Louisville Institute: Dissertation Fellowship Grant

The Louisville Institute's Dissertation Fellowship provides $35,000 to Ph.D. and Th.D. students in the final year of dissertation writing, focusing on Christian faith and related disciplines. It encourages projects that bridge the church and academia, fostering new knowledge for the church's enrichment. Recipients must attend a mandatory Winter Seminar in Louisville, KY, for collaboration and sharing of ideas. Applicants should complete their dissertations within the following year, adhering to specific eligibility criteria.

NOTE:

• The Pre-Proposal deadline represents when the Application is due.The Full Proposal deadline represents when the Letters of Recommendation are due.
• Dissertation Fellowship
• What are Dissertation Fellowships?

The Louisville Institute Dissertation Fellowship offers US$35,000 grants to support the final year of dissertation writing for Ph.D. or Th.D. students whose research focuses on Christian faith and life, the practice of ministry, religious trends and movements, Christian and other faith-based institutions, and religion and social issues. Dissertation projects may emerge from diverse fields such as history, systematic and practical theology, social sciences, ethics, biblical studies, etc., or may be interdisciplinary in nature. Of particular interest to the Louisville Institute are projects with the potential to bridge church and academy, and to generate new knowledge that enriches the life of the church in North America. Students applying in this year should expect to complete their dissertations during the following calendar year.
Dissertation Fellows also attend Winter Seminar, a three-day gathering in Louisville, KY, in which award recipients from four different Louisville Institute programs gather to share their projects and engage in valuable collaboration together. Attending this event is a requirement of receiving a Dissertation Fellowship.

Eligibility

Eligible applicants:are candidates for a Ph.D. or Th.D. degree at an accredited graduate school in the United States or Canada
are U.S. or Canadian citizens or international students with appropriate student visas to study in North America
are on track to fulfill all pre-dissertation requirements, including approval of the dissertation proposal, by the deadline of the year they applyexpect to complete and defend the dissertation during the next calendar yearLI Doctoral Fellows are welcome to apply for the Dissertation Fellowship program. If you have previously received another Louisville Institute grant, you are eligible and encouraged to apply, but all program and financial reports for any earlier grants must be submitted by July 1.Additionally, the Louisville Institute Dissertation Fellowship is intended to supplement — not to replace — financial support you would otherwise receive from your doctoral institution during the period of the Louisville Institute grant. If your doctoral institution chooses to lessen or discontinue your financial support because you receive a Louisville Institute Dissertation Fellowship, let them know that the Louisville Institute will withdraw the fellowship award.

Ineligibility

If you have previously received and declined an LI Dissertation Fellowship, you are not eligible to apply again. Please note that as a Louisville Institute grantee or fellow you may not simultaneously hold two grants that total more than $55,000 from Lilly Endowment-funded organizations, nor can you accept a Louisville Institute Dissertation Fellowship and another comparable dissertation completion grant at the same time. This does not preclude you from applying for grants from other institutions; if you are awarded a Louisville Institute Dissertation Fellowship and grants from other sources we will discuss options with you, including the possibility of being an Honorary Louisville Institute Dissertation Fellow. Because the Louisville Institute is housed at Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary, members of the seminary’s Board, staff, or student body or their immediate family members (parents, spouse, or children) are not eligible for LI grants or fellowships. Applicants may not submit applications to more than one Louisville Institute grant or fellowship program within the same grant year