Blume

Hey Pandoravox, I read The Chronicle of Higher Education almost everyday, and the posts on the forum are interesting, to say the least! We have so much to look forward to if we pursue careers in academia! I know quite a few doctoral candidates in their fourth and fifth years who have received national fellowships. I can answer your other questions through private message or email. Good luck!

I applied for a bunch of dissertation completion fellowships. I earned one national fellowship and am on a waitlist for another national fellowship. I wasn't required to submit a dissertation chapter for either application, but I did have to submit my dissertation prospectus, which was quite rough. I think my application was successful because I articulated how my research fit with the funding organization's mission. Maybe it goes without saying, but it's not enough, as I've learned, to articulate the obvious--that the dissertation fellowship will help you complete your dissertation and become a scholar. They know that already; you've got to convey the "how" of it. If your university offers a grant writing workshop, take it! Your proposal has to be clear, concise, and attractive. I've been told to use a hook when writing the proposal; however, I don't think my proposal had a hook. Anyway I benefited from workshopping my proposal and other application materials with a writing group. They were just the right kind of audience--non-specialists, intelligent readers. They reminded me to go back to the basics when crafting the proposal. Also check out this thread on the Chronicle of Higher Education website. More suggestions are provided there.

Congrats, peeta pie! When do you have to send in your notification of acceptance letter?

Alternate status for me this year. I applied for the Dissertation Fellowship. 20 awards, 500 applications. Wow. I was an alternate for the Predoc a few years ago. No one declined in my field/subject area so I ended up with Honorable Mention. These awards are tough to get. For anyone out there who got the Dissertation Fellowship, when do you have to send in your accept/decline letter?