and 4b of the Admission Application.

The recipient may not simultaneously hold another fellowship of a similar or greater amount.

Support:

$15,000 stipend plus fees
$500 research allowance
$470 travel grant for dissertation research presentations (discussed below)

Two conditions are required for accepting the award:

Condition #1: Student must make research presentations: One presentation may take place in the department; and the second one may take place at a UC, CSU or private institution.

Condition #2: DYFA Fellows and their faculty mentors (preferably the thesis committee chair) must attend a fall one-day UC-wide meeting (at Berkeley or UCOP).

Employment is prohibited during the tenure of the award.

Criterion:  Awards are made on the basis of academic record and quality of proposal.

Application Procedure:

In addition to the departmental nomination, the nominee must submit (to the department) a proposal with:

  1. A detailed prospectus of the dissertation (5-page limit).
  2. A well-conceived dissertation completion plan, including specific dates for completing various tasks. (This should be signed by all dissertation committee members.)
  3. Three letters of recommendation from committee members on the quality of the proposed dissertation.
  4. A research budget, including an itemized listing of anticipated research/travel/dissertation expenses ($500 limit).
  5. An endorsement by the committee chair that he/she will assist the student in seeking a faculty position.

General deadline and award notification:  April