Minority Dissertation Fellowship Program in Education Research Grant

Minority Dissertation Fellowship Program in Education Research Grant

Status: ACTIVE
Funder: American Educational Research Association
Amount: Up to US $25,000
Last Updated: September 14, 2025

Summary

The AERA Minority Dissertation Fellowship in Education Research aims to enhance diversity in education research by supporting doctoral dissertation projects from advanced graduate students belonging to historically underrepresented racial and ethnic groups. By providing a $25,000 stipend and opportunities for mentorship, the program encourages high-quality research across various educational topics, including STEM education and achievement gaps. This fellowship not only aids in academic development but also fosters the competitiveness of minority scholars in higher education.

Overview

About the AERA Minority Dissertation Fellowship in Education Research The American Educational Research Association (AERA) Council in 1991 established the AERA Minority Dissertation Fellowship in Education Research to enhance the racial and ethnic diversity of faculty, scholars, and researchers who study topics in education research. This fellowship is targeted for 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). The Fellowship Program aims to provide support for doctoral dissertation research, to advance education research by outstanding minority graduate students, and to enhance these students’ competitiveness for academic appointments at major research universities. It supports fellows conducting education research and provides mentoring, capacity building activities, and guidance toward the completion of their doctoral studies. The Program Fellows have produced rigorous research that is published in peer reviewed journals, books, and edited volumes. Many of the recent Program Fellows are in postdoctoral positions and assistant professor positions at Research I institutions including Georgia State University, Harvard University, University of Georgia, the University of Southern California, and Southern Methodist University. Other fellows have careers in applied research and policy positions at various organizations. Call for Proposals The AERA Minority Dissertation Fellowship Program in Education Research seeks proposals from advanced graduate students who are from racial and ethnic groups that are underrepresented in higher education. The Fellowship Program encourages studies that examine a wide range of education research topics such as students’ school experiences, STEM education and learning, ethnic studies/curriculum; tracking; measurement of achievement and opportunity gaps; English language learners; or bullying and restorative justice. These studies may focus on students, teachers, schools, and/or educational contexts across multiple educational stages including early childhood education and development, k-12 education, postsecondary education, and the workforce. Studies should use rigorous scientific research methods within quantitative, qualitative, archival, and/or mixed method techniques. Studies that examine issues of specific racial and ethnic groups, social classes, genders, or persons with disabilities are encouraged and supported by the Fellowship Program. Award Award Component 1 - $25,000 StipendAward Component 2 - Present Research at Invited AERA Poster SessionAward Component 3 - AERA Minority Fellows Mentoring and Career Development Workshop The budget must include funds to attend the AERA Annual Meeting. The funds can be used for research-related expenses such as tuition, living expenses, travel to secure data enclaves or scholarly conferences, books, computer equipment, and other expenses directly related to conducting this research. AERA encourages cost sharing from universities in the form of tuition assistance, office space, university fees, and other expenses.

Eligibility

You can learn more about this opportunity by visiting the funder's website. 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.Fellowships are awarded for doctoral dissertation research conducted under faculty sponsorship in any accredited university in the United States.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.

Ineligibility

Institutions cannot charge overhead or indirect costs to administer the fellowship funds.