Doctoral Fellowships (Blue & Gold)
*The Office of Graduate Studies is not offering Doctoral Fellowships for the 2025-2026 Academic Year. Students who have already received a Doctoral Fellowship will continue to receive funding through their designated fellowship period, including in 2025-2026 and beyond.
Historically, the Office of Graduate Studies offered, for open competition, a limited number of Doctoral Fellowships designed to encourage the recruitment of highly qualified students for all of Drexel’s PhD and doctoral-level programs. Fellowships were awarded in two tiers:
- Gold Fellows receive a sum of $10,000 distributed over two years in addition to the stipends offered to them by their program*
- Blue Fellows receive a sum of $4,000 distributed over two years in addition to the stipends offered to them by their program*
*LeBow fellows will have their award distributed over four years.
Nomination Details
The Office of Graduate Studies welcomed nominations from Associate Deans for Graduate Studies (ADGs) or their designee(s) for students who have been admitted to a PhD or doctoral-level program, have yet to begin their program of study and who will enroll full-time. (If the student is beginning a master’s program, it must be a required precursor to the doctoral-level program. Please note this in the comments within the application.)
Nominations were reviewed on a rolling basis over three rounds with specific deadlines.
Nominations must be submitted by the ADG or an approved designee, such as the faculty supervisor/mentor, in each college/school via the Drexel Funding Portal (InfoReady). A complete nomination packet MUST include ALL of the following materials organized in order in a single PDF document:
- Cover Page: Including nominee's full name, program, college/school, and the ADG/designee(s) and/or faculty supervisor/nominator's name, title, and email address
- Statement/Letter of Support: No more than 1-2 pages, written by the ADG or faculty supervisor/nominator (whomever can speak best about the nominee and significance of their work), highlighting what makes this nominee truly outstanding compared to other or prior applicants, students, or nominees in the field/program and their potential for impact while at Drexel
- Nominee’s Transcripts: Such as pulled from Slate application materials
- Nominee’s Resume/CV: Such as pulled from Slate application materials
- Summary of Nominee's Scholarly, Research Achievements (Highly preferred and utilized by the review committee): No more than 1 page, outlining the significance of this nominee's achievements and potential for impact while at Drexel, using lay language as much as possible, and what makes their achievements or potential truly outstanding compared to other or prior applicants, students, or nominees in the field/program
- If possible: List of Offers (Highly preferred and utilized by the review committee, if possible to obtain): A list of any other institutions from which the nominee has an offer of admission
- Nominee’s Letters of Recommendation, if applicable
- OPTIONAL: Other Supporting Documentation, if relevant and applicable
Award Details
Fellows will receive the award over the first two years, four years for LeBow students, of their program and are expected to fulfill the following requirements in order to retain their award.
- Maintain a cumulative GPA of at least 3.5
- Fulfill one of the following criteria by the end of the fall term of the second year, third year for LeBow students;
- Apply for an external grant or fellowship (workshops and resources are available through Undergraduate Research & Enrichment Programs [UREP], which also serves graduate students);
- Significantly contribute to writing a grant proposal on behalf of the PI in your department;
- Win an external award for scholarly activity (e.g. best paper award); or
- Present at a Scholars Share session or contribute to an equivalent Office of Graduate Studies program.
Review Committee
- Chair: Anne Converse Willkomm, MFA, Associate Dean, Office of Graduate Studies, Associate Teaching Professor, Department of Communications, College of Arts and Sciences
- Amy Auchincloss, PhD, MPH, Associate Professor of Epidemiology, Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Dornsife School of Public Health
- Vikhas Bhandawat, PhD, Associate Professor, School of Biomedical Engineering, Science and Health Systems
- Shahin Jabbari, PhD, Assistant Professor, Computer Science, College of Computing and Informatics
- Joshua Jackson, PhD, Assistant Professor, Pharmacology & Physiology, Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences and Professional Studies, College of Medicine
- Vera Lee, EdD, Clinical Professor, Department Chair, Teaching, Learning, and Curriculum, School of Education
- Rachel Reynolds, PhD, Associate Professor, Graduate Faculty Member, Communication, Culture and Media, College of Arts and Sciences
- Michael Ryan, PhD, Associate Teaching Professor, Associate Department Head of Graduate Studies, Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering, College of Engineering, Graduate Student Engagement & Leadership Liaison, Office of Graduate Studies
- Patricia Shewokis, PhD, Professor, Nutrition Sciences, College of Nursing and Health Professions
More Information
If you have any questions regarding the Doctoral Fellowships or would like more information, please email gradawards@drexel.edu.