The Graduate School encourages faculty to help UT attract the best and brightest students by reaching out to prospective PhD candidates now to remind them of the January 17, 2018, application deadline for the FY 2019 Tennessee Fellowship for Graduate Excellence (TFGE).
The TFGE is the signature graduate fellowship program at UT. This prestigious fellowship is offered to top incoming students.
A partnership between the Graduate School and the Office of Research and Engagement, the FY 2019 TFGE will provide 20 four-year GRA positions. ORE will supply a graduate tuition waiver and the Graduate School will supply a fellowship of $10,000 per year for each awardee. Departments or colleges will supply the graduate stipend. See the Graduate School website for more details of the program.
“It is imperative that faculty act now to prepare for this opportunity,” said Dixie Thompson, vice provost and dean of the Graduate School. “Now is the time to be contacting potential PhD students, ensuring that they have completed their applications to graduate school, and negotiating within units in which students will be nominated.
“I know this timeline is tight, but if we are going to compete for the best students, we must make competitive offers early. Please help distribute this information to faculty members within your department. I look forward to seeing a wonderful group of nominees.”
One bonus, Thompson said, is that all of the applicants who are not chosen for the TFGE will automatically be considered for one of the endowed graduate school fellowships. Those decisions are made in early March—still early enough to attract most students.