Funding for Grad Students

The SPIN Database contains more than 40,000 distinct opportunities from more than 10,000 global sponsors. You can create customized searches and generate funding alerts based on your research interests. A brief training video is available on BuckeyeLearn for assistance in using the database. Step 1: Create your SPIN profile (using OSU Wireless or campus network). Step 2: Watch for an email with login instructions from spinsupport@infoedglobal.com. (Access may take up to one business day; the user-validation process requires an overnight administrative process.) Step 3: Login to SPIN and create and save searches that generate customized funding alerts.

The Ohio State Agroecosystem Management Program (AMP) offers a Graduate Research Seed Grant Program to support OSU graduate students pursuing research that advances healthier, sustainable, and equitable farming and food systems. This grant provides up to $5,000 for project expenses such as materials, analytical services, travel. Proposals that incorporate interdisciplinary or participatory research approaches are strongly encouraged, especially those involving collaboration with farmers and food‑system partners. Applications are typically due February 1.

The Alumni grants for Graduate Research and Scholarship (AGGRS) provide up to $5,000 for dissertation research support to doctoral candidates. Other eligible candidates include those pursuing a comparable graduate degree requiring a thesis. All doctoral candidates who have passed the Candidacy Exam and whose dissertation project has been approved by their advisor are eligible to apply. MFA students are also eligible to apply for funds to support their MFA project. Previous AGGRS awardees are not eligible for a second award. The competition is held in the fall semester of each year, with deadlines typically in late September. Faculty members of the University Research Committee, representing all ten academic areas, will review applications and make final recommendations to the Dean of the Graduate School.

The Alumni Scholars Program offers financial support to exemplary students through their local alumni clubs. Scholarship opportunities are available for high school students and current Ohio State students. A complete listing of the alumni clubs who participate in the Alumni Scholars Program, including all application links, will be posted annually by November 1. Applications are submitted through Scholarship Universe.

These awards, up to $5,000, help graduate students gain hands‑on research experience, learn grant‑writing and peer‑review processes, and strengthen mentoring relationships with CFAES faculty. Eligible applicants must be graduate students in CFAES, Education and Human Ecology, or Veterinary Medicine, have a CFAES‑appointed primary advisor, be in good academic standing, and have at least nine months remaining before graduation. Proposals are typically due in December and students may receive only one award every three years.

The Albert Schweitzer Fellowship (ASF) was founded in 1940 to support Dr. Albert Schweitzer's hospital in Africa. The U.S. Schweitzer Fellows Program was launched in 1991 with the mission to support and train emerging health-focused graduate and professional students in creating and carrying out service projects to address unmet community needs. At the end of their yearlong project, Fellows join the Schweitzer Fellows for Life alumni network, now more than 2,000 strong. The Columbus-Athens Schweitzer Fellows Program is one of 13 ASF Programs located across the U.S. Since 2011, the Columbus-Athens Program has supported students who are dedicated to addressing the social determinants of health in underserved local communities, and whose example influences and inspires others. Applications are typically due in February of each year.

The OSU Council of Graduate Students (CGS) has always strived to support graduate students in pursuing their professional goals. To this end, CGS supports two primary funding sources for graduate students: the Edward J. Ray Travel Award for Scholarship and Service (up to $1,000) as well as the Career Development Grant (up to $350). Application deadlines are rolling thoughout the academic year; you can find out more details on their website.

Small grants of up to $3000 are available to support Decision Sciences research at Ohio State (or $5,000 for collaborative teams). The goal of these competitive grants is to foster new Decision Sciences research activity and collaboration. Any Ohio State faculty member(s), post-doctoral fellow, or graduate student is eligible to apply. There are two deadlines annually, around October 15 and March 15.

The Drake Institute for Teaching and Learning offers a range of research support programs designed to advance Ohio State’s leadership in teaching and learning innovation. These services help educators investigate their own instructional practices, implement scholarly approaches to teaching and assessment, and share evidence-based strategies that enhance student success. Through its annual Research and Implementation Grant Program, the Institute provides funding for both new and experienced faculty researchers engaged in SoTL and DBER projects. The Institute also supports externally funded proposals by assisting with project development and implementation for teaching- and learning-focused initiatives. Graduate students interested in this funding should work with their faculty advisors to apply, as funding is not directly available to graduate students.

