Javits Fellowship 2011

[ringo2009]

There was a different recording when I called earlier today - at least I'm pretty sure it's different. And I think the voice said that successful applicants would be notified by late March...??? I am so confused.

You are right, I just called too and it did infact say late March, but last week I think it was early March...

[jlbigham]

Yeah I called today, and it definitely said the end of March. I don't know if it is good or bad that it is going to take longer to hear back.

[ringo2009]

Weird though as some people have already heard back?? Maybe that was just an initial round?

[displayname]

My guess is that the new message is referring to the date by which both primary candidates (who were notified last week) and alternates (who are supposed to hear by the end of the month) have been notified. Several people have said that Carmen confirmed that she finished notifying primary candidates last week.

Weird though as some people have already heard back?? Maybe that was just an initial round?

[far_to_go]

Ahh, the suspense is killing me! I sent a polite e-mail inquiry to OPE_Javits_Program@ed.gov on Monday, but haven't heard anything back yet. If you've sent in an e-mail and gotten a response, would you mind saying whether you also e-mailed that address? Thanks!

[far_to_go]

Got the following e-mail today:

"Thanks for your email. The first round of fellowship offers have been made to the top 33 candidates. If funding becomes available after continuation awards are made, offers will be made to alternate candidates. If you haven't received an offer by the end of August, you can assume that your application was not in funding range."

I guess that means I'm an alternate. Oh boy, more waiting :-/

[tapshoes]

I received an email from the Department of Ed. this afternoon, notifying me that I've been selected as an alternate candidate. According to the letter, alternates are awarded fellowships if there are remaining funds after "the financial commitment to the continuing Javits fellows has been met."

Any current/prospective fellows out there know how this works if you already have full-funding offers?

[zoltan]

this question is irrelevant for most of you, but i thought someone might know the answer...

are phd students who have completed a year in their program ineligible to apply? especially those who do not have a master's to begin with?

the information on the website seems somewhat contradictory. it says students need to have completed less than full year, but the application only becomes available in august, meaning that anyone currenty enrolled who missed the fall deadline will already have accrued one year's worth of credits. also, assuming on is in fact ineligible after completing the first year, then what happens if one changes programs and starts over as a "first year" in a new program, does that change eligibility status?

just trying to figure out how this all works.

cheers.

[snooze]

this question is irrelevant for most of you, but i thought someone might know the answer...

are phd students who have completed a year in their program ineligible to apply? especially those who do not have a master's to begin with?

the information on the website seems somewhat contradictory. it says students need to have completed less than full year, but the application only becomes available in august, meaning that anyone currenty enrolled who missed the fall deadline will already have accrued one year's worth of credits. also, assuming on is in fact ineligible after completing the first year, then what happens if one changes programs and starts over as a "first year" in a new program, does that change eligibility status?

just trying to figure out how this all works.

cheers.

I think that if you are already in grad school, you can only apply within the first semester of your first year. If that makes sense. So really you can only apply during your senior year of undergrad, your gap year(s) before you start, or after being in grad school for like a month.

[gradwoes]

Got an email telling me I'm an alternate. Ah, gotta love the liminal space!

[Myshkin]

Turdburglers at DOE never even confirmed they received my app, even though it was postmarked with everything included. Go figure...

[gradstudenthistory]

I received an email from the Department of Ed. this afternoon, notifying me that I've been selected as an alternate candidate. According to the letter, alternates are awarded fellowships if there are remaining funds after "the financial commitment to the continuing Javits fellows has been met."

Any current/prospective fellows out there know how this works if you already have full-funding offers?

I am not sure how many alternates they actually name, but my impression is that a good number of them end up getting the fellowship. I was named an alternate and ultimately won the fellowship. If you look at the funding status on the website, it always appears every year that they are naming somewhere around 30 fellows, even though in past years they've done something more like 65 or 70. My impression is that they award fellowships conservatively to make sure that they have enough funding for everyone they've promised. This includes confirming continuing fellows, which doesn't happen until around May, I believe. I was informed that I made it off the wait list and got the grant over the summer. I believe I heard sometime in mid-to-late July, although I can't remember precisely.

