Now Accepting Applications

Extended Deadline: December 20, 2024

About the AERA Minority Dissertation Fellowship in Education Research

The American Educational Research Association (AERA) Council in 1991 established the AERA Minority Dissertation Fellowship in Education Research to enhance the racial and ethnic diversity of faculty, scholars, and researchers who study topics in education research. This fellowship is targeted for members of racial and ethnic groups historically underrepresented in higher education (e.g., African Americans, Alaskan Natives, American Indians, Asian Americans, Hispanics or Latinos, and Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islanders).

The Fellowship Program aims to provide support for doctoral dissertation research, to advance education research by outstanding minority graduate students, and to enhance these students’ competitiveness for academic appointments at major research universities. It supports fellows conducting education research and provides mentoring, capacity building activities, and guidance toward the completion of their doctoral studies.

The Program Fellows have produced rigorous research that is published in peer reviewed journals, books, and edited volumes. Many of the recent Program Fellows are in postdoctoral positions and assistant professor positions at Research I institutions including Harvard University, University of Georgia, the University of Nebraska, and the University of Southern California. Other fellows have careers in applied research and policy positions at various organizations.

Learn more about the 2024-2025 AERA Minority Dissertation Fellowship Recipients!

Call for Proposals

The AERA Minority Dissertation Fellowship Program in Education Research seeks proposals from advanced graduate students who are from racial and ethnic groups that are underrepresented in higher education. The Fellowship Program encourages studies that examine a wide range of education research topics such as students’ school experiences, STEM education and learning, ethnic studies/curriculum; tracking; measurement of achievement and opportunity gaps; English language learners; or bullying and restorative justice. These studies may focus on students, teachers, schools, and/or educational contexts across multiple educational stages including early childhood education and development, k-12 education, postsecondary education, and the workforce. Studies should use rigorous scientific research methods within quantitative, qualitative, archival, and/or mixed method techniques. Studies that examine issues of specific racial and ethnic groups, social classes, genders, or persons with disabilities are encouraged and supported by the Fellowship Program.

Informational Webinar and Frequently Asked Questions

AERA encourages all potential applicants to register the Informational Webinar for AERA Minority Dissertation Fellowship to learn more about program goals, the application process, and details about the competition. You can view the Informational Webinar HERE.

Potential applicants may also want to view Answers to Frequently Asked Questions (PDF).

Eligibility

The AERA Minority Dissertation Fellowship in Education Research is open to U.S. citizens and permanent residents who are members of racial and ethnic groups historically underrepresented in higher education (e.g., African Americans, Alaskan Natives, American Indians, Asian Americans, Hispanics or Latinos, and Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islanders). Applicants can come from graduate programs and departments in education research, the humanities, or social or behavioral science disciplinary or interdisciplinary fields, such as economics, history, political science, psychology, public policy, or sociology. Eligible graduate students will be at the writing stage of their dissertation by the beginning of the fellowship.

Fellows are required to provide proof of advancement to candidacy at the beginning of the award period. Applicants must work full-time on their dissertations and course requirements.

Award Period

Each fellowship award is for 1 year, beginning July 2025 or later, and is nonrenewable. This fellowship program is intended as a write-up fellowship. Fellowships are awarded for doctoral dissertation research conducted under faculty sponsorship in any accredited university in the United States.

AERA Minority Dissertation Fellowship in Education Research Award

Award Component 1, $25,000 Stipend. AERA awards each Fellow up to a $25,000 stipend to study education, teaching, learning, or other education research topic. The fellowship funds can be used for tuition and/or institution fees, books, living expenses, equipment, travel, supplies, software, and other expenses that are directly related to conducting this research. Fellows must include travel and lodging expenses to the Annual Meeting in their budget. AERA encourages cost sharing from universities in the form of tuition assistance, office space, university fees, and other expenses. Institutions cannot charge overhead or indirect costs to administer the fellowship funds.

