Funding

Typically, graduate funding takes the form of a combination of teaching assistantships, small grants, and occasionally larger fellowships, which usually involve University-wide competition. The funding package for each academic year covers tuition and either salary for teaching or stipend for grants or fellowships. The following are the standard funding packages that we offer at the MA and PhD levels. We make every effort to guarantee this funding as permitted by College and University resources, policies, and procedures.

MA Programs

All students admitted to the MA programs, including international students, receive two years of funding, which usually takes the form of teaching assistantships plus a stipend (see more below). The funding package covers tuition and includes summer funding after completion of the first year. We especially encourage students from underrepresented populations to apply (“underrepresentation” includes but is not limited to ethnicity, gender, geographic/cultural origin, race, or sexuality). As part of the university’s commitment to diversify academic disciplines, we offer additional fellowships to admitted students who meet this criterion.

PhD Programs

All students admitted to the RelA PhD program, including international students, receive five years of funding, which usually takes the form of teaching assistantships plus a stipend (see more below). The funding package covers tuition and includes summer funding throughout the degree (amounting to four summers). We especially encourage students from underrepresented populations to apply (“underrepresentation” includes but is not limited to ethnicity, gender, geographic/cultural origin, race, or sexuality). As part of the university’s commitment to diversify academic disciplines, we offer additional fellowships to admitted students who meet this criterion.

Graduate Assistantship Appointments

Graduate Assistantships are available for CNRC graduate students. As part of the department's commitment to prepare graduate students for academic careers, we typically support all students in good standing for two and five years. Initially, graduate assistants act as teaching assistants (TAs) grading examinations and papers in undergraduate courses or leading discussion sections of large lecture courses. 

Appointments are typically made at the 50% level (no more than 20 hours per week.) Teaching assistants at the 50% level are awarded a full-tuition scholarship, up to 14 credits per semester.

A variety of working groups, presentations, and seminars focused on teaching techniques and strategies are offered periodically throughout the year by the Graduate School, the Center for Educational Innovation, the Center for Writing, and other entities.

Research Assistant Appointments

From time to time CNRC faculty receive funding that will support the employment of a graduate research assistant (RA), generally at 25% or 50% time. These opportunities are communicated by the professor who is seeking a graduate student research assistant. CNRC graduate students also may apply for research assistantships with faculty in the other departments.

Fellowship Opportunities

For more information and a full list of fellowships available through the University, see the Graduate School Fellowship Office.

Note: If you are an underrepresented, educationally disadvantaged, or physically disadvantaged student, inform us at the time of application. The University offers special fellowships for which you might be nominated by the Department of Classical & Near Eastern Religions & Cultures.

• Doctoral Dissertation Fellowship (DDF)
  The University of Minnesota gives the University's most accomplished Ph.D. candidates an opportunity to devote full-time effort to an outstanding research project by providing time to finalize and write a dissertation during the fellowship year. Award includes a $25,000 stipend for one academic year, tuition for up to 14 thesis credits each semester, and subsidized health insurance. Those that apply but don't receive the award, are entered into a college level running for a single semester CLA DDF. Similarly, the CLA DDF provides a stipend, tuition, and health insurance costs for a single semester. 
• Diversity of Views and Experiences (DOVE) Fellowship
  The Office for Diversity in Graduate Education (ODGE) administers the DOVE Fellowship, awarded to approximately 20 first-year students from underrepresented groups (US citizens or permanent residents.)
• Interdisciplinary Center for the Study of Global Change (ICGC) Fellowships
  The Interdisciplinary Center for the Study of Global Change (ICGC) offers fellowships for exceptionally capable students, especially but not only from the global south and US communities of color, whose backgrounds and interests clearly reflect a commitment to the interdisciplinary study of the global south in the context of global change.
• ICGC Scholar Fellowships 
• ICGC-Mellon Scholar Fellowships