Graduate Women In Science (GWIS) National Fellowship Program in the natural and social sciences

The Graduate Women In Science (GWIS) National Fellowship Program promotes knowledge in the natural and social sciences and encourages women’s academic and professional careers in the sciences. Endowment funds, mostly generated from bequests, provide the annual income that supports scientific research conducted by GWIS fellowship winners. During the 2023-2024 funding cycle, we distributed $50,000 in research awards to nine outstanding women scientists and recognized twenty graduate students and seven early-career honorable mentions. Since 2008, we have awarded nearly $750,000 in research awards.

The fellowships are known as the Sigma Delta Epsilon (SDE), Eloise Gerry, Ethel K. Allen, Vessa Notchev, Jean Langenheim, Monique Braude, Nell I. Mondy, Elizabeth Weisburger, and Hartley Corporation Fellowships. The highest scoring SDE Fellowship designee shall be recognized as the Adele Lewis Grant/SDE Fellowship Winner and the second-highest scoring designee shall be known as the Hartley Corporation/SDE Fellowship Winner. The funds available in any one year shall be the income from and contributions to the endowment accounts. The amount thus varies from year to year. The Fellowships Committee reserves the right to make no awards if no satisfactory applicants present themselves. The program is not bound by any estimates indicated in this description.

eligibility

• We strive to empower a community representative of all women in STEM, Life Science, and related Social Science fields. In support of our mission to cultivate a strong global community, GWIS seeks to recognize merit-based scholarship and sustained personal engagement with underrepresented communities.
• Awards will be made to women who hold a degree from a recognized institution of higher learning, who demonstrate outstanding ability and promise in research and are performing hypothesis-driven research at any institution in the U.S. or abroad. Any person who identifies as a woman in science, irrespective of race, religion, nationality, creed, national origin, sexual orientation, or age is welcome to apply.
• The career level (e.g. graduate student through assistant professor) of the candidate will be taken into consideration when reviewing the proposals.
• GWIS membership is required by the application deadline. Please note that membership approval can take up to 48 hours to process, so if you want to become a GWIS member, please do so in advance.

• Financial need for research funding is a requirement for the application. Projects that have already been fully funded by another agency or organization will be ineligible. Applicants must indicate all pending sources on the application form, as reviewers will consider these factors when assessing the project’s financial need.