College of Liberal Arts & Sciences The University of Iowa School of Journalism and Mass Communication The University of Iowa

Appointments and Financial Support

Graduate Financial Assistance information at the Grad College

Details excerpted from the Graduate Handbook:

Other resources

The American Copy Editors Society
Acholarships for "potential professional copy editors . . . open to graduate students in the fall and graduating students who will take full-time copy editing jobs or internships."
Asian American Journalists Association (AAJA)
Scholarships to "outstanding . . . graduate students . . . selected based on . . . commitement to the field of journalism, sensitivity to Asian American issues . . . journalistic ability, financial need."
Association for Women in Sports Media (AWSM)
Open to graduate students. "Annual scholarship/internship program for female college students to plan to pursue careers in any sports communications fields. . ."
The Evert Clark/Seth Payne Award for Young Science Journalists
Open to applicants who are age 30 or younger. "The Award is intended to encourage young science writers by recognizing outstanding reporting and writing in any field of science. The winner will receive $1,000 and expenses to attend the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science."
John Bayliss Radio Scholarship
Open to "gradate level students majoring in Broadcast Communications who have maintained a 3.0 GPA"
National Association of Hispanic Journalists (NAHJ)
Open to "graduate students who are interested in a career in broadcast, photojournalism or print journalism."
The Overseas Press Club Foundation Scholarships
"Students who aspire to become foreign correspondents are invited to submit essays to a judging panel of prominent journalists and OPC members once a year."
Radio-Television News Directors Association & Foundation
"RTNDA and RTNDF honor professional achievements in electronic journalism through numerous prestigious awards, scholarships, fellowships and internship programs."
South Asian Journalists Association (SAJA)
Each year SAJA awards "one $1,500 scholarship to a graduate-level student."

From the Graduate Handbook

Most of the financial support provided for graduate students by the School comes in the form of teaching assistantships. There are also a limited number of research assistantships, fellowships and scholarships. Fellowships are generally offered to incoming students, although some are available to Ph.D. students who have reached the dissertation stage of their studies.

Fellowships at Iowa

The School annually awards the Les Moeller Doctoral Scholar Award in Mass Communication to an incoming doctoral student. This is a three-year award. The scholar is a teaching assistant and a research assistant for one year each. In the third year, the scholar is designated a fellow and has no assigned duties, freeing the student to concentrate on his or her own research. This award provides an annual stipend and qualifies the student for in-state tuition. Moeller Award recipients are also eligible for a fourth year of assistantship funding.

The University awards twenty to twenty-five Presidential Graduate Fellowships to the most talented PhD applicants nominated by departments. This fellowship is competitive across disciplines. The Graduate College provides a full fellowship during first and dissertation years (12 mos.), annual summer fellowships, and a full tuition and fees scholarship all four years. The student’s department provides second and third academic year assistantship support.

Graduate Merit Fellowships are also offered by the Graduate College to incoming graduate students from underrepresented populations, upon nomination by department. Single and multiyear awards are available. The Graduate College provides a stipend for the first year, and in the case of doctoral students, a second dissertation year, plus full tuition and fees scholarship for up to three years. The department provides a matching stipend, usually in the form of teaching or research assistantships, during intermediate years.

For students who have begun dissertation research, the Graduate College offers Seashore and Ballard Dissertation Fellowships. Approximately 15 awards are given each year to doctoral students completing dissertations in the humanities nominated by departments. These fellowships offer stipends of $1,400/mo for up to 12 months.

T. Anne Cleary International Research Fellowships are awarded to doctoral students who have completed their comprehensive exams. The awards are for dissertation research outside of the United States, and are meant to supplement other research funds. Amounts awarded vary from $500 to $15,000 and average $5,000. Graduate students in any discipline may apply.

The Graduate Incentive Fellowship (GIF) program will provide a 10% supplement to any Nationally Competitive Fellowship (NCF) awarded to an Iowa graduate student. The award winning student and his/her department will receive funds equal to 5% of the national fellowship stipend for each year of the award. These funds are to be used to enhance professional development opportunities, such as travel to professional meetings, subvention of publication costs, software for preparation/presentation of research results, etc., for the recipient of the national fellowship and for graduate students in the department or program.

All fellowships are highly competitive. To be eligible for the School's Les Moeller Doctoral Scholar Award, students should have a minimum 3.5 GPA and a combined GRE score of 1200 based on verbal and quantitative scores. Presidential Graduate Fellowships require a minimum 3.5 GPA and a combined GRE score of 1400.

