Graduate Student Awards

ETSU Graduate School

award banner graduate school

Here you can find awards that are available to our graduate students. You can view previous awardees on our history page.

  • Award for Service Projects
     

    Objective

    1. The relationship between graduate education and the public good is currently receiving increased attention and promotion by several national organizations including the Council of Graduate Schools.
    2. This award is designed to encourage and recognize graduate student service projects at ETSU that enhance the public good, broadly defined as service to the community or university.

    Award Details

    • One award is given out each year.
    • The award consists of a plaque and a monetary honorarium of $500.00.

    Eligibility

    1. Service must have "promoted the public good" not for personal or financial gain.
    2. Common examples include defense, law enforcement, environmental goods, health promotion, counseling, support services, public education, global needs, humanitarian aid, public history projects, and information management.
    3. Service should be directly related to the graduate student's educational experience at ETSU.
    4. No paid services may be considered.
    5. Service effort must have occurred during the student's graduate tenure at ETSU.
    6. Students may receive this award only once.

    Nominations

    1. The student is nominated by an ETSU faculty member, and all nomination materials are submitted using the online nomination form.
    2. Although individual departments may wish to develop their own nomination procedures, all nominations for the award must be routed through and approved by the Department Chair.

    Application Packet

    1. A letter of nomination from the Graduate Coordinator that includes a description of the service project, and it must be cosigned by the Department Chair.
    2. All nominees are required to submit a service portfolio that includes the following information:
      • Note: The letter may include any additional service activities (ex. ETSU sponsored projects) that are not directly related to the nominee's program of study.
    3. A service philosophy statement written by the student.
    4. A letter from the nominee describing the service including the time and/or level of commitment required to complete nomination project(s).
    5. Two letters of endorsement that address the significance of the impact of service(s) performed.
    6. One from the supervisor of the services performed.
    7. One from anyone in the community who has had an opportunity to observe the performance of the service.

    Application Deadline

    1. The application deadline is February 15th each year. (Extended to March 1 for 2024)
    2. Decisions should be reached by the first week of April.
    3. A committee of one Graduate School dean, two Graduate Council members, and two regular full-time tenured or tenure-track faculty members with graduate status will evaluate the applications.
    4. Recipients will be notified through a letter from the ETSU Graduate School. Notification will occur by the beginning of April. Copies of the letter will be sent to their advisory committee chair and their departmental chair. An award ceremony will be held later in April to recognize award recipients.
  • Outstanding Thesis, Dissertation, and Capstone Awards

    Objectives

    1. To recognize outstanding graduate students for their achievements
    2. To increase the profile of graduate education at ETSU
    3. To help promote excellence in graduate research

    Award Details

    Up to five awards will be given out each year, one for each of the following:

    1. Outstanding Capstone
    2. Outstanding Dissertation
    3. Outstanding Thesis in Art and Humanities
    4. Outstanding Thesis in Science, Math, Technology, and Computer Science
    5. Outstanding Thesis in Social Science and Education

    Individual plaques as well as a monetary award of $500.00 (as funds allow) for each award recipient will be presented at an annual awards ceremony in April sponsored by the ETSU Graduate School. One large plaque for each type of award will be on display in the ETSU Graduate School lobby.

    Eligibility Requirements

    1. Students must be nominated in writing by an ETSU graduate faculty member.
    2. Thesis or dissertations must be approved by the students advisory committee, have been successfully defended, and received final approval from the Graduate School.
    3. Capstone/culminating project write-ups (non-thesis) must have received final approval from the applicant's adviser or department, and a copy must be submitted with the nomination.
    4. Nominees must be in good academic standing (have a minimum GPA of 3.0) with expected graduation in the current academic year or have graduated within the previous 12 months.
    5. Students nominated in a previous year are not eligible for re-nomination.

    Nomination Procedures

    Applications will be submitted to the ETSU Graduate School.