Every spring quarter, the Council of Graduate Students hosts the Edward F. Hayes Graduate Research Forum for graduate study at The Ohio State University. Students enrolled in any area of graduate study at The Ohio State University are invited are invited to submit their work. Submissions are due in January. In February, eight papers from each of the 10 graduate school areas are chosen for the competition. Those selected give a public presentation on their research. Three winners are selected from each of the 10 Graduate School areas, and the winners are announced in April at the Research Forum. There are cash awards for the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place winners in the oral and poster competitions.

The Graduate Associate Teaching Award (GATA) is the University's highest recognition of the exceptional teaching provided by graduate students at Ohio State. A $1500 award is given to the ten GATA recipients along with a plaque, which is presented to the awardees during a visit to one of their classes.

The Sea Grant Knauss Fellowship provides a unique educational and professional experience to graduate students who have an interest in ocean, coastal and Great Lakes resources and in the national policy decisions affecting those resources. The Fellowship matches highly qualified graduate students with “hosts” in the legislative and executive branch of government located in the Washington, D.C. area, for a one-year paid fellowship. To apply through Ohio Sea Grant, please contact Ohio Sea Grant Assistant Director of Administration and Research Dr. Kristen Fussell at fussell.10@osu.edu for more information about the application process. The deadline is typically mid-February each year.

The NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program is a prestigious national fellowship that supports outstanding graduate students pursuing full‑time, research‑based master’s and doctoral degrees in STEM. The program provides three years of support within a five‑year fellowship period, including a competitive annual stipend and a cost‑of‑education allowance to institutions. Application deadlines vary by discipline each year but generally fall in mid‑October to mid‑November. The application cycle typically opens in late July, with specific field‑based deadlines posted annually by NSF.

The North Central Region SARE (NCR-SARE) Graduate Student Grant Program supports projects by graduate students that address sustainable agriculture issues and are part of the student’s degree program. NCR-SARE instituted the Graduate Student Grant Program in 2002 for officially registered graduate students (Masters and Ph.D.) enrolled at accredited colleges or universities. Projects must benefit agriculture in the North Central Region. NCR-SARE’s Graduate Student Grant Program is a competitive grant program to fund graduate student projects that address sustainable agriculture issues. A candidate may only receive one NCR-SARE Graduate Student award during her or his graduate student career. The Request for Proposals is typically released in April and applications due in May of each year.

The Ohio State Office of International Affairs (OIA) provides scholarships and grants for graduate students. Visit their website to learn more about internal and external funding opportunities.

Health Policy Research Scholars (HPRS) is a leadership opportunity for those who want to apply their research to enable Americans to live longer, healthier lives. HPRS includes scholars from disciplines as diverse as economics, political science, psychology, architecture, transportation, sociology, social welfare, and environmental health. We’re always looking for students from any research-focused discipline that can advance a Culture of Health.

The Sigma Xi Grants-in-Aid of Research (GIAR) program has provided undergraduate and graduate students with valuable educational experiences since 1922. By encouraging close working relationships between students and mentors, the program promotes scientific excellence and achievement through hands-on learning. The program awards range from $500-$5,000 for Sigma Xi members and $1,000 for non-members. Students may use the funding to pay for travel expenses to and from a research site, or for purchase of non-standard laboratory equipment necessary to complete a specific research project.

The Sustainability Institute at Ohio State offers a range of funding opportunities to support interdisciplinary research, student projects, and campus initiatives that advance sustainability and resilience. Opportunities include the Ohio State Sustainability Fund, open to faculty, staff, and students for projects that improve campus operations, as well as targeted grants for faculty proposal development and scholarly activity. Students can apply for dedicated funding to support sustainability-focused research or initiatives.

Students with talent in the sciences, especially those relating to food, natural resources and human sciences, will make the research discoveries of tomorrow. Today, they need training to realize their potential. Funding education can be a challenge, especially for students from communities that are under-represented in the scientific workforce. NIFA has two types of funding options to ensure more talented students can achieve their research career goals in agriculture.

The Warner On-Farm Research Grant program, administered by the Agroecosystem Management Program (AMP) provides up to $5,000 to support collaborative, on‑farm research projects that advance sustainable agriculture in Ohio. Each proposal must include at least one farmer and one Ohio State researcher or Extension educator, with all research conducted on Ohio farms. Research topics are flexible and have previously ranged from staple crop production to innovative areas such as mushroom cultivation, aquaculture by‑product utilization, and roadway impacts on agriculture. Interested graduate students are strongly encouraged to contact OSU faculty and Extension educators in their communities to suggest or initiate collaborative research projects. The deadline is typically March 1.