AAA Minority Dissertation Fellowship Program

The Award

The American Anthropological Association invites minority doctoral candidates in anthropology to apply for a dissertation writing fellowship of $10,000. The annual AAA Minority Dissertation Fellowship is intended to encourage members of racialized minorities to complete doctoral degrees in anthropology, thereby increasing diversity in the discipline and/or promoting research on issues of concern among minority populations. Dissertation topics in all areas of the discipline are welcome. Doctoral students who require financial assistance to complete the write-up phase of the dissertation are urged to apply.

A nonrenewable dissertation fellowship of $10,000 will be provided annually to one anthropology graduate student.

Read About Past Minority Dissertation Fellowship Winners

Eligibility

An applicant must be: (1) a US citizen and either graduated from a U.S. high school, or completed a GED certificate in the United States; (2) a member of an historically underrepresented U.S. racialized minority groups, including, but not limited to: African Americans, Alaskan Natives, American Indians or Native Americans, Asian Americans, Latino/as, Chicano/as, and Pacific Islanders; (3) enrolled in a full-time academic program leading to a doctoral degree in anthropology at the time of application (4) admitted to degree candidacy before the dissertation fellowship is awarded; and (5) a member of the American Anthropological Association. The dissertation proposal must be approved by the applicant's committee prior to application. Students of any subfield or specialty in anthropology will receive equal consideration.

Eligibility Requirements

• Candidates must have a record of outstanding academic achievement.
• Applicants must be members of the American Anthropological Association at least one month prior to submitting materials for the AAA Minority Dissertation Fellowship Program.  
• Applicants must have had their dissertation proposals approved by their dissertation committees prior to application.
• The dissertation research must be in an area of anthropological research.
• The recipient of the fellowship must be in need of a fellowship to complete the dissertation. The applicant will be required to provide information regarding their current financial and funding situation.

Award

Decisions will be based upon the quality of the submitted information and the likelihood that the recipient will have a good chance at completing the dissertation. The AAA Committee on Minority Issues in Anthropology will serve as the selection panel. The award recipient will be notified by telephone and mail as soon as the decision is made, no later than the 1st week of July. The award will also be announced in the October or November Anthropology News.

After completion of the dissertation, by June 15th, the award recipient must submit a 1-page report specifying the status of the degree and the dissertation's defense, along with a copy of the dissertation abstract, to the Executive Director of the AAA. The dissertation committee chair or head of the department should cosign this report. Highlights of this report may be published in AN.

Payment of Award

Fellowship funds will be paid directly to the awardee (rather than the institution) in two equal installments: one by September 10th and the second by January 10th. Award will be reported to the Internal Revenue Service.

The online application is available until February 15.

Questions?

If you have any questions, please contact Emilia Guevara at eguevara@aaanet.org or 703-528-1902.