Graduate Studies & Enrollment
Current Students

WPI Fellowships

WPI-funded Programs

Fellowship assistance for graduate students is available in a number of areas. Approximately 25 fellowships are administered through the university. Other fellowships are through corporate partnerships and philanthropic agencies. All fellowship awards are made to full-time graduate students. Most begin with the fall semester and are awarded to new graduate students. A fellowship is an award that allows a student to work uninterrupted by job requirements on course work and on the student's own research. Fellowship funding typically lasts for one year, but with good academic progress, fellowship students are considered for teaching and research assistantships in later years.

Application Deadline for September admission - January 15

Completed application and required support materials must be received in the Graduate Studies and Enrollment Office.

Robert H. Goddard Graduate Research Fellowship Program

Description

This fellowship is based on academic achievements, GMAT or GRE test scores, recommendations from faculty, and a personal statement of your proposed educational program and long-range professional goals.

Fields of Study

All

Special Requirement

The application linked above is available in PDF format, for use with the Adobe Acrobat Reader. The reader software is available for download at no cost from Adobe's Web site.

Award (2007-2008 funding)

Arvid and Marietta Anderson Fellowship

Description

Established, 1987. During a 41-year career with General Electric Co., Arvid E. Anderson, class of '20, earned 73 patents and became one of the nation's foremost experts on switchgear and control devices. The company presented him with its prestigious Charles A. Coffin Award in 1942. In 1983, following the death of his wife of 60 years, he honored her memory by establishing the Marietta E. Anderson Prize, which is awarded to outstanding women students at WPI. Through a bequest in 1986, he created this fund as a further memorial to his wife.

Fields of Study

All

Special Requirement

Award (2007-2008 funding)

Fellowship Application Procedure

Contact the Graduate Coordinator in your academic department if you would like to be nominated for this and any other endowed fellowship. Applicants must be nominated for this fellowship by the graduate committee of the department to which they have applied.

Robert and Esther Goddard Fellowship

Description

Established, 1984. Upon her death, Esther Goddard, widow of Robert H. Goddard, Class of '08 and the father of modern rocketry, left the bulk of her estate to WPI and Clark University, the two institutions that had played an important role in their lives. Proceeds from this fund are used to underwrite the Robert Hutchins Goddard Fellowships at WPI.

Fields of Study

All

Special Requirements

Award (2007-2008 funding)

Fellowship Application Procedure

Contact the Graduate Coordinator in your academic department if you would like to be nominated for this fellowship and any other endowed fellowship. Applicants must be nominated for this fellowship by the graduate committee of the department to which they have applied.

Robert S. Parks Graduate Fellowship

Description

Established, 1989, Robert S. Parks, Class of 1893, was one of WPI's most loyal and generous alumni. After graduation, he joined his father's pipe supply firm, G.M. Parks Co., and ultimately became general manager and treasurer. By 1931 he was chairman of Parks-Cramer Co.; he helped make the company a leader in industrial air conditioning and humidity control. Parks was one of the first alumni elected to the WPI Board of Trustees. He left the bulk of his estate to WPI when he died in 1967, with the provision that his daughter receive the estate's income throughout her lifetime. She died in 1987 at the age of 90. Of Park's gift, $1 million was used to create the Robert S. Parks Endowment for Small Group Living Programs. The remainder was used to establish this graduate fellowship.

Fields of Study

Preference given to Electrical Engineering applicants

Award (2007-2008)

Fellowship Application Procedure

Contact the Graduate Coordinator in your academic department if you would like to be nominated for this fellowship and any other endowed fellowship.

Harold Lesher Pierson '14 Memorial Fellowship

Description

Established, 1989. The gift of J. Headen Thompson, Class of '36, and his wife, Mary, this fellowship was created in memory of Mrs. Thompson's father, Harold L. Pierson, Class of '14. A metallurgist, Pierson earned many patents for new alloys and assigned them to his employer, American Brass Co., a subsidiary of Anaconda Copper and Mining Co. He became technical supervisor of the company in 1927 and held that post until his death in 1939. Thompson earned his degree in electrical engineering from WPI, and after graduation joined The Torrington Co., from which he retired as chief plant engineer.

Fields of Study

Research in an area related to medicine likely to result in near-term benefits to mankind.

Award (2007-2008)

Fellowship Application Procedure

Contact the Graduate Coordinator in your academic department if you would like to be nominated for this fellowship and any other endowed fellowship. The graduate committee of Biomedical Engineering will nominate candidates for this fellowship.

