Funding

EEB students are funded through a combination of research assistantships, teaching assistantships, and fellowships.

Our students are extremely successful at obtaining competitive awards, with approximately a third of EEB students funded via fellowships. Nearly 20% of our current students have won NSF Graduate Research Fellowships (GRFP), which is twice the nationwide average of funded applicants. EEB students have also received many other prestigious awards including NSF INTERN and DDIG Fellowships, Fulbright Fellowships, National Geographic Explorer Grants, and major fellowships from the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Department of Agriculture (USDA), Department of Defense (DoD), National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

EEB students are also eligible for a number of MSU recruitment, continuing, and completion fellowships administered by their home colleges and the graduate school. For more information on graduate financial aid, visit the MSU Graduate School's website.

Funding arrangements are made between a student, their major advisor, and the home department. Students are encouraged to discuss funding with their advisor early and often.

EEB offers funding to our graduate students under the following programs.

 

Summer fellowships are available to EEB graduate students via a competitive process. A call for applications is announced to the student listserv early in the spring term and the annual due date for applications is March 1. To maximize the availability of funds, we strongly encourage faculty advisors to provide matching funds when possible. Fellowship funds are dispersed in the form of a fellowship paid directly to the student and do not include benefits or a tuition waiver. MSU fellowships are considered taxable income but taxes are not withheld.

Priority will be given to students who are near completion of their degrees, have actively participated in EEB activities, and show evidence of scholarly accomplishments. Such accomplishments may include prior presentations at scientific meetings, papers published and/or submitted, and grants and fellowships obtained. Participation in teaching, outreach, and service will also be factors for consideration. While the summer fellowships will be made on a competitive basis, constraints on other available support may also be considered in the decision process.

The top two ranked applicants are awarded the Don Hall Fellowship. An additional applicant is awarded the BEACON Evolution in Action Fellowship. Both fellowships come with an extra award of $1,000.

 

Travel grants are available to EEB students and postdocs for partial support to attend professional conferences (including registration fees for virtual meetings) or to participate in other scientific activities involving travel. The latter might include a special course or workshop, visiting another laboratory to learn a specialized technique, or attending a leadership development program. Students receiving travel support to attend a conference are expected to present their research as an oral presentation or poster. Travel grants cannot be used to support travel to field sites, whether local or distant, that are part of a student’s regular research activities.

There are three levels of support available:  

   1. International $750  

   2. Domestic in-person $500  

   3. Virtual $300  

Applications are being accepted and due Nov. 15, with funds distributed before the end of the semester. Apply here. 

 

EEB Core Faculty can nominate their prospective graduate students for these recruitment fellowships, which provide stellar MSU applicants with an additional $5,000 stipend during their first year of graduate school at MSU. The purpose of these fellowships is to help EEB recruit an outstanding, diverse cohort of students to our graduate program. Prospective students must be accepted to a home department to be eligible. Awardees are encouraged to join the EEB graduate program but are not required to do so.

A call for applications is announced to the faculty listserv annually in February. All nominations must be submitted by the faculty sponsor (not the prospective student). Awardees will receive the fellowship during the first year they are enrolled at MSU: half will be dispersed in August ($2,500) and half in January ($2,500). Note: MSU fellowships are considered taxable income but taxes are not withheld. 

 

Through a competitive process, EEB awards semester-length fellowships of $15,000 to three graduate students annually. In addition to covering a student’s semester stipend, the funding can also be used for tuition and/or health insurance. MSU PhD candidates (those who have passed their comprehensive exams) enrolled in the EEB program are eligible to apply. 

Nominations are open. The major professor should email 1) the student’s CV, 2) a dissertation progress report with the status of each chapter and projected completion dates (1-2 pages), and 3) a letter of support and statement of progress by the major professor that also addresses the funding status of the student for spring 2025 to Elise Zipkin by 11:59 p.m. Friday, Oct. 11.

Awardees may only use their fellowship during the spring semester of the same academic year (no deferments will be allowed) and must be enrolled for at least one credit. Note: MSU fellowships are considered taxable income but taxes are not withheld. 

 

EEB assigns the teaching assistantships for our quantitative course sequence: IBIO/PLB/ENT 830 and 831 through a competitive process. Each teaching assistantship comes with stipend, tuition, and health insurance for the semester. Applicants should be EEB students in good standing and must have taken the 830-831 course sequence. Selected TAs are expected to have a strong interest in quantitative methods and an enthusiasm for teaching. A call for applications for both classes is announced to the student listserv annually during the spring term.