    1. The student is nominated by an ETSU faculty member, and all nomination materials are submitted using the appropriate online nomination form from above.
    2. Attach a copy of the student's curriculum vitae (3 pages max).
      (Note: Theses and dissertations have a CV included, although this is usually very brief. The CV supplied with the nomination can be up to 3 pages in length.)
    3. Nominations are due by February 15th each year.(Extended to March 1 for 2024)

    Evaluation of Nominees

    1. Nominations will be reviewed by committee (1 per award category or sub-category). Each committee will be made up of ETSU graduate faculty members with expertise in the general categories, and they will be chaired by a member of the ETSU graduate council.
    2. The dean or assistant dean of the ETSU Graduate School who is responsible for the approval of ETD's will also attend each meeting. Each committee has the right to decline choosing an award recipient for any given year depending upon the quality of the nomination pool.
    3. Recipients will be notified through a letter from the ETSU Graduate School. Notification will occur by the beginning of April. Copies of the letter will be sent to their advisory committee chair and the
  • Small Grants in Support

     

    Spring Deadline: 15 February (All Categories)

    Fall Deadline: 1 November (Capstone Only)

     

     

    The funding period is for July of the current year to June of the next year and only expenses incurred during that time period will be funded.

     

    The Graduate school is accepting proposals for grant funding in the following categories:

    1. Arts, Humanities, Social Sciences and Digital Media
    2.  Capstone Projects
    3. Thesis or Dissertation Research

    Objectives

    1. To increase sources of financial support for scholarly or creative activities for graduate students in the arts, humanities, social sciences and digital media; enrolled in programs with capstone projects; or conducting thesis or dissertation research.
    2. To increase the profile of graduate education at ETSU.
    3. To help promote excellence in graduate education.

    Eligibility

    1. Graduate students conducting scholarly or creative projects as part of their culminating program requirement (i.e., thesis, capstone, or exhibition) are eligible to apply.

    2. All applicants, must have completed at least one semester of graduate enrollment, will still be a graduate student at ETSU for at least one of the Summer 2025, Fall 2025 or Spring 2025 semesters, and be in good standing (have a minimum graduate GPA of 3.0) at the time the award is made (Fall: 1 December, Spring: 1 April).

    3. The grant period will be Fall: 1 December to 1 May 2025; Spring: 1 July 2025 to 30 June 2026. Only proposals that include this period will be considered.

    Arts, Humanities, Social Sciences and Digital Media

    1. Individuals, or groups of graduate students working on the same scholarly activity/project may apply as a group
    2. For individuals, the applicant shall be the Main Contact, MC.
    3. For groups, one member of the group shall be designated as the MC. Communication about the proposal will be made to the MC.
    4. The other members of the group shall be designated group members.
    5. A graduate faculty member must have been selected as the scholarly activity/project advisor.
    6. Only one grant may be received for a given scholarly activity/project.

    Capstone Projects

    1. Individuals, or groups of graduate students working on the same project may apply as a group.
    2. For individuals, the applicant shall be the principal investigator, PI.
    3. For groups, one member of the group shall be designated as the PI. Communication about the proposal will be made to the PI.
    4. The other members of the group shall be designated co-principal investigators, co-PI's.
    5. A graduate faculty member must have been selected as the project advisor.
    6. Only one grant may be received for a given capstone project.

    Thesis or Dissertation Research

    1. The graduate student shall be the principal investigator, PI.
    2. The PI must be conducting thesis or dissertation research as part of their graduate program. 
    3. The PI must have chosen a graduate committee chair and/or their program advisory committee.
    4. Preference for larger awards will be given to students working on projects and/or with mentors with no other source of funding.
    5. Master's students may only receive a grant once.
    6. Doctoral students may receive a maximum of two grants.

    Proposal

    The proposal is to be included with this application form as a single PDF document (see below). It is to consist of:

    1. A maximum of three (3) single-spaced pages of narrative and one (1) budget page.
    2. Margins must be a minimum of one inch (1") or 2.54 cm, and the font must be 12 pt. or larger.
    3. Proposals not meeting these requirements will not be considered for funding

    Narrative

    1. Briefly describe your scholarly activity/project in non-technical language. Include in this description:
    2. Background information on the topic,
    3. Specific goals,
    4. A summary of preliminary results (Capstone and Thesis/Dissertation only), or work (if available), and
    5. A timetable for completion of the scholarly activity/project.
    6. The narrative must not exceed three (3) single-space pages including all figures, but not including references.
    7. References should be included on a separate page, be in a standard format for your discipline, and provide the names of all authors and the full title.

    Budget

    On one (1) page:

    1. Provide a list of specific expenditures and a justification for each.
    2. Also include a budget rationale (describe why this grant is necessary and how it will be used to further your scholarly activity/project).
    3. Give the actual cost for each item, that is, do not "round up" or estimate prices.
    4. Awards will be for a minimum of $500.00 and a maximum of $1,000.00.
    5. Requests outside of this range will not be considered.
    6. If the budget total exceeds $1,000.00, a specific requested amount must be given, and the justification must include a description of the source of the additional funds.