Helen E. Stoddard Fellowship in Materials Science and Engineering

Description

Established, 1988. In creating this fellowship, WPI honored Helen Estabrook Stoddard, a woman who indirectly influenced WPI's history for decades. Her husband, Robert W. Stoddard, served on WPI's Board of Trustees for more than 30 years. Born in Worcester, Helen Stoddard graduated from Vassar College and the Katherine Gibbs Secretarial School in Boston. She married Robert Stoddard in 1933. She was widely respected for her philanthropic work in Worcester. This fellowship also pays special tribute to WPI's ties to Wyman-Gordon Co., which was headed for many years by Robert Stoddard. Founded by two WPI graduates more than a century ago, the company has maintained a long and productive relationship with the WPI's materials program. The program today is housed in Stoddard Laboratories, named for Robert Stoddard. The Stoddard Residence Center and the Stoddard Professorship in Management, named for Stoddard's father, Harry G. Stoddard, are further tributes to the long ties between WPI and the Stoddard family.

Field of Study

Materials Science and Engineering

Award (pending Board of Trustees Approval)

Fellowship Application Procedure

Contact the Graduate Coordinator in your academic department if you would like to be nominated for this fellowship and any other endowed fellowship. The graduate committee of Materials Science and Engineering will nominate candidates for this fellowship.

Carl and Inez Weidenmiller Fellowship

Description

Established in 1990 a native of Worcester, Carl Weidenmiller graduated from WPI in 1911 with a degree in electrical engineering. He spent most of his successful career with Washburn Wire Co., beginning as a draftsman and ultimately becoming president of the company. Inez Weidenmiller had studied music and performed as a mezzo-soprano before marrying Carl in 1938. When he died in 1961, Weidenmiller left a trust fund for his wife, half of which came to WPI upon her death. A portion of the fund was used to establish this graduate fellowship. Through his bequest, he also established the Carl and Inez Weidenmiller Fund, which is used to meet current needs in manufacturing and mechanical engineering.

Fields of Study

All, but preference given to Manufacturing and Mechanical Engineering

Award (pending Board of Trustees Approval)

Fellowship Application Procedure

Contact the Graduate Coordinator in your academic department if you would like to be nominated for this fellowship and any other endowed fellowship.

The Institute Fellowships

Description

WPI annually awards six fellowships to new graduate students. Preference is to students who will pursue the doctoral degree.

WPI has many opportunities for faculty to nominate graduate students and graduate applicants for fellowship consideration. There are a number of endowed fellowships and the WPI Institute Fellowships for which faculty may make nominations. Fellowship nomination forms need to be submitted by the applicant or faculty and received in the Graduate Studies & Enrollment Office on or before January 15. Please complete and sign forms and fax or mail to the Graduate Studies & Enrollment Office, fax ext. 5717.

Fields of Study

All

Special Admission Requirement

Award

GEM M.S. Engineering, Ph.D. Science, and Ph.D. Engineering Fellowship Programs

Description

WPI is a GEM member school. GEM fellowships provide opportunities for underrepresented ethnic minority students to obtain master's degrees in engineering, and Ph.D. degrees in science or engineering, at GEM member schools through a program of paid summer internships and graduate financial assistance.

Fields of Study

Engineering and Science

Special Requirements

Fellowship Application Procedure

For details, visit the GEM Web site or contact the GEM Central Office:
GEM Consortium
P.O. Box 537
Notre Dame, IN 46556
Phone: 574-631-7771
Fax: 574-287-1486
E-mail: gem@nd.edu

GAANN

Description

Graduate Assistants in Areas of National Need or GAANNs are provided through government grants to specific departments and research faculty. WPI has been awarded several of these grants, which are available to qualified graduate students. For more information please visit the GAANN Website

United States Citizens

In addition to WPI-funded programs, national fellowships outside WPI exist to support students for graduate study. Each has its own application and deadlines. Some are for first-year students and run for 2-3 years, others are for doctoral programs only. These include fellowships from the federal government, such as the National Science Foundation, the Department of Defense and NASA. There are also fellowships from private foundations. Some are restricted to women, to students pursuing a specific program, or to minorities.

International Students

Most national fellowships in the United States are available to U.S. citizens only. Some countries offer full assistance to their citizens to go abroad for an advanced degree, with the stipulation that the individual will return home to utilize the advanced education for the good of the country. International students should contact local employers, libraries and their consulate regarding such opportunities.

Fellowships & Scholarships Website

For additional information on external graduate fellowships and scholarships check out the following links:

Maintained by webmaster@wpi.edu
Last modified: December 03, 2007 14:38:13