Funding Opportunities | Doctoral Scholars Program

We live in a changing world and the Tennessee Board of Regents (TBR) is committed to preparing students who can be leaders in a complex world that reflects the diversity of our state, our nation and the world. Therefore, the way to do that is to have diverse learning environments.. Diverse learning environments help to enhance understanding of others, improve educational outcomes and produce a better prepared student for our state’s workforce and society as a whole. We further understand that diversity in the faculty ranks as an essential element to creating diverse learning environments, and also plays a significant role in the successful recruitment and retention of diverse students. To this end, we are committed to assisting our campuses in increasing their numbers of underrepresented faculty and graduate student enrollment.

One specific initiative is a partnership between TBR and the Southern Regional Education Board’s (SREB) Doctoral Scholars Program. The SREB Doctoral Scholars program has been in existence since 1993 with the primary purpose of increasing the number of minority (underrepresented) students who earn a doctoral degree and seek to become college and university faculty members. In the past 15 years this program has produced more than 425 graduates, with nearly a 90% retention/graduation rate and an average degree completion time of 3.5years.

There is precedent for such a partnership in our state, as SREB has partnered with the Tennessee Higher Education Commission for the past eight years. During that time, TBR institutions have had students participate as doctoral and dissertation scholars. A TBR/SREB partnership that that focuses on our five Ph. D. granting institutions could potentially benefit TBR campuses in the following ways:

  1. Provide a competitive edge when recruiting underrepresented doctoral students by promoting the possibility of participation in the SREB program;
  2. Allow a degree of familiarity with the SREB program throughout the campus so that the SREB program will be seen as a viable resource for qualified diverse faculty hires;
  3. Increase mentoring training for participating faculty mentors that can assist in overall mentoring efforts on the campus;

Doctoral Scholars Award

Five-Year Package

This program is for scholars who are just beginning (within the first year) their doctoral program or are expecting admission before the academic year begins.

The TBR-DSP award will include:

  • Three years of direct program support
  • Two years of institutional support
  • Up to five years of tuition and fees an annual stipend of up to $20,000,
  • Professional development
  • Expenses associated with attending the Annual Institute on Teaching and Mentoring

Annual Costs per student is $25,000.00 plus the cost of tuition

Amount paid by institution: Years 1-3 - Tuition and institutional fees only Years 4 - 5 Tuition and fees, financial assistance through appropriate teaching/research assignments

Amount paid by TBR Years 1-3 - $25,000.00 per year for three years (Stipend and SREB Doctoral Scholar services)

Dissertation Year Award

One-Year Package

This award is for scholars who have completed all course work, comprehensive or preliminary exams and defended their dissertation prospectus, or will before the academic year begins.

The TBR-DY award will include:

  • One-year package of direct program support
  • One year of tuition and fees
  • A $20,000 stipend
  • A $500 research allowance
  • Expenses associated with attending the Annual Institute on Teaching and Mentoring.
  • Eligibility to receive support to present original research through the Professional Development Fund

Annual costs per student is $25,000 plus tuition and fees

Amount paid by institution: Tuition and fees

Amount paid by TBR: $25,0000 (stipend and SREB fee)

Eligibility Requirements

Students must meet these eligibility requirements:

  • Must be a Tennessee resident
  • Must be a member of a traditionally underrepresented group in the area of study (science, technology, engineering or math preferred) or in the professoriate category
  • Must hold (or will receive) a bachelor's or master's degree from a regionally accredited college or university by the end of the spring term of the year of application.
  • Must be enrolled in a full-time, campus-based doctoral program in a Tennessee Board of Regents university.
  • Must plan to become a full-time faculty member in a postsecondary institution upon completion of the doctorate, with a commitment to seek employment at a Tennessee Board of Regents institution.
  • May not be employed outside the discipline/department.

If you or others at your institution are aware of any students who can benefit from this program, please have them apply by 5:00 p.m. EDT on MARCH 6, at: http://www.sreb.org/programs/dsp/process/how_to_apply.asp

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