There are three types of Dissertation Year Fellowships that are offered annually during the Spring Quarter.

• UC President’s Dissertation Year Fellowship (PDYF)

• Fletcher Jones Fellowship (FJF)

• Dissertation Year Fellowship funded by the Marye Anne Fox Endowed Fellowship Fund (MAF)

Each fellowship is named and detailed below. All three fellowships are terminal support awards and only candidates projected to finish during the twelve-month award period (July 1, 2024, through June 30, 2025) should be nominated. Convincing evidence that the nominee can complete all degree requirements by June 30, 2025 , will be an important consideration in selecting Fellows. Fellowship recipients will be selected from one pool of nominations. Fellowships will be reviewed by an interdisciplinary group of faculty and staff.

Applicants should be nominated by their graduate programs, ; no self-nominations will be accepted. Graduate Programs may nominate a total of three candidates across all three dissertation year fellowships. This is a combined total of three nominations for the Dissertation Year Fellowship, the Fletcher Jones Fellowship, and the Marye Anne Fox Endowed Fellowship.

The deadline to submit nominations is Monday, April 29, 2024 at 11:59pm. nomination period for AY24-25 Dissertation Year Fellowships has closed. Nominations for AY25-26 will be accepted in Spring 2025.

Five (5) candidates will be awarded the UC President’s Dissertation Year Fellowship. Each award will include:

• $31,000 stipend

• $500 travel allowance, to be used for travel to another school or campus in California

• The full cost of resident tuition** and fees must also be covered on the student’s behalf. The student’s degree-granting program is responsible for identifying the funding source and disbursing the tuition & fee payments.

This fellowship is a terminal support award. Nominated candidates must be projected to finish during the twelve-month award period (July 1 through June 30). Convincing evidence that the nominee can complete all degree requirements by June 30 will be an important consideration in the selection process. Awards will be made by the Dean of the Division of The Graduate DivisionEducation and Postdoctoral Affairs.

All items are required for Fellowship consideration.: 

1. Brief autobiographical sketch by the student (half-page limit)

2. Two-page dissertation synopsis written in a non-technical format for a "lay audience." The synopsis must address the relevance of the student's research within the academic field.

3. Provide an An academic timeline for completion of the dissertation with a projected date of completion.

4. Letter of support from the student's academic advisor addressing how the student meets the program objectives and the eligibility requirements. This may include discussion of relevant non-academic activities, such as community or campus service (three-page limit).

5. A completed nomination form with the signature of the department/program chair.

One (1) candidate will be selected for the Dissertation Year Fellowship funded by the Marye Anne Fox Endowed Fellowship Fund. Each award will include:

• Stipend of $31,000

• The full cost of resident tuition** and fees must also be covered on the student’s behalf. The student’s degree-granting program is responsible for identifying the funding source and disbursing the tuition & fee payments.

This fellowship is a terminal support award. Nominated candidates must be projected to finish during the twelve-month award period (July 1 through June 30). Convincing evidence that the nominee can complete all degree requirements by June 30 will be an important consideration in the selection process. Awards will be made by the Dean of the Division of Graduate Education and Postdoctoral Affairs.

All items are required for Fellowship consideration.:

1. Brief autobiographical sketch by the student (half-page limit)

2. Two-page dissertation synopsis written in a non-technical format for a "lay audience". The synopsis must address the relevance of the student's research within the academic field.

3. Provide an An academic Academic timeline for completion of the dissertation with a projected date of completion.

4. Letter of support from the student's academic advisor.

5. Completed nomination form with the signature of the department/program chair.

Read the campus announcement

2024 Fletcher Jones Fellowship:

Abushawish Ahmed - Biological Sciences

2024 President’s Dissertation Year Fellowship:

Joanmarie Banez-Clancy - Literature

Mia Borzello - Cognitive Sciences

Daniel Rios - Ethnic Studies

Wade Shipley - Materials Science & Engineering

Erik Szwed - Physics

2024 Marye Anne Fox Endowed Fellowship:

Christine Stephen - Chemistry and Biochemistry

2019 Fletcher Jones Fellowship:

Ellen Yelena Gluzman, Communication

2019 President’s Dissertation Year Fellowship: 

Amy Kennemore, Anthropology

William Ricardo Valdez, Bioengineering

Riley Taitingfong, Communication

Olivia Quintanilla, Ethnic Studies

Julian Ramirez, Nano-engineering

Osinachi Ajoku, Scripps Institution of Oceanography

Marye Anne Fox Endowed Fellowship:

Bayan Abusneineh, Ethnic Studies

Yanqi Luo, Nano-engineering