Within the Second Language Studies Program, faculty and staff support graduate students in applying for grants and awards to support their research endeavors, conference travel, and studies. Michigan State University and the College of Arts and Letters have many internal (funded by the university) awards for travel, study, and dissertation completion. Students in the program are also supported in applying for external grants (funded by other granting institutions). To see what grants our students have received in the past, go to our “Grants Received” page, where we list (I.) faculty, (II.) joint faculty and student, and (III.) student grants. Below we summarize many different grant programs to which students can apply for funding.

This page includes:

  1. an overview of research funding search sites
  2. a list of research grants and fellowships 
  3. a list of travel grants

Research Grant and Fellowship Search Sites

Institute of International Education
http://www.fundingusstudy.org/home.asp

The Linguist List
http://linguistlist.org/sp/GetWRListings.cfm?WRAbbrev=Funding

MSU Graduate Studies – Overview of Funding Opportunities
http://grad.msu.edu/funding/

MSU Graduate Studies – Funding for International Students
http://grad.msu.edu/funding/docs/ISSR_Fall_2014.pdf

US Department of Education – Federal Student Aid
https://studentaid.ed.gov/resources – funding

Research Grants and Fellowships

American Association of University Women-Dissertation Fellowship
Eligibility: Female U.S. citizens and permanent residents in the final year of writing their dissertation.
Amount: $6,000-$30,000
http://aauw-amdissert.scholarsapply.org/

American Association of University Women-International Fellowship
Eligibility: Female international students pursuing MA and PhD studies in the US, with the intent to return to their home country upon completion.
Amount: $18,000-$30,000
http://aauw-international.scholarsapply.org/

American Council of Learned Sciences Dissertation Completion Fellowship
Eligibility: Doctoral students in a humanities or social sciences program in a US university, who are in the ABD stage of their studies.
Amount: Up to $38,000
http://www.acls.org/programs/dcf/

Boren Awards for International Study
Eligibility: U.S. citizens enrolled in graduate degree programs.
Amount: Up to $30,000
http://www.borenawards.org/boren_fellowship

Education Testing Service (ETS) Small Grants for Doctoral Research
Eligibility: PhD students with an approved dissertation proposal specializing in second or foreign language assessment.
Amount: Up to $2,000
http://www.ets.org/toefl/grants/doctoral_research_grant_second_language

Education Testing Service (ETS): TOEFL Young Students Research Program – Graduate Student Research Grants
Eligibility: Graduate students with a focus on language testing or assessment, applied linguistics, or a related field.
Amount: $3,000–$5,000
http://www.ets.org/toefl/grants/young_students_grad_student_research_grants/

Education Testing Service (ETS): Jacqueline Ross TOEFL Dissertation Award
Eligibility: Graduate students with a dissertation project they intend to present at LTRC.
Amount: $2,500 + travel accommodations to LTRC
http://www.ets.org/toefl/grants/jacqueline_ross_dissertation_award

Ford Foundation Dissertation Grant
Eligibility: PhD students who are citizens, nationals, or permanent residents of the US, as well as 
individuals granted deferred action status under the Deferred Actions for Childhood Arrivals Program.
Amount: Up to $25,000 
http://sites.nationalacademies.org/PGA/FordFellowships/PGA_047959

Foreign Language Area Studies Fellowships for the Study of Asia and Asian Languages
Eligibility: U.S. citizens or permanent residents; option for research or coursework overseas.
asia.isp.msu.edu/resources/flas.htm

Fulbright-Hays Doctoral Dissertation Research Abroad
Eligibility: Graduate students in doctoral programs in the fields of foreign languages and area studies must apply through the institutions in which they are enrolled. Applicants must be US citizens or permanent residents.
http://www2.ed.gov/programs/iegpsddrap/index.html

The International Research Foundation for English Language Education (TIRF) – Doctoral Dissertation Grants
Eligibility: Doctoral students who have been advanced to candidacy in their PhD studies.
Amount: Up to $5,000
http://www.tirfonline.org/research-grants/doctoral-dissertation-grants/

Language Learning Doctoral Dissertation Research Grants
Eligibility: Graduate students in doctoral programs who have a dissertation proposal approved by department authorities.
Amount: $2,000
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/10.1111/(ISSN)1467-9922/homepage/grant_programs.htm

MSU Humanities and Arts Research Program
Eligibility: Faculty conducting research leading to creative and performance projects or activities in the arts and humanities.
https://vprgs.msu.edu/harp

MSU Dissertation Completion Fellowships
Eligibility: For PhD students needing to work full-time on writing their dissertation.
Amount: $6,000
http://grad.msu.edu/fellowships/dissertation.aspx

MSU Graduate Student Research Enhancement Award
Eligibility: Graduate students needing funding to support research activities, such as workshop attendance, data collection, and laboratory rotation.
Amount: $500-$1,000
http://grad.msu.edu/fellowships/docs/Research Enancement Funding Application.pdf

MSU Council of Graduate Students Professional Development Grant
Eligibility: All graduate students at MSU, as a means to support events that lead to professional development.
Amount: $300
http://cogs.msu.edu/funding.html

MSU International Studies and Programs – Walker Hill International Award
Eligibility: Graduate students needing to visit a foreign research site to advance their dissertation research.
Amount: Up to $600
http://www.isp.msu.edu/funding/walker.htm

Modern Language Journal Dissertation Support Grants
Eligibility: Applicants must be enrolled in a doctoral program at a US university (though they do not need to be American citizens), and must have completed all program requirements other than their dissertation.
Amount: $2,500
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1540-4781.2013.12053.x/abstract