Award Component 2, Present Research at Invited AERA Poster Session. Fellows present their research in an invited poster session during the 2026 AERA Annual Meeting. This poster session is a hallmark of the AERA professional development program and features promising research from graduate students who are supported by AERA funded programs. This is an excellent opportunity to showcase the developing research from the next generation of scholars and for the Fellows to receive feedback from senior scholars, education school deans, foundation officers, and others across the education research community.

Award Component 3, AERA Minority Fellows Mentoring and Career Development Workshop. During the 2026 AERA Annual Meeting, Fellows participate in a mentoring and career development workshop with current and former members of the AERA Minority Selection Committee and other senior scholars. The workshop focuses on topics such as making the transition from graduate school to a postdoctoral program, faculty position, or a career in applied research.

Application Submission Procedures and Requirements

How to submit a proposal:

You will need to either access your “MyAERA” profile or create a new profile at AERA Apply. Please review and your contact and background information. After you save the information on each webpage you will be directed to the submission portal. Please read the submission instructions. Select the program to which you are submitting the application and follow the prompts to submit the required documents.

Proposal Elements

1. Dissertation research prospectus
2. Dissertation project timeline
3. Curriculum vitae
4. Budget
5. Unoffical graduate transcript
6. Two Letters of Recommendation

1. Dissertation research prospectus. Provide a general overview of your dissertation research with the following information: (text is limited to eight (8) single-spaced, 12 point font)

• Dissertation abstract
• Statement of the problem and how this research advances the current state of knowledge in the field
• Theoretical and/or conceptual framework
• Brief review of relevant literature
• Key research questions or hypotheses to be tested
• Overview of research design and description of methodology including any instrument(s); list of variables and rationale for using them; any video segments integral to the study; and specification and clarification of variables and analytic techniques
• Discussion on researcher's positionality (if applicable)
• Anticipated or preliminary findings
• Brief dissemination plan for this research including proposed conferences to present the findings and potential scholarly journals to publish the research
• References and appendices (i.e., charts, tables, survey instruments, etc.) may be included, but do not count towards page limits.

2. Dissertation Project Timeline. Provide a tentative timeline for completing the dissertation. This time should include target dates for advancement to candidacy, data collection, manuscript development, and dissertation defense. Applicants should plan to complete the dissertation by the end of the award period.
3. Curriculum vitae. Applicant's curriculum vitae, no longer than two (2) pages, to include the following:

• Research and academic employment history
• Relevant graduate courses in statistics and methodology
• Relevant publications and presentations
• Relevant professional affiliations and/or memberships

4. Budget. Awards are up to $25,000 for 1-year projects. The funds can be used for research-related expenses such as tuition, living expenses, travel to secure data enclaves or scholarly conferences, books, computer equipment, and other expenses directly related to conducting this research. The Budget must include travel costs to the AERA Annual Meeting. AERA encourages cost sharing from universities in the form of tuition assistance, office space, university fees, and other expenses. Institutions cannot charge overhead or indirect costs to administer the award funds. There is no specific template for the budget. It may be a simple 2­column format or a more complex spreadsheet. (no page limit).
5. Transcript. One unofficial graduate school transcript.
6. Letters of recommendation. Two (2) letters of recommendation are required. Letters should come from your dissertation advisor and/or other major professors who are familiar with your work. In the letter of recommendation from your advisor, the dissertation advisor will attest to your proposal constituting research for the doctoral degree.

The applicant must include the name and email address of the person they have requested a letter of recommendation on the online application form. The identified letter provided will receive an email message with instructions to upload the letter. Please start an application and request the letter of recommendation prior to the Close Date. It is important that your recommenders have ample time to upload your letter of recommendation before the deadline (December 20, 2024, 11:59pm (PT).

All applications for the AERA Minority Dissertation Fellowship in Education Research must be completed using AERA Apply, the online application portal by 11:59 p.m. Pacific time on Monday, December 20, 2024.  Late applications and supporting materials will not be accepted.

Questions

Direct any questions about the fellowship program, eligibility requirements, or submission process to fellowships@aera.net or 202-238-3200.