    Application Procedures

    Applications are to be submitted to the ETSU Graduate School using the online application form. Instructions are also available on this form.

    1. Applications are due February 15th
    2. The application will consist of the completed online application form and a proposal (see above). 
    3. Each proposal must have a graduate faculty member who has agreed to be the advisor. For Capstone Projects, the advisor must be the project advisor. For Thesis or Dissertation Research, the advisor must be the student’s Thesis or Dissertation Committee Chair. The advisor/committee chair must complete the online committee chair’s agreement form for the application to be considered for funding. This form will be sent directly to the advisor/chair after the the application form and proposal are submitted

    Evaluation of Applications

    Proposals will be reviewed in early March by a committee chaired by a member of the ETSU Graduate Council and composed of ETSU graduate faculty members. 

    Number of Grants

    Up to four (4) grants will be awarded in each of the Arts, Arts, Humanities, Social Sciences, and Digital Media; and Capstone Projects, and up to eight (8) in Thesis or Dissertation Research (funding permitting).

    Award Presentation & Posting

    1. The main contact/principal investigator and the advisor will be notified by the graduate school via email after a decision is made (early April). 
    2. Grant recipients will be invited to attend the Graduate School’s Awards Ceremony, held in mid-April, to receive a certificate marking the receipt of the grant.

    Grant Expenditure Process

    1. Grant accounts will be set up under the advisor’s/committee chair’s name. All purchases must be made using e-Bucs.

    2. Grant recipients must include acknowledgment of support from the ETSU Graduate School Small Grants in Support programs in any publications that result from the scholar activity, project or research. For Thesis or Dissertation Research grant recipients, this includes their thesis or dissertation.

     

  • Excellence in Teaching Awards
     

    Objectives

    To encourage and recognize excellence in teaching by graduate teaching assistants and graduate teaching associates.

    Award Details

    1. Two awards may be given out each year: one at the teaching assistant level and another at the teaching associate level.
    2. The awards consist of a plaque and a monetary honorarium of $500.00 a piece.

    Eligibility

    1. Students must be currently enrolled graduate teaching assistants or teaching associates or have taught once during the past three semesters to be eligible.
    2. Moreover, graduate teaching associates must have been listed as the instructor of record.
    3. Students may only receive each award once during their academic tenure at ETSU.

    Nominations

    1. The student is nominated by an ETSU faculty member, and all nomination materials are submitted using the online nomination form.
    2. Although individual departments may wish to develop their own nomination procedures, all nominations for the award must be routed through and approved by the departmental chair.
    3. Each department may nominate only one teaching assistant and one teaching associate.

    Application Packet

    1. A letter of nomination from the Graduate Coordinator that includes a description of teaching responsibilities is required, and it must be cosigned by the Department Chair.
    2. Table Listing all classes taught at ETSU including dates
    3. All nominees are required to submit a teaching portfolio that includes the following information:
    4. A teaching statement written by the student.
    5. Evaluative feedback (i.e., SAI summaries, faculty and student evaluations, etc.)
    6. Up to 5 additional letters of support (ex. undergraduate students, fellow graduate students, faculty supervisors, staff members, etc.)
    7. Graduate Teaching Associates who are instructors of record are also required to submit the following instructional materials:
      1. Syllabus
      2. Sample Exams
      3. D2L site access
    8. Graduate Teaching Assistants may also include samples of exams and/or quizzes that hey have written, if that is part of the job requirement.
    9. The nominee's curriculum vitae (CV).
    10. The application packet must be sent to Dr. Scott Kirkby, Assistant Dean ETSU Graduate School by email at

    Application Deadline

    1. The application deadline is February 15th each year. (Extended to March 1 for 2024)
    2. Decisions should be reached by the first week of April
    3. A committee of one Graduate dean, two Graduate Council members, and two regular, full-time tenured or tenure-track faculty members with graduate status will evaluate the applications
    4. Recipients will be notified through a letter from the ETSU Graduate School. Notification will occur by the beginning of April. Copies of the letter will be sent to their advisory committee chair and their departmental chair. An award ceremony will be held later in April to recognize award recipients.