There are two dissertation grants that are offered for doctoral level students within the colleges of Education and Health and Human Development and the Graduate School. The grants are the Alumni Association Dissertation Grant awarded through the Graduate School and the Dissertation Research Initiation Grant awarded through the College of Education.
Alumni Association Dissertation Grant – The objective of the Alumni Association Dissertation Grant is to provide funding and recognition to outstanding full-time doctoral level students conducting dissertation research. In order for doctoral students to be eligible for the grant they must have passed their comprehensive exams, received approval of their dissertation topic, and are in their final year of enrollment. Two grants are provided each year of $5,000 in each of the following categories: (1) Fine Arts and Humanities; (2) Social Sciences – Applied and Basic; (3) Physical and Computational Sciences – Applied and Basic; (4) Life and Health Sciences; and (5) Engineering. Only one nomination may be submitted per program by the program chair. This grant is considered to be the most prestigious available at Penn State.
All information and applications can be found at www.gradschool.psu.edu/graduate-funding/fellowships/programs/aada/
No information was found on examples of funded dissertations.
Dissertation Research Initiation Grant (RIG) – The College of Education at Penn State offers a dissertation RIG intended to assist students with conducting dissertation research. In order for doctoral students in the College of Education to be eligible they must be enrolled at the University Park campus and have successfully defended their dissertation proposal. Awards are given two times per academic year (once in the Fall and Spring). Normally 10 grants are awarded each year of up to $600 each. In order to apply students must submit a research plan that includes; (1) research questions, (2) significance of the research, (3) research design and analysis, (4) budget, and (5) relationship of proposed expenditures to the research plan. In addition a letter of reference must be submitted from the students’ academic advisor.
All guidelines and application can be found at www.ed.psu/graduate/funding/
Examples of dissertations funded in the past:
Retention of K-12 Education Enrolled in an Online Learning Community Designed for Ongoing, Long-Term Professional Development and Collaboration
The Effects of Empowering Children with Autism Use the iPad to Communicate during Shared Storybook Reading