Doctoral Students Eligible to Receive $25,000 Fellowship for Multidisciplinary Research

Omaha, Neb. — The Buffett Early Childhood Institute at the University of Nebraska is now accepting applications from advanced doctoral students in the university system for 1-year fellowships worth up to $25,000.

Now entering its fifth year, the Buffett Early Childhood Institute Graduate Scholars program will award grants to a maximum of three doctoral students for the 2020-21 academic year. The program is designed to foster the growth of diverse, exceptional graduate students conducting research that has implications for early childhood, with particular attention to children placed at risk as a consequence of economic, social, and environmental circumstances. Applications from students working on early development in any doctoral program in the NU system are welcome.

The Buffett Institute Graduate Scholars program is the first financial support program for doctoral students who have reached Ph.D. candidacy at the University of Nebraska that focuses solely on the first years of life.

Kathleen Gallagher, director of research and evaluation at the Buffett Institute, said the innovative program seeks to support high-quality research from diverse fields that impact young children, including health, education, social work, music, art, the neurosciences, and others. Multidisciplinary research and practice and new methodologies are encouraged.

“The Buffett Graduate Scholars program allows us to collaborate with our University of Nebraska partners to support and learn from the cutting-edge research being carried out by graduate students at the NU campuses. Every year we are inspired by the fascinating and important projects that arise from this competitive process,” says Gallagher.

To increase the diversity of perspectives in research regarding young children, the Buffett Institute encourages applications from scholars from historically disadvantaged or underrepresented groups, including individuals of color, first-generation college graduates, and individuals from low-income communities.

Scholars will work with their faculty mentors on a dissertation that represents an in-depth exploration of early childhood-related research. The Institute will create opportunities for scholars and mentors to communicate, network, and collaborate with one another.

Three students received grants for the 2019-20 academic year: Alethea Chiappone, a student in the College of Public Health, Department of Health Promotion, at the University of Nebraska Medical Center; Elizabeth Preas, a psychology student at the Munroe-Meyer Institute at the University of Nebraska Medical Center; and Yinbo Wu, a psychology student at the University of Nebraska ̶ Lincoln.

Full applications for the 2020-21 academic year are due on Tuesday, March 31. The 2020-21 award winners will be announced by the end of June.

To view the Buffett Institute Graduate Scholars RFP, visit buffettinstitute.nebraska.edu/graduate-scholars.