GSG Research Fellowship Awards

The Graduate Student Government (GSG) Research Fellowship is an award designed to help graduate students further their research interests. This award may be used to fund research related expenses including, but not limited to, research related travel, workshops, conferences, field trips, performances, exhibitions, lab equipment and so on. We award up to $1,000 for projects that intend to advance gradaute research. The Research Fellowship is made possible by the generous support of the UC Office of Innovation and Office of Inclusion, Equity and Community Planning.

The Research Fellowship is made possible by the generous support of the  Office of Ethics, Compliance & Community Impact, Office of Innovation, and the Graduate Student Government.

Beyond Regular Research Fellowship Awards, there are two special category of research fellowships:

The Innovation and Entrepreneurship Research Fellowship is designed to support researchers who have an applied research or innovation focus. It is expected that proposals will discuss how the project advances commercialization investigation and how customer discovery examination will propel overall research outcomes. The award is provided to advance research and outreach that will create positive economic and societal impacts through the workforce, innovation, or community development. GSG will identify and reward exemplary students who have created or innovated advanced technologies or research techniques that have the potential for measurable societal or economic impact. Submitted applications should include innovative projects that promote the development of novel technologies or research techniques that strengthen the discipline with potential commercialization. All disciplines are eligible to apply.

Applicants for the grants must demonstrate how their research contributes to at least one of the three dimensions of the Human Development Index (HDI): a long healthy life, being knowledgeable, and a decent standard of living. More information on HDI can be found on the United Nations Human Development Reports Website. GSG will identify and reward exemplary students who have created innovative strategies with well put implementation plan that have strong potential for measurable societal impact. All disciplines are eligible to apply.

Research Fellowship Application procedure

The Graduate Student Government has secured funding for the 2025-26 Research Fellowship Cycle in the following categeories upto a $1000:

  • Regular RF Award
  • Innovation and Entrepreneurship RF Award
  • Community Impact RF Award

A student must satisfy all the following criteria to be considered for the Research Fellowship:

  • Must be registered for at least 1 credit hour every semester (except summer).
  • Must be a degree seeking graduate student with at least 12 credit hours earned.

All complete applications will be considered and are not required to align with the applicant's thesis or dissertation projects. The Research Fellowship is a once-per-degree award. If a student graduates after receiving a Research Fellowship and returns to the University of Cincinnati to complete another degree, they may be eligible for another Research Fellowship. Research funds will remain available to the awardee until their date of graduation. Funds are disbursed via the department through a business or financial manager. 

Applicants will be assessed on organization and coherence of the statement of purpose, usage of references, originality of the proposal, sensitivity to the reader’s awareness, framing of future goals, and proposed benefit to the academic community. Incomplete applications will not be reviewed by the committee.

Some of the categories that can be funded are:

  • Experiment Materials (reagents, metals)
  • Sample Production (prepared agar, tissue samples)
  • Prototype Production (tools, building materials)
  • Use of lab facilities (clean room fees, machine usage)
  • Software (statistical analysis, modeling software, etc.)*
  • Travel (conferences to present findings^, consultation with other researchers, site visit for experiments, etc.)
  • Field experiment data collection
  • Presentation materials (posters, copies, registration fees)
  • Studio equipment

*purchase of some software/GPU/lab equipment is allowed depending on the strength/need of the application and if UC does not own those licenses at the time of application. Please to reach out to the GSG Vice President for further clarity on the eligibility of such items before you apply.

^Conference Travel use:

  • The Research Fellowship is not intended for conference travel. Conference Travel is covered by Conference Travel. However, application to, and receipt of, a GSG Conference Travel Award does not exclude a student from consideration for the Research Fellowship
  • If you have received the maximum funds allowed for the Conference Travel Award and wish to attend other conferences directly related to your research, you can apply for the Research Fellowship to be then used for conference travel.

Additional Restrictions:

Due to University policies, the Research Fellowship may not be used:

  • to purchase electronic items such as laptop, PC, iPad, Kindle, mobile device etc.
  • to fund survey awards/gifts, (- except VISA or equivalent gift cards) or 
  • to pay for tuition

If, after having read these guidelines, you still have questions, please contact the GSG Vice President.

To fill the online Research Fellowship Application you will need the following application materials, All materials can be uploaded via the application form. This is open until 5 P.M. 31st Jan, 2026.

Maximum 3 pages double-spaced, with no less than 1″ margins and 12pt font. If the Research Fellowship will be used for travel, the location and dates must be mentioned here. The Statement of Purpose should detail your research project for a non-specialized audience. Please answer:

  • Your research area and topic, how you are doing the research, who is involved, and in what locations.
  • The current status of your research. Applications must be for continuing research.
  • The relevance of your research to related fields and the contribution that your research will make.
  • Goals and future plans for the project (such as conference presentation, publication, etc.).
  • How your research will benefit the University and the UC community.
  • Detailed description of how you plan to spend your Research Fellowship funds and justifications for your spending plan.

Your CV should be a maximum of 2 pages

You can find your Unofficial UC Transcript via your Catalyst account.

  • The letter must be on UC letterhead and must identify the recommended student by name and college.
  • The letter must come from a faculty member who is familiar with the applicant’s research. They should describe your research activity and your ability to accomplish the tasks put forward in your proposal.
  • The letter must be signed.