Graduate Studies Funding

All students admitted to the graduate program are guaranteed five years of financial support through fellowships, research and teaching assistantships, or graduate instructorships. Continued financial support is contingent upon timely and satisfactory progress in the program.

All admitted students receive a first-year fellowship that affords them the opportunity to immerse themselves in their coursework.

Financial support includes:

• A minimum stipend of $20,000 per academic year
• $8,275 summer fellowship
• Full tuition
• Graduate Assistant Health and Dental Insurance (95% covered)
• Travel support to present at national and international conferences

Additional Fellowships

We nominate prospective students to a variety of fellowships, including:

• College of Liberal Arts Graduate Fellowships (CLAGF)
• Diversity of Views and Experiences (DOVE) Fellowships
• Interdisciplinary Center for the Study of Global Change (ICGC) Scholar Fellowships and ICGC/Mellon Scholar Fellowships.

Faculty nominate more advanced students for the Interdisciplinary Doctoral Fellowship, the Doctoral Dissertation Fellowship, and others.

Alumnus N. Marbury Efimenco (BA '37, political science; MA '40, political science; PhD '49, political science) created an endowed fellowship fund that supports many of our students throughout their career. David (BA '66, political science) and Janis Larson have created a graduate research fellowship for students studying political economy.  Alumnus Robert “Bob” H. Putnam (BA ‘68, political science)’s estate endowed a fellowship for graduate students in the Department of Political Science in 2017. The Frank J. Sorauf Fellowship, created in his honor, supports graduate students interested in the study of American government and politics. 

External Funding

Current students may take advantage of other internal and external funding opportunities. The University of Minnesota Graduate School also administers University-wide fellowships and grants.