If you are thinking of pursuing a graduate fellowship to continue education and do research, there are resources at Tech to prepare you. You have to start working toward it now. It takes at least a year of preparation. “I was aware many honors programs wanted to educate their students about this,” Rita Barnes, interim director of honors, said. “These are graduate level fellowships, many of which fund you to go overseas.”
Fellowships such as Jack Kent Cook, Fulbright, Rhodes, and Marshall used to be locked up by Ivy League schools, but more and more colleges are now preparing viable candidates. These fellowships usually pay for 2-6 years of graduate level work along with some expenses.
Fellowships are usually looking for depth of character, commitment to service, as well as intellect. A candidate must be a well-rounded individual. Fellowships usually want “change agents,” who has a deep commitment to making a difference and encourages others to also take that extra step.
“Just being a nominee is prestigious because the process is demanding,” Barnes said. She added that preparing for a fellowship thoroughly helps a student develop as a person and a scholar.
Because the fellowship process is so demanding, Tech does not have many candidates a year, but Barnes expects numbers to grow as more people realize what
opportunities are there.
“We’re just at the beginning of letting people know,” Barnes said. Barnes hopes as more students recognize these opportunities are available, they will begin working toward a nomination.
If you are interested in pursuing one of these fellowships, you can email Rita Barnes at ritabarnes@tntech.edu.