But, if my understanding is correct, somewhere around half -- if not more -- of existing fellows were originally alternates. And like I said, I have no idea how many alternates they name, but I think you have a lot better than a shot in the dark.

If you want a realistic assessment of your odds, you could try writing to one of the program coordinators. They are very nice and I'm sure they would reply helpfully to a polite email.

Good luck!

[displayname]

Gradstudenthistory,

Thanks for this--it is very helpful Given that no one seems to know how many alternates are named, I thought I would ask the forum: does anyone know anyone that was made an alternate, and *did not* get the fellowship? I don't mean to get anyone's hopes up, but I am curious if anyone would be able to speak to such a situation.

Also, to those alternates that heard by email: did you email DOE first and heard about the alternate status in your reply? Or did the DOE just email you?

Thanks!

I am not sure how many alternates they actually name, but my impression is that a good number of them end up getting the fellowship. I was named an alternate and ultimately won the fellowship. If you look at the funding status on the website, it always appears every year that they are naming somewhere around 30 fellows, even though in past years they've done something more like 65 or 70. My impression is that they award fellowships conservatively to make sure that they have enough funding for everyone they've promised. This includes confirming continuing fellows, which doesn't happen until around May, I believe. I was informed that I made it off the wait list and got the grant over the summer. I believe I heard sometime in mid-to-late July, although I can't remember precisely.

But, if my understanding is correct, somewhere around half -- if not more -- of existing fellows were originally alternates. And like I said, I have no idea how many alternates they name, but I think you have a lot better than a shot in the dark.

If you want a realistic assessment of your odds, you could try writing to one of the program coordinators. They are very nice and I'm sure they would reply helpfully to a polite email.

Good luck!

[Ritualist]

I am currently an alternate candidate for a Javits and I was not notified at all by email.

I had assumed that I was not recommended for a fellowship; however, two days ago I had a letter in my mailbox informing me about my alternate status and instructing me to wait until mid-summer to hear about whether I would be awarded a fellowship.

As for the number of alternates that are selected, my sense (although I have no figures to support this) is that the Dept. probably selects as many but not more than the same number of alternates as people with confirmed awards.

[Tybalt]

I just saw this thread. I really don't know much about outside sources of funding, but I just read through the Javits website, and I had a quick question--is this Fellowship primarily for students who don't have institutional funding? I'll be starting a program this Fall with a tuition waiver and stipend--is that something that will put me out of the running for a Javits Fellowship?

Thanks!

[gradstudenthistory]

I just saw this thread. I really don't know much about outside sources of funding, but I just read through the Javits website, and I had a quick question--is this Fellowship primarily for students who don't have institutional funding? I'll be starting a program this Fall with a tuition waiver and stipend--is that something that will put me out of the running for a Javits Fellowship?

Thanks!

No. My program fully funds students, but I got the fellowship as a first year grad. The fellowship is slightly more than the stipend I would have received as a grad student at my institution; I also get a small (but nevertheless appreciated!) additional award from my institution for securing outside funding. The fellowship also greatly reduces the amount of teaching I have to do (technically you're not supposed to teach at all with Javits -- but you can get around this if you can say it is a graduation requirement), and it also enables me to spend a research year abroad without having to apply for additional funding.

I have another question for readers of this forum. Does anyone know how the future of this program may be affected by the proposed government budget cuts? I assume (and hope) that continuing fellows will not be affected in any case; but I also seriously hope that this fellowship is not eliminated. I know that the president has proposed rolling Javits into the Graduate Assistance for Areas of National Need (GAANN) program, with the same funding status, but, theoretically, different funding priorities in the coming years. I wonder if anyone has any insight on this.

