Campus research funding
Part two of a three-part seriesFrom federal funding and national educational agencies, to alumni donations and private corporations, UW-Madison students and faculty members receive funds for research grants from a diverse array of sources.
It's pretty rare to actually have a research grant that is specifically for a graduate student,\ Assistant Dean for Research and Sponsored Programs of the UW-Madison Graduate School Petra Schroeder said. ""What we tend to see are actually specific fellowships.""
According to UW-Madison Graduate School Fellowship Director Jan Hornback, fellowships are the graduate school equivalent to undergraduate scholarships and tend to range from $14,000 to $30,000; they are usually multi-year awards.
Schroeder explained most graduate students work with faculty mentors, who serve as their principal investigators.
""In the physical and biological sciences, and to some extent the social sciences, students may have a mentor that is working on a project, and they will have their defined research project within that larger grant, and actually be supported on a faculty's research grant,"" Schroeder said.
According to Schroeder, this funding typically provides a stipend for the student, includes funding for research supplies and sometimes covers travel expenses as well.
""They usually provide the cost of education, which is put to students' tuition, but often does not cover the entire cost,"" Hornback said.
UW-Madison's research funds from 2003 to 2004 totaled $704.8 million. Of that total, federal research awards by agencies equaled $517.8 million, while the sum of non-federal contributions was $187.3 million.
From 2003 to 2004, UW-Madison contributed $42.3 million dollars for research.
UW-Madison Zoology Department Chair Karen Steudel said funds from the university are minuscule in comparison to the huge amounts donated from national organizations including the National Science Foundation and the National Institute of Health.
""NIH is the largest funder of the University of Wisconsin as a whole,"" Schroeder said.
UW-Madison History Department Chair Steve Stern stressed the importance of external funding sources, including large donations made by educational foundations and governmental organizations. Stern noted specific contributions from the Social Science Research Council, the National Endowment for Humanities and the John Simon Guggenheim Foundation.
""Without outside help, we wouldn't get nearly enough to be able to afford the wide variety of research that goes on here,"" Stern said.
Yet, the university does provide some institutional funds for research.
Certain funds are granted through the UW-Madison Graduate School, during their ""fall competition,"" when faculty members apply for projects.
The University Fellowships program also provides funds, mostly for incoming graduate students. In addition, many individual departments have their own fellowships through donors, mostly comprised of alumni endowments.
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