Before Enrolling

The University of Connecticut offers a variety of financial aid options to support students along their doctoral journey, in addition to state and federal assistance.

Most doctoral students support their graduate study through graduate assistantships, which can involve teaching (teaching assistantships) and/or research (research assistantships). In fact, in 2023-2024 all Ph.D. students at the Neag School who were eligible for assistantships received one. Assistantships of 10 hours per week (the equivalent of teaching one class a semester) or more provide coverage for tuition, a small stipend, and benefits. The graduate student union is a helpful source of information regarding work rules and compensation for such positions and their associated benefits. 

Visit our Open Graduate Assistantships webpage to learn of open positions within the Neag School.

Teaching Assistantships 

Teaching Assistantships can involve having sole responsibility for a class or supporting a faculty member who is teaching a large class. Teaching an undergraduate course requires having a master’s degree; teaching an MA/MS course requires having a Ph.D. or equivalent, relevant experience. These assistantships are assigned and overseen by the department in which the course is offered. For more information about teaching assistantship possibilities, speak to your advisor or department chair or visit the Open Graduate Assistantships webpage.

Research Assistantships 

Many doctoral students are hired to work on faculty research projects that are funded by outside agencies or internal UConn grants. While many times faculty have their advisees work with them on projects, there are opportunities for students to seek projects with other faculty and in accordance with graduate student union work parameters. Because grants are received on a rolling basis, depending on the funding source, it pays to be proactive in seeking out such opportunities. Speaking to faculty who do research that is relevant to your experience and interests is important, as is consulting with your advisor about any grants of which they are aware and would be a good fit for your interests. Positions are posted on the Open Graduate Assistantships webpage and sometimes in the Neag Student News, so it is also a good idea to check both regularly. 

There are also funding opportunities available through national organizations. Students would pursue these funding opportunities on their own. Here is one example: 

The National Science Foundation often has programs that support doctoral study in STEM-related fields. Currently, The NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program (GRFP) is designed to help ensure the quality, vitality, and diversity of the scientific and engineering workforce of the United States. The program recognizes and supports outstanding graduate students who are pursuing full-time research-based master's and doctoral degrees in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) or in STEM education. The GRFP provides three years of support over a five-year fellowship period for the graduate education of individuals who have demonstrated their potential for significant research achievements in STEM or STEM education. NSF actively encourages women, persons who are members of groups historically underrepresented in STEM, persons with disabilities, veterans, and undergraduate seniors to apply. Click on the link above for additional information. 

This year, UConn's Special Education Ph.D. concentration is participating in the ELEVATE Transition Doctoral Consortium Fellowship program, which is a fully funded doctoral program concentrated in special education secondary transition. Six consortium partner institutions, including UConn, will help develop special education scholars with expertise in transition-related services and research, equipping them to train future educators in culturally responsive and sustaining practices to enhance outcomes for students with disabilities, especially those with high-intensity needs.

ELEVATE Scholars will:

• complete an on-campus doctoral degree in 4 years of full-time study
• obtain a nationally recognized certificate in special education transition services
• build understanding of the field of study through research, service, teaching, and leadership
• file a service obligation agreement with the U.S. DOE acknowledging the requirement for scholars to work two years in the field of special education for every year of support (approximately eight years total).

Financial and Fellowship support includes:

• $30K or more annual stipend for four years (amount varies depending on university)
• Full tuition and fees covered
• Onboarding package: relocation funds, laptop, tech resources, and more
• Yearly travel and research funds
• Additional individualized financial supports
• Personalized mentorship and collaborative advising from leaders in the field across the consortium
• Research and publication opportunities
• Dissertation and job search resources

Fellowship requirements:

• 3.0 or above GPA
• GRE (optional)
• Master's degree preferred
• Teaching experience, or experience working with disabled students, preferred

Interested in learning more about ELEVATE? Email Dr. Joe Madaus at joseph.madaus@uconn.edu.

Once Enrolled

The University sponsors competitions for two kinds of additional support: conference participation awards and a summer doctoral fellowship. Departments within the Neag School also sponsor opportunities to award additional support to students for a variety of activities.  

As one gets ready to pursue dissertation research, there are also competitive fellowships that one might apply to, including those listed below. 

There are a number of small internal scholarships available that can provide funding for incidental expenses, such as fees, books, etc. Applications are invited every January. 

In Fall 2020, UConn’s Neag School of Education was selected to join the more than 50 higher education institutions nationwide currently sponsoring the Holmes Scholars Program. The Neag School has pledged to cover the costs of sending each of its Holmes Scholars to the AACTE’s annual conference, as well as the two-day preconference exclusive to Holmes Scholars, for a minimum of three years. In addition, Holmes Scholars are funded to attend AACTE's Washington Week one time. 

Established in 1991 by the Holmes Group and supported by the American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education (AACTE), the Holmes Scholars Program seeks to provide mentorship, peer support, professional development, and rich scholarly experiences to students from racially and ethnically diverse backgrounds who are pursuing graduate degrees in education at AACTE member institutions. Since its inception, more than 700 Holmes Scholars have benefited from taking part in the program. 

In an effort to support graduate student dissertations with a human rights focus at UConn, the Gladstein Family Human Rights Institute funds at least one dissertation research fellowship and at least one dissertation writing fellowship of up to $5,000 each. The purpose of the research fellowship is to support primary research activities, including but not limited to: archival research, participant observation, interview, data collection, data set construction, ethnography, textual criticism, digital archiving, and historical preservation. The writing fellowship should be used to support the student during the time in which a majority of the dissertation is expected to be written. 

This competitive award was established through the UConn Foundation by UConn alumna Dr. Kathy Gavin ’97 Ph.D., a retired associate professor in residence in mathematics, providing funding to doctoral students who are engaged in dissertation research and who have successfully defended their dissertation proposals, with the expectation that recipients anticipate defending their dissertation by end of the academic year. The award may be used to support anticipated dissertation research expenses. 

The Spencer/NAE Dissertation Fellowship Program seeks to encourage a new generation of scholars from a wide range of disciplines and professional fields to undertake research relevant to the improvement of education. These $27,500 fellowships support individuals whose dissertations show potential for bringing fresh and constructive perspectives to the history, theory, analysis, or practice of formal or informal education anywhere in the world. This highly competitive program aims to identify the most talented researchers conducting dissertation research related to education. 

The purpose of the American Dissertation Fellowship is to offset a scholar’s living expenses while she completes her dissertation. The fellowship must be used for the final year of writing the dissertation. 

Applicants must have completed all coursework, passed all preliminary examinations, and received approval for their research proposals or plans by the preceding November. Students holding fellowships for writing a dissertation in the year prior to the AAUW fellowships year are not eligible. Open to applicants in all fields of study. Scholars engaged in science, technology, engineering and math fields or those researching gender issues are especially encouraged to apply. 

The AERA Minority Dissertation Fellowship in Education Research is open to U.S. citizens and permanent residents who are members of racial and ethnic groups historically underrepresented in higher education (e.g., African Americans, Alaskan Natives, American Indians, Asian Americans, Hispanics or Latinos, and Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islanders). Applicants can come from graduate programs and departments in education research, the humanities, or social or behavioral science disciplinary or interdisciplinary fields, such as economics, history, political science, psychology, public policy, or sociology. Eligible graduate students will be at the writing stage of their dissertation by the beginning of the fellowship. Fellows are required to provide proof of advancement to candidacy at the beginning of the award period. Applicants must work full-time on their dissertations and course requirements.