[displayname]

I really can't imagine that they would stop supporting continuing fellows except in the most dire of circumstances. They would close down future application seasons long before doing something that drastic. My grad program accepted fewer people this year and cut entire fields, but its not like they started turning us away! So, the fact that they started new awards this year means you're probably safe.

BUT: this is what I found out (as if we need anything more to worry about!)

from U Syracus, http://gcr.syr.edu/shared/studaid1112.html

Graduate Education. The Javits Fellowship Program is cut by $1.6 million plus the 0.2 percent ATB reduction, reducing its funding to $8.07 million. The GAANN program is cut by the 0.2 percent ATB reduction, reducing its funding to $31 million.

I don't know where Syracuse got that, though, because the CR FY 2011 bill itself doesn't mention the javits.

[gradstudenthistory]

I really can't imagine that they would stop supporting continuing fellows except in the most dire of circumstances. They would close down future application seasons long before doing something that drastic. My grad program accepted fewer people this year and cut entire fields, but its not like they started turning us away! So, the fact that they started new awards this year means you're probably safe.

BUT: this is what I found out (as if we need anything more to worry about!)

from U Syracus, http://gcr.syr.edu/s...tudaid1112.html

Graduate Education. The Javits Fellowship Program is cut by $1.6 million plus the 0.2 percent ATB reduction, reducing its funding to $8.07 million. The GAANN program is cut by the 0.2 percent ATB reduction, reducing its funding to $31 million.

I don't know where Syracuse got that, though, because the CR FY 2011 bill itself doesn't mention the javits.

Hm, I hadn't heard anything about FY 2011, but that only runs through September of this year in any case. All I had heard was Obama's proposal for FY 2012. And I haven't heard how Javits would be affected by other congressional budget proposals. Javits funding is chump change in the whole of the federal budget, so it doesn't get much mention anywhere. Where humanities programs are mentioned, it's usually the NEH.

I wrote to my congressman and my senators, though. Figured it couldn't hurt. I agree that I'm *probably* safe as a continuing fellow, but I would still hate to see this program discontinued. Both my undergraduate advisor and my graduate advisor were Javits fellows in their day. It's a great program and we humanities students don't have tons of funding sources as it is.

[displayname]

Agreed! I wonder how many people realize that funding for anything other than the hard sciences is quickly retreating in all directions: state budget cuts are curtailing it in public schools, federal funding for independent fellows is vulnerable, and private grants and fellowships are disappearing, at least those that I'm familiar with and that are highlighted by my graduate school. The CR FY 2011 even cut funding for critical foreign languages!

I wrote to my congressman and my senators, though. Figured it couldn't hurt. I agree that I'm *probably* safe as a continuing fellow, but I would still hate to see this program discontinued. Both my undergraduate advisor and my graduate advisor were Javits fellows in their day. It's a great program and we humanities students don't have tons of funding sources as it is.

[gradwoes]

Those budget proposals make me furious - but the adjectives I use nowadays to describe politics tend to be 'furious' or 'disappointed' anyway. I'm writing to my hometown congressman (he won by a margin of 700 votes, and I voted for him, so he better read that letter...) and sending a letter to the editor of the small newspaper back home. People need to know!

[displayname]

Any of the alternates hear anything yet?

Those budget proposals make me furious - but the adjectives I use nowadays to describe politics tend to be 'furious' or 'disappointed' anyway. I'm writing to my hometown congressman (he won by a margin of 700 votes, and I voted for him, so he better read that letter...) and sending a letter to the editor of the small newspaper back home. People need to know!

[Ritualist]

I'm an alternate and, no, I haven't heard either way yet. However, former alternates told me that it is normal not to hear until later in the summer. I'm hoping that there is money left over for some of us to get fellowships...

[alscott720]

Hi all,

I was notified that I was an alternate in March 2011. They said I would hear by Aug. 31, and I heard from other people that alternates find out in the middle of the summer usually. Yet, it is now September. How many alternates are there out there that have heard? Are there any (like me) that are still waiting? Should I give them a call?