Numerous fellowship opportunities offer financial compensation and serve as valuable additions to a strong resumé or CV. More details about these programs, as well as others, can be found on the Kenneth P. Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences webpage. Examples of such fellowships include, but are not limited to, the following:
- Departmental Awards and Scholarships
Scholarship forms for 2026 awards are now closed. For scholarship descriptions, click here.
The Department of Geology and Environmental Science also provides small awards for graduate research and fieldwork from several funds. These awards are based on a combination of merit and need. For the 2026 scholarship descriptions, please see the GES Graduate Awards document.
Links to the applications for these awards are generally available at the end of the fall semester, and are due in January for the upcoming academic year.
- External Fellowships, Awards, and Scholarships
Pennsylvania Sea Grant: Knauss Marine Policy Fellowship
Pennsylvania Sea Grant is excited to announce that the application period for the 2027 Sea Grant Knauss Marine Policy fellowship is now open.
The Sea Grant Knauss Fellowship places graduate students interested in ocean, coastal and Great Lakes resources in executive and legislative offices where they contribute to real-world policy work. Fellows bring science, innovation and fresh perspectives to decision-making and leave with practical skills and a national professional network.
Administered by the National Sea Grant College Program, the Knauss Fellowship is one of the nation’s premier marine policy fellowship programs. Students receive a unique educational and professional experience at the intersection of science, policy and public service. Fellows are matched with host offices in the legislative and executive offices for an immersive year of hands-on policy experience.
Contact Sean Rafferty, Ph.D., Research Director, at srafferty@psu.edu, by April 30, 2026, to confirm your interest and set up a meeting to discuss the fellowship. For more information, please see the Pennsylvania Sea Grant Knauss Fellowship website.
Deadline for Meeting with PSG: April 30, 2026
Application Deadline: June 3, 2026
Katherine McKenna Horticulture Scholarship
The 2026 annual Katherine McKenna Horticulture Scholarship is now taking applications for the $1,500 prize. Award of the Scholarship is based on relevant field of study, academic achievement, community service and financial need .
Anyone pursuing a 2 or 4 year degree in botany, horticulture, forestry, landscaping, environmental science or related fields is welcome to apply for the scholarship.
- Candidates must have completed at least one year in an accredited college pursuing a 2 or 4 year degree in Botany, Horticulture, Forestry, Landscape Architecture or a related field;
- The Scholarship is for qualifying students living in Westmoreland County and ALL its bordering PA counties.
- Graduate students may also apply.
The deadline is May 31, 2026.
For more info please call (724) 837-0245.
- Summer Opportunities
EarthScope Consortium Technical Course Summer Season
EarthScope Consortium offers technical courses—developed in collaboration with the community—to support effective use of tools, data, and resources from the NSF National Geophysical Facility.
These courses serve a broad audience, including researchers seeking to expand their skills and early career scientists such as postdocs, graduate students, and advanced undergraduates looking for hands-on experience with the latest geophysical and computational techniques.
To learn more about the program, please see the EarthScope Consortium Courses page, and see the Event Calendar for the specific courses running this summer.
CLaSH Graduate Summer Field School
Are you interested in studying land surface hazards like landslides and post-fire debris flows? And understanding how these processes relate to triggers like earthquakes and storms? Does the study of extreme events to serve societal needs and advance understanding of how geomorphic systems work appeal to you? Would training on cutting-edge technology to measure land surface change following disasters advance your graduate education?
If these questions speak to you, check out our graduate summer field course sponsored by the Center for Land Surface Hazards (CLaSH). It’s an NSF-supported opportunity to advance your skills, knowledge and connections to other researchers with an intensive, hands-on training experience in Colorado this summer. Better yet, it is an action-packed, six-day experience designed to fit into busy graduate student schedules.
The field course will take place from July 27 - August 1, 2026.
For more information, please see the CLaSH Graduate Summer Field School website.
Application Deadline: April 30, 2026
CRESCENT Paleoseismology Technical Short Course
Led by members of the Cascadia Paleoseismology (CPAL) and Community Fault Model (CFM) working groups, this five-day field-based technical short course will expose participants to paleoearthquake studies and their application to understanding fault behavior in space and time. Travel, lodging, and meals will be provided.
The course will take place between August 30 - September 5, 2026, in Coos County, OR.
Topics to be integrated include principles of subsidence stratigraphy, ecology-based paleoseismic studies, tsunami deposit mapping, trench-based active fault paleoseismology, high resolution lidar topography, and surficial geologic mapping.
This course is for graduate students, postdocs, and early career professionals involved in or conducting earthquake research who have specific research or application needs for using or collecting paleoseismic data. We encourage applicants from all geoscience fields and backgrounds, including field and lab-based investigators and numerical modelers, to apply.
To learn more and apply, please click the following link: CRESCENT Paleoseismology Short Course
Application Deadline: May 22, 2026
- Newly Announced Fellowships: 2026
Provost’s Dissertation Completion Fellowship
Fellowship applications for Spring and Summer 2026 have now closed; more information on applications for Fall 2026 will be available soon.
The goal of the Provost’s Dissertation Completion Fellowship is to support doctoral students who have exhausted all existing sources of funding and anticipate defending their dissertation in the term in which they receive the fellowship. The fellowship provides dedicated time for research doctoral students to focus full-time on finishing their dissertation during their last term of doctoral studies. Students must have their dissertation proposal/overview approved by November 1, 2025, in order to receive the Spring 2026 or Summer 2026 fellowship.
