Formed from a partnership between the Graduate Student Association, the Office of Graduate Studies, and the Office of Research and Creative Scholarship, the Graduate Research Assistantship (GRA) grant intends to extend the student’s classroom learning, expose them to current challenges in their discipline, build analytical skills, and provide a meaningful work experience that will also benefit faculty in the development of their research and scholarship agenda. Through this program, we also hope to encourage external grant applications that include support for graduate research assistants.
Funds are available to support a limited number of GRA positions for this academic year. If you are interested in mentoring a GRA this year, please submit a completed proposal, using the GRA Application Form by the deadlines listed in the Calendar below.
Note: Proposals that do not use the required Google Form application will not be reviewed.
FY2025 Calendar
- October 1, 2024: GRA Application cycle opens
- October 21, 2024: GRA Google Form Applications are due
- By October 31, 2024: Review and selection of applications
- By November 8, 2024: Applicants notified of funding decisions
- November 17, 2024 to June 15, 2025*: Approved projects conducted
*Students in their final year of study may not work beyond their date of graduation (In the 2024-2025 academic year, December 30, 2024 for Fall graduates; May 11, 2025 for Spring graduates).
GRA Funding
The maximum award will be $2,000 per student, though amounts awarded are dependent on the number of applications received and availability of funding. The funds can be used to hire a graduate student assistant at a recommended hourly rate of $16.00. Additionally, a portion of the amount requested may be allocated to the costs associated with a mentored GRA attending a relevant academic or professional conference.
Proposals need to include a clear and concise description of the project, the expected outcomes, and how the work will be evaluated and/or disseminated. Applicants should outline how this work benefits their discipline, their professional research/scholarship agenda, and the student. Applicants should include a short job description for the Graduate Research Assistant position, including responsibilities, required skills, and any other pertinent aspects that will be used when the open position gets posted on the Student Employment website. If the application includes funds for conference travel, the applicant must identify the conference, its location and dates, and explain how it will enhance the student’s learning and academic growth.
Eligibility
For Faculty
Full-time term and tenured/tenure-track faculty are eligible to apply.
For Students
Students must be enrolled in Emerson graduate courses during the academic year, and not be employed by the College as a teacher or affiliated faculty member.
Students in their final year of study may not work beyond their date of graduation (December 30 for Fall graduates; Commencement for Spring graduates)
Eligible Project Examples
- Support for a student to assist in research, literature review for a book or other project
- Support for a student to assist in development or curating of curricular or scholarly materials
- Support for a student to assist in data collection, cataloging, and analysis
- Support for a student as a film or production assistant
- Support for the student to attend an academic or scholarly conference related to their field of study (alongside student wages)
Ineligible Project Examples
- Support for a student to provide general clerical and administrative assistance for regular academic and teaching duties
- Projects that do not clearly demonstrate a meaningful work and learning experience for students
- Compensation or support for regular curricular, credit-bearing activities, such as coursework, theses, or directed studies
- Requests for travel/conference funds that do not also include student wages
Criteria & Considerations
Proposals must include:
- A clear and concise description of the project
- The expected outcomes of the project or research
- How the work will be evaluated
- Outline how this work benefits your discipline, your professional research/scholarship agenda, and the student
- Include a short job description for the Graduate Research Assistant position, including responsibilities, required skills, and any other pertinent aspects that will be used when the open position gets posted in Workday
- If the application includes funds for conference travel, applicants must identify
- the name of the conference;
- the dates and location of the conference; and
- an explanation of how the conference will enhance the student's learning and academic growth
The maximum award will be $2,000 per student at a recommended hourly rate of $16.00/hour.
GRA Application Form
Eligible faculty members can access the GRA Application Form when the application cycle opens. If there is a Second Round “Contingency” cycle, application forms will be emailed to faculty with the announcement of the proposal cycle. Applicants can fill out the application and make changes to the form until applications are due.
Review and Selection of Applications
ORCS will review the applications and make recommendations for selection to the Office of Graduate Studies and the Graduate Student Association.
Second Round “Contingency” Application Cycle
In the event the full GRA funding pool is not awarded following the conclusion of the Fall application cycle, a second, smaller application cycle will be held at the beginning of the Spring semester. Applicants for the second cycle cannot be Initial Cycle recipients. ORCS will email an announcement to faculty in early January with a link to a new application form if funding is available.