Categories of research funds

Communication Graduate Student Research Fund

This is a general funding pool to support any type of graduate student research on any topic, from projects that will lead to a conference paper or publishable article to those that contribute to a thesis or dissertation.

Barbara Warnick Dissertation Proposal Award

The Barbara Warnick Research Endowment provides financial support for insightful, creative scholarly research by MA and PhD students in the Department of Communication. This Endowment honors the research, teaching, mentoring, and service of former UW Professor Warnick, whose leadership in Communication Studies broadly, and in rhetorical scholarship especially, produced knowledge about public argument that has inspired many colleagues and students. As part of this endowment, the Department offers an annual Dissertation Proposal Award, open to all research themes, theory, and methods. The winner of this award will be put forward as the department’s nominee for the Graduate School’s Presidential Dissertation Fellowship.

Ames Endowment Graduate Research Fund

The Janice and William Ames Endowment provides department support for graduate student research. It was established by alumni to honor a longtime School of Communications professor (William Ames) and the Department of Communication’s Visiting Committee chair (Janice Ames). According to terms of the endowment, priority will be given to research focusing on difference/diversity.

Peter Clarke and Susan Hope Evans Graduate Student Research Fund

The Peter Clarke and Susan Evans Graduate Research Fund is intended to support graduate student research that promises to yield societal benefits. Among competing applications for research likely to yield societal benefits, priority will be given to proposals for research intended to advance equity for and/or improve conditions of life experienced by people burdened by a disadvantage, such as low income or a condition that is stereotyped negatively. Research proposals for this award should articulate anticipated outcomes that will, plausibly, improve the lives of disadvantaged people or the robustness of organizations that serve them, and/or yield other societal benefits.

Other resources

The Graduate School offers a limited number of fellowships to doctoral candidates, and the Jackson School of International Studies (JSIS) offers a limited number of Foreign Language and Area Studies (FLAS) fellowships to graduate and professional students who are U.S. citizens or permanent residents, and who meet designated requirements. In addition, the University of Washington’s Office of Student Financial Aid has a variety of need-based funding available to prospective and current students.

Another useful funding resource for current students seeking research support is the Graduate Funding Information Service at the University of Washington’s Suzzallo Library. You can use their online resources, visit their office at the library, or attend one of their workshops or events.