Fellowships
and Assistantships
Fellowships:
A fellowship is an honor proffered for work of the highest calibre. It
also implies a responsiblity for continued and outstanding progress.
Students with fellowships are required to carry a full course load.
Fellowships are available from a number of different sources. In
recents years, various graduate students in the Department of Astronomy
have received fellowships from the following sources:
University
of Florida Graduate School
NSF (National Science
Foundation)
NASA (National Aeronautical and Space
administration)
FSGC (Florida Space Grant Consortium)
with funds derived from NASA
American Astronomical Society Career
Services
Summer Opportunities
The University of Florida Financial
Support Program
Presently the
Alumni and Grinter fellowships are allocated y the college to
departments, who then award them to incoming graduate students based on
the merits of their applications. In 2003, the Astronomy Department
offered two Alumni Fellowships and one Grinter Fellowship to new
students. Other fellowships, such as the Presidential and Minority
Fellowships, are awarded by college-wide committees from a pool of
applicants that are nominated by individual departments.
Department
Assistantships: Currently, all of the graduate students in the
Department of Astronomy are supported by either fellowships, teaching
assistantships or research assistantships.
Teaching
Assistantships: Typically eight to ten students are funded by the
Department of Astronomy as Teaching Assistants. The precise number
varies from year to year, and depends on the Departmental budget, as
provided by the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. In most cases,
the required teaching is two (2) undergraduate laboratory sections.
Students may not hold a teaching assistantship for more than 5 years
apart from exceptional circumstances.
Research
Assistantships: These are normally provided to assist faculty in
research projects and are often directly related to the student's
Master's or Doctoral program. The usual source of funds is a grant held
by one or more particular faculty members who make all decisions on
appointments. Potential sources include the National Science
Foundations, NASA, and FSGC.
Graduate
Student Research Assistantships: These are awarded by the Division
of Sponsored Research (DSR) to assist faculty in projects that are
either novel or nearing completion, and where assistance may be
expected to lead to external support. These awards are unlikely to last
for more than 9 months.
Summer
Employment: Some Teaching Assistantships are
usually available from the Department of Astronomy, and some Research
Assistantships are usually available from individual faculty grants. In
addition, a number of government, national, and industrial laboratories
occasionally hire graduate students for summer employment. Again,
students are advised to consult the DSR publication. Announcements of
summer positions at national labs are often posted on the bulletin
board. (Also see AAS Summer Opportunities.)
Page Last Updated: Friday,
April 1, 2006
Page maintained by Department
of Astronomy
© Copyright 2001-2008 University of Florida and Department of
Astrono