National Academy of Education Dissertation Fellowship Program
Eligibility: For both American citizens and internationals students, applicants must be pursuing a degree in education, and have completed all pre-dissertation coursework.
Amount: $25,000
http://www.naeducation.org/NAED_080200.htm

National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowships
Eligibility: Citizens, nationals, and permanent residents of the US in the early stages of their graduate studies (immediately prior to or in their first year of study).
Amount:$34,000
http://www.nsf.gov/pubs/2014/nsf14590/nsf14590.pdf

National Science Foundation Doctoral Dissertation Research Grants for Linguistics
Eligibility: Graduate students in doctoral programs in good standing at U.S. institutions.
http://www.nsf.gov/sbe/bcs/ling/suppdiss.jsp 

National Science Foundation Cultural Anthropology Program – Doctoral Dissertation Research Improvement Grant
Eligibility: Graduate students researching the causes, consequences, and complexities of human social and cultural variability.
http://www.nsf.gov/funding/pgm_summ.jsp?pims_id=505057&org=NSF

The Paul & Daisy Soros Fellowships for New Americans
Eligibility:For new Americans (see website eligibility link for a description) either embarking on or in the process of graduate studies. 
Amount: Up to $45,000
http://www.pdsoros.org/competition/

Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) Doctoral Fellowship
Eligibility: For citizens or permanent residents of Canada who hold a previous degree from a Canadian university. Applicants must be pursuing their first PhD.
Amount:Up to $20,000 a year for three years. 
http://www.sshrc-crsh.gc.ca/funding-financement/programs-programmes/fellowships/doctoral-doctorat-eng.aspx – a4

Social Sciences Research Council International Dissertation Research Fellowship Program
Eligibility: The program is open to graduate students in the humanities and humanistic social sciences – regardless of citizenship—enrolled in PhD programs in the United States. Applicants to the 2015 IDRF competition must complete all PhD requirements except on-site research by the time the fellowship begins or by December 2015, whichever comes first.
Amount: $30,000
http://www.ssrc.org/programs/idrf/

TESOL – Research Agenda Award 
Eligibility: Applicants currently working on or wishing to start on a research project that aligns with the 
TESOL Research Agenda
(http://www.tesol.org/docs/default-source/pdf/2014_tesol-research-agenda.pdf?sfvrsn=2).
Amount: $2,500
http://www.tesol.org/advance-the-field/research/2015-call-for-research-proposals

TESOL – The Ruth Crymes TESOL Fellowship for Graduate Study
Eligibility: TESOL members currently, or recently, enrolled in a TESOL or TEFL graduate program, preparing to teach ESOL.
Amount: $1,500
http://www.tesol.org/about-tesol/tesol-awards-grants/tesol-awards-for-excellence-service/ruth-crymes-tesol-fellowship

The Wenner-Gren Foundation Dissertation Fieldwork Grants 
Eligibility: Open to both residents of the US and international students, applicants must have completed all components of their studies, aside from their dissertation/thesis. Their proposed study must demonstrate a clear link to anthropological theories and debates.
Amount: $20,000
http://www.wennergren.org/programs/dissertation-fieldwork-grants

The Wenner-Gren Foundation Wadsworth International Fellowship
Eligibility: Applicants must be from countries where anthropological studies are underrepresented, with limited resources to send students overseas.
Amount: $17,500
http://www.wennergren.org/programs/wadsworth-international-fellowships

The William Orr Dingwall Foundation Neurolinguistics Dissertation Fellowship
Eligibility:For resident and international students, must be a candidate for a doctoral degree in a neurolinguistics program at a US university. Application must be completed before finishing all pre-dissertation requirements.
Amount: Up to $20,000 a year for three
http://www.dingwallfoundation.org/nl/index.html

 Travel Grants

American Association for Applied Linguistics Graduate Students Award
Eligibility: MA and PhD students presenting at the annual AAAL conference. Acceptance is based on the quality of their proposal for a paper or poster presentation. Only available for single-authored submissions.
http://www.aaal.org/gsa

International Language Testing Association – Student Travel Award
Eligibility: Graduate students attending and presenting at the annual LTRC conference.
Amount: $500-$700
http://www.iltaonline.com/index.php/enUS/organization/ilta-awards-descriptions

MSU Travel Funding
Eligibility: For graduate students travelling to present their research at professional conferences.
http://grad.msu.edu/fellowships/travel.aspx

Midwest Association of Language Testers (MwALT) Graduate Student Award for Excellence in Language Assessment Research
Eligibility: Graduate students with a pre-dissertation project investigating any area of language assessment.
Amount: Waiver of conference registration fee, plus certificate and assessment textbook awarded at annual MwALT conference. 
http://cogs.msu.edu/funding.html

MSU Council of Graduate Students Conference Grant
Eligibility: All graduate students at MSU.
Amount: $300
http://cogs.msu.edu/funding.html

TESOL International Association –The Albert H. Marckwardt Travel Grant
Eligibility: Graduate students travelling to the TESOL International Convention and English Language Expo.
Amount: $500 + conference registration fee waiver
http://www.tesol.org/about-tesol/tesol-awards-grants/convention-travel-grants-scholarships/the-albert-h-marckwardt-travel-grants 

TESOL International Association –The TESOL Professional Development Scholarship
Eligibility: TESOL members in good standing planning to the annual TESOL convention.
http://www.tesol.org/about-tesol/tesol-awards-grants/convention-travel-grants-scholarships/the-tesol-professional-development-scholarships