Mellon-RESI Dissertation Fellowship Overview

Due Monday, October 6, 2025 by 5PM Central Time

Thanks to the generous support of the Mellon Foundation, we are offering semester-long dissertation fellowships to doctoral candidates at Texas A&M University. Fellows will receive a $1000 research bursary, a monthly stipend during the semester, and coverage of usual tuition and fees during the semester of the award. In general, applicants should have been admitted to candidacy for a doctoral degree, completed all formal coursework (with a few exceptions), hold a minimum graduate GPA of 3.0, passed preliminary examination, and submitted an approved dissertation proposal. As this award is also intended to provide students with grant-writing experience, students are expected to work closely with their advisors on the materials being submitted. Advisors are expected to provide feedback on a draft proposal and write a confidential letter directly to RESI. Applicants are normally notified of award decisions by one month following the application deadline.

ELIGIBILITY: The fellowship is open to current graduate students at Texas A&M completing a dissertation on a humanistic research topic related to the themes of the grant. Fields of inquiry eligible for Mellon support include:

• American Studies
• Ancient Civilizations
• Anthropology (cultural)
• Architecture (historical or theoretical focus)
• Area Studies (humanistic focus)
• Art History
• Classics
• Communication (theoretical & humanistic focus)
• Comparative Literature
• Comparative Religion
• Cultural Studies
• English
• Environmental Studies: The study and application of the humanities to the human environment with particular attention to reflecting our diverse heritage, traditions, and history and to the relevance of the humanities to the current conditions of national life.
• Ethics
• Ethnic Studies
• Film, Cinema and Media Studies (theoretical focus)
• Fine Arts
• Foreign Languages and Literatures, both modern and classical
• Gender and Sexuality Studies
• Geography (excluding physical geography and GIS)
• History
• History of Science/Science Studies
• Interdisciplinary Studies: Interdisciplinary areas of study may be eligible if they have one or more eligible fields at their core.
• Linguistics
• Literature
• Medieval Studies
• Musicology, Ethnomusicology and Music Theory
• Performance Studies (theoretical focus)
• Philosophy and Political Theory
• Religious Studies
• Rhetoric
• Sociology (qualitative)
• Theater (theoretical focus)
• Urban Studies

By the time of application, applicants must be admitted to candidacy for a doctoral degree, have completed all formal coursework (with the exception for any remaining 681, 684, 690 and 691 credit hours), hold a minimum 3.0 Graduate GPA, have passed the preliminary examination (written and oral portions), and have submitted an approved dissertation proposal. While applicants may expect to defend their dissertations at the end of the semester of fellowship residence, they should not be graduating that semester. Priority will be given to students working within the fields listed above and further priority will be given to students in the College of Arts and Sciences.

STIPENDS AND TUITION: Fellows will receive a $2,400 monthly stipend during the semester of their award. The Fellowship also includes payment for tuition and required university and college fees for the minimum number of required credit hours for the fellowship recipient. The grant will cover awardees participating in a Texas A&M University System (TAMUS) insurance program for one semester of medical insurance at an amount equivalent to the cost of the employer contribution for the same premium category on the A&M Grad Plan. Fellows may not accept any additional funding (e.g., assistantships, fellowships, internships, or regular paid employment outside the university, etc.) during the fellowship period.

FELLOWSHIP EXPECTATIONS: The primary outcome should be a dissertation (or a significant portion thereof). Awardees should acknowledge the Race and Ethnic Studies Institute and the “Mellon-RESI Dissertation Fellowship” in any resulting publications, presentations, or other work products funded; and will be asked to submit updates on their progress and products. The fellowship is not intended to support field or archival work or any lengthy travel, although travel to attend academic conferences and job interviews is allowed. Awardees are expected to attend grant-sponsored events and become RESI graduate student affiliates.

CRITERIA FOR SELECTION: Reviewers will consider the following:

• Content and quality of the abstract (refer to the Thesis & Dissertation Manual as needed)
• Academic performance and productivity while at Texas A&M University
• Potential impact of student’s research in student discipline and race & ethnic studies
• Potential fit with the themes of the grant 

MATERIALS REQUIRED FOR APPLICATION:

Along with your completed application form, you must submit the following:

• A current C.V.
• Mellon-RESI Dissertation Fellows Signature Form from your Director of Graduate Studies confirming your eligibility
• A letter of support from your dissertation committee chair. This letter should discuss the productivity, scholarly accomplishments, and scholarly potential of the applicant AND comment on the potential impact of the student's research. NOTE: Please have your committee chair send this letter directly to us at resi@tamu.edu by the due date.

Students cannot hold both the RESI Dissertation Research grant and Mellon-RESI Dissertation Fellowship at the same time. If a Dissertation Research Grant has been previously awarded, work must be completed and reports must be filed before the application for this award. The Mellon-RESI Dissertation Fellowship cannot be awarded more than once per person. If you apply and don’t get the Fellowship, you may apply again later.