Teaching and Research Assistantships

Teaching and research assistantship appointments are made by the Director of the School of Journalism and Mass Communication and are based upon students' academic and professional records. Announcements of successful applications are generally made on or before April 15. All assistantship positions are subject to the agreement between the University and the United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers of America Local 896/COGS (see www.cogs.org for contract information).

Assistantship appointments generally apply for the nine-month academic year, but are renewed each semester according to the COGS union agreement. Students holding at least a quarter-time teaching or research assistantship pay in-state tuition rates. Assistantship support may be available during summers but is very limited. Position announcements are placed on the COGS bulletin board near the School’s graduate student offices in the Old Music Building. Positions will also be announced on the School’s graduate student listserv.

Continuing students who already have an appointment and who are performing well in their studies and in their position will be asked each spring whether they wish to be considered for an assistantship appointment the following year.

Receiving financial aid one year does not automatically preclude or include the possibility of receiving financial aid in subsequent years. Continuation of such financial aid is contingent upon satisfactory progress in the program, satisfactory performance of duties in the assistantship, availability of funds, and needs of the undergraduate programs.

The maximum duration of assistantship appointments is usually one year for M.A. students and three years for Ph.D. students with an M.A. An additional one-year appointment is possible if the student has made appropriate progress and accomplishment in his or her academic program, and has performed the duties required by the graduate appointment in an appropriate fashion. Reappointment for this last year, of course, also is contingent on availability of funding and particular needs of the School's programs.

The School of Journalism and Mass Communication encourages well-qualified students to apply for outside funding of their studies. Some fellowships and study grants are available from private agencies and foundations. The Graduate College provides current listings of potential sources.

Scholarship Opportunities
see also: JMC School Scholarships and Awards

The School of Journalism and Mass Communication awards annually about $100,000 in scholarships. Only students currently enrolled in the School are eligible to apply for these scholarships. Awards range from a few hundred to a few thousand dollars. Many of the scholarships recognize outstanding professional work of the School's students.

Student research (including MA Professional projects) is supported by Small Murray Grants. Graduate students are eligible for up to $300 in reimbursable expenses per fiscal year (July 1 start). Applications are available from the School’s office for Small Murray Grants. They must include a projected budget and be approved by the student’s academic adviser before being submitted.

Student travel to major research conferences (AEJMC, ICA, NCA) is also provided by the School for students with an accepted refereed paper. Graduate students are eligible for up to $500 in reimbursable expenses per fiscal year (July 1 start). Applications are available from the School’s office for conference travel support. Conference travel support must be requested before travel takes place.

Murray Summer Dissertation Fellowships are provided by the School each year. Graduate students in the Ph.D. program of the School of Journalism and Mass Communication who have completed the comprehensive examination, presented a dissertation proposal to the Ph.D. Seminar, and have had the proposal accepted by the dissertation committee are eligible to apply. Preference will be given to first-time applicants and students who are still active on campus. Only one grant may be awarded to each eligible graduate student. The size of the grant normally ranges between $250 and $750.

Grants can be used for any reasonable expense incurred in the completion of dissertation research (except for preparation, typing and duplicating of any draft of the dissertation , including the final defense draft and all computer analysis and word processing). Examples of the kind of expenses that can be supported by grants include specialized research materials, postage, equipment rentals, photo supplies and processing, travel in direct support of research activity, literature searches or highly specialized publications not otherwise available through conventional sources, telephone charges when directly related to research purposes, expenses involved in field work, preparation of specialized research materials or instruments, etc.

The purpose of the Murray Dissertation Fellowships is to encourage graduate students to undertake projects that they would not normally try if they could only draw upon their own financial resources. Through the availability of additional funds, the dissertation research would be strengthened and more likely to make a more valuable contribution to the field. Applications that clearly demonstrate this use of funds will be given higher consideration than those that show the grant will be used for only routine or normal expenses that every doctoral student could reasonably expect to incur during completion of dissertation research.

Applications for the Murray Dissertation Fellowships must include the following materials:

  1. Application letter from the student with a one- or two-page description and justification of what the grant will be used for, and the total amount requested, along with an itemized budget. Attention should be given to how the dissertation research will be strengthened by the inclusion of the additional activity supported by the grant.
  2. One-page abstract of dissertation project.
  3. Letter of evaluation and recommendation by the dissertation supervisor.
    Applications should be submitted to the School's Graduate Director. The application deadline is April 30. Applications will be considered as a group on a competitive basis by the Graduate Admissions Committee. The committee will make recommendations to the Director who will make final decisions by May 15.