- Recruitment Fellowships
K. Leroy Irvis Fellowship
In 1994, the University of Pittsburgh established the K. Leroy Irvis Fellowships to enhance the academic excellence and diversity of the Pitt's graduate student body and prepare doctoral students for academic and research careers. Each year, schools select distinguished doctoral applicants who have demonstrated outstanding academic achievement to participate in this prestigious program, which provides a non-duty-bearing fellowship for the student’s first year of doctoral study as well as academic guidance and cohort-based mentoring throughout the student’s doctoral studies.
Whittington Predoctoral Fellowship
The Whittington Fellowship is awarded to incoming female doctoral students of exceptional ability and promise who are admitted to a University of Pittsburgh PhD program in the Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences. The recipient is selected on the basis of academic achievement in both undergraduate and graduate work (if applicable) and promise of research capabilities, with preference being given to those who are residents of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The Whittington Fellowship includes a stipend for the academic year plus a tuition scholarship for two terms.
- Predoctoral Fellowships for Continuing Ph.D. Students
Andrew Mellon Predoctoral Fellowships
These fellowships are awarded to students of exceptional promise and ability either when they first enroll in the PhD program or when they have advanced to the dissertation stage. They carry a stipend plus payment of tuition. No service is required.
Departmental Requirements for 2026-27 are available here: Mellon Fellowship
Alfredo D. and Luz Maria P. Gutierrez Fellowships
Fellowships are awarded to graduate students of exceptional ability and promise whose research is focused on Latin America. Recruiting programs nominate admitted students.
Departmental Requirements for 2026-27 are available here: Gutierrez Fellowship
Leo B. and Teresa Y. Wegemer Endowed STEM Fellowship
Established to support students of exceptional promise in their pursuit of high-impact scientific research. Fellowship grants will be awarded to support the research of two exceptional, current, full-time students who are pursuing a Ph.D. degree in the Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences STEM fields. The following departments will be eligible to nominate up to two students for consideration: Biological Sciences, Chemistry, Geology & Environmental Science, Mathematics, Neuroscience, and Physics & Astronomy.
Provost's Development Fellowships
These University fellowships are awarded to U.S. citizens on the basis of need and merit to provide development opportunities for women, minorities, and disadvantaged students pursuing doctoral degrees. They generally carry a stipend and full tuition for two terms. Both incoming and continuing students are eligible to apply.
- Additional Internal Fellowships
Arts and Sciences Fellowships
A&S Fellowships are used to recruit doctoral students of exceptional promise and ability either when they first enroll in the PhD program or for later years. They carry a stipend plus remission of tuition. The stipend includes funds with which to purchase health insurance. No service is required.
Dean's Tuition Scholarships
A limited number of tuition scholarships are available for students who are not funded by teaching assistantships or fellowships. Priority is given to students who have completed all course requirements, are working on their dissertations, have exhausted all departmental support, and need to be minimally registered in order to use University facilities.
Dean's Tuition Scholarship applications for Summer 2026 are now open. More information is available on the Dietrich Graduate Studies website.
The Deborah Gillotti Graduate Fellowship
In 2006, University alumna and Trustee Deborah Gillotti generously created a fund to support educational and research expenses for Pitt graduate students with the potential to become leaders. Fellowship funding is available to students who have a unique experiential learning opportunity that will propel their education and future career--and need funds to be able to realize the opportunity.
To be eligible, students must be enrolled in (and in good standing) any graduate program at the University of Pittsburgh - OR - be admitted to a graduate program at the University of Pittsburgh. Note, for admitted students, applications should come from the admitting department/school on behalf of the student (i.e., applying for summer research funding to complement other funding packages) and will be subject to the student accepting the offer of admission. International students are eligible to receive Gillotti Fellowships. Multiple awards of between $5,000 to $10,000 will be made each year. Awards may be for one-time opportunities or can be renewable through the final year of study (when applicable). Preference will be given to students who have proven leadership skills developed before entering a graduate program at the University or are recognized to have long-term leadership potential that will be enhanced by their graduate training AND are pursuing research related to emerging market nations. Deadline: March 29.
Dolores Zohrab Liebmann Fund
First offered in 2024, these fellowships are awarded to students to support outstanding graduate students in any recognized field of study in the humanities, social sciences, or natural sciences. The amount of each fellowship will cover the cost of tuition and an additional stipend to be allocated towards room, board, living expenses, and income taxes. Additionally, the Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences will supplement the stipend up to the TF rate and cover the cost of health insurance. Fellowships may be renewed for up to three years.
The criteria and requirements for the fellowships are:
- Significance and quality of research.
- Outstanding undergraduate record.
- Demonstrated need for financial assistance (note that finalists will be required to submit their federal tax returns and a FAFSA as part of their application materials).
- Research carried out entirely in the United States of America.
- Candidate must be a citizen of the United States of America and enrolled in an accredited and designated institution of higher education in the United States.
Elsie Hillman Civic Forum, Institute of Politics
The Elsie Hillman Civic Forum at the University of Pittsburgh Institute of Politics is excited to share that information is available regarding applications for their civic engagement programming for the 2026-2027 academic year! They have paid and unpaid opportunities for graduate and undergraduate students.
Each program's application will open in Spring 2026: Graduate student opportunities include:
Ambassadors for Civic Engagement Fellowship> - A team of graduate students with one community partner to assist the organization with developing and implementing a large project or program.
Elsie Civic Engagement Internship – This program offers an undergraduate or graduate student the opportunity to intern with the IOP's Elsie Hillman Civic Forum where they will learn more about community and civic engagement programming and outreach.
Institute of Politics (IOP) Policy Internship – For over 20 years, both undergraduate and graduate students have engaged in regional policy research, networking, and learn about regional policy issues.
- Requests for Proposals
These external opportunities are updated as we receive information from various organizations:
Organization Fellowship Description Link Date Posted