The Ecology, Evolution and Behavior program can provide a combination of Research Assistant, Teaching Assistant, and Fellowship support. Our annual stipend for the 2024-25 year is $28,784.60 plus full tuition and subsidized health insurance coverage. EEB students also frequently win both nationally and university-wide competitive fellowships. In addition to support for living expenses, the EEB program also has funding to support student research projects, conference travel, and professional development activities.
If you are admitted, the EEB Program and your advisor will prepare a funding package to offer you along with admission. We endeavor to provide a funding package that will cover living expenses, tuition and health insurance for each admitted student for a limited time frame, typically five years.
Funding Opportunities After the First Year
After completing their first year, most EEB students are supported by a combination of Teaching Assistant and Research Assistant positions. Teaching Assistant positions are assigned by the EEB Graduate Program in consultation with the students and instructors. If a faculty advisor has access to research funding, they can provide Research Assistant funding to their students. Students can also initiate funding opportunities as described below.
Graduate School Doctoral Dissertation Fellowship
Final-year Ph.D. candidates who are making outstanding and timely progress towards their degree may be nominated by the program for an award of $25,000 for the academic year, full tuition for thesis credits, and comprehensive health and dental insurance. Students should consult with their advisors and inform the Director of Graduate Studies by early December if they wish to be nominated. The number of nominations is limited.
Other Funding opportunities
There are a large number of fellowships and funding opportunities available to students in the EEB Graduate Program. Some are managed directly by the EEB Graduate Program, others are managed by the University of Minnesota Graduate School and are open to students from many programs. The pages linked below provide additional information about these opportunities. Deadlines change from year to year, so check early enough if you are interested in a particular fellowship. Students are strongly encouraged to apply to funding opportunities for which they are eligible for.
Another possibility is to seek funding from agencies or organizations external to the University. Grant applications and some fellowship applications to agencies outside the University of Minnesota that carry research funds typically need to be approved by the Office of Sponsored Projects Administration (SPA). SPA needs at least one week to process your grant, which you need to take into account to meet deadlines. Please contact your adviser and Launa Shun (shunx001@umn.edu), EEB grants administrator with any questions about preparation of budgets and submission of external proposals well in advance of deadlines for submission to a funding agency.