Fellowships & Financial Assistance

Deadline for applicants for admission and fellowships is now December 15 .
All support materials must be received by December 15. This includes GREs, letters of recommendation and writing sample.

Requests for fellowships are made on the application form for admission. There is no separate fellowship form. The Program awards financial aid to highly qualified entering students, and it offers financial support to most of the continuing students who apply for aid. No fellowship, except where specifically stated to the contrary, carries remission of tuition and fees. Fellowship recipients are reviewed annually for renewal of support. Students who enter with a fellowship may expect to be supported later provided that their work is up to standard.

Notification of fellowship awards is made after April 1. Although successful applicants have until April 15 to accept or decline, a prompt reply, especially from those who wish to decline, will be appreciated.

Fellowships Available Through The University

Jefferson Scholars Shannon Graduate Fellowship
This prestigious fellowship is for five years of graduate study with a beginning stipend of $30,000 plus tuition and fees. Years 3 and 4 include teaching responsibilities. In addition, the student may be eligible for a research stipend of up to $7,500 (over the life of the fellowship).

Department Fellowships
University fellowships administered by the Program include the Dupont Fellowship, the Davidge Fellowship, and the Governor’s Fellowship, among others. The Program also awards fellowships in American art funded by the Luce Foundation. Although the Program is unable to fund all students during their first year, those who enter the program without support and do superior work in their first year will be given serious consideration for a fellowship or a teaching assistantship in their second year. Second-, third- and fourth-year students are primarily supported by teaching assistantships, frequently supplemented by fellowships. .

Museum Internship
The Lindner-Luzak University Art Museum research internship is awarded each year to an advanced graduate student. Under the supervision of a member of the Museum staff the student spends approximately ten hours each week on collections research and work on specific projects. The decision to award the Internship is made jointly by the Chair of the McIntire Department of Art and the Director of the University Art Museum. Currently it carries a stipend of $8,8000 and medical insurance.

Foreign Language and Area Studies Fellowships
Graduate students enrolled in a course of study at the University of Virginia and taking a language relevant to South Asia — Hindi, Urdu, Persian, Tibetan, or Sanskrit/Pali — may apply for fellowships for language study. The fellowships for the academic year currently cover tuition and offer a stipend of $10,000 for students taking at least 3 credit hours of language instruction per semester. Summer fellowships are also available for intensive language instruction.

Teaching Assistantships

Each year the Program appoints nine teaching assistants, each of whom conducts three discussion sections per week in one of the two introductory survey courses (ARTH 101, 102 and ARH 101, 102) or in 200- and 300-level lecture courses in such areas as Italian Renaissance art, nineteenth-century art, American art, and Modern art. For the most part teaching assistantships are awarded to second- or third-year students. These positions are an important part of the students’ professional development and are intended to introduce the student, under supervised conditions, to the techniques and challenges of teaching. All TAs are required to attend the Fall Teaching Workshop that is organized by the Teaching Resource Center and held at the beginning of the Fall semester.
Duties of Teaching Assistants.

Undergraduate Seminars & Summer School Courses

In recent years advanced students who have completed all Ph.D. requirements except the dissertation have been given the opportunity to teach undergraduate seminars or summer school courses in their field of specialization.

Graduate Research Assistant

One graduate research assistant position is awarded annually. Recipients can expect to spend an average of eight to ten hours a week for a total of 100 hours per semester working on research tasks. This position is typically awarded to students who have completed at least one year of graduate study. The Lindner Center will soon fund additional research assistant positions.
Duties of the Graduate Research Assistant.

Graderships

A limited number of graderships are awarded annually. Recipients can expect to spend an average of five hours a week grading quizzes and examinations in undergraduate courses. Such graderships are normally awarded to students who have completed at least one year of graduate study.
Duties of Graders.

Summer Language Study

Students may apply through the Director of Graduate Studies to the Dean of the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences for financial aid for intensive summer language instruction. The Lindner Center also provides funding for language instruction.

Summer Travel for Research

Students in the Ph.D. program who are beginning independent research on a dissertation may apply to the Chairman of the Art Department for assistance from the Lindner Center for travel expenses during a summer trip to investigate archival resources. The Frederick Nichols Fellowship and the Alumni Graduate Travel Fellowship also support research travel.

Other Sources of Assistance

A number of paying jobs are available in the Visual Resources Collection, in the Fine Arts Library, and in the University Art Museum. Applications for such employment should be made to these units directly. Priority for all these jobs is given to students who qualify for work-study.

Students should apply for work-study by March 15th to the Office of Financial Aid to Students, P.O. Box 400204, University of Virginia, Charlottesville VA 22904. Applicants to the Graduate Program should also apply for work-study by March 15th even if they have not yet been admitted.

The Office of Financial Aid also administers a number of loan programs for which certain graduate students are eligible. As available Department funds are insufficient for all financial needs, students should regard such loans as a reasonable alternative means of support. Information on loans is available in the University catalogue or at the Office of Financial Aid (see above for address).

Sources for funding outside the University of Virginia should also be explored. The U.S. Federal Government’s International Education and Graduate Programs office administers a number of graduate fellowships, including the Jacob K. Javits Fellowships.