The University of California, Merced is committed to the recruitment, admission, and retention of a high quality graduate student population. The prestigious John and Victoria Elia Fellowship was established to honor Mr. Elia’s life long commitment to public service and education. This fellowship is intended to help recruit and support top Ph.D. students with distinguished academic records.
Eligibility Requirements & Standards
- Ph.D. applicants entering their first year of graduate study who also attended UC Merced for their undergraduate education.
- All Ph.D. applicants are eligible, regardless of citizenship.
- Undergraduate GPA above 3.0.
- Must be awarded as part of an offer of multi-year support.
- Deferment of the award beyond the first year is not allowed.
Financial Support
- The $8,000 award is distributed during the Summer term following the first year of enrollment.
Student Loan Impact
- Per federal guidelines, all fellowship and tuition support is taken into consideration when determining student loan eligibility. If the student will receive federal student loans during the same academic year as this award, please note that this award could, and most likely will, reduce their student loan eligibility.
Nomination & Review Procedures
- Each graduate group offering a doctoral degree is eligible to nominate up to two Ph.D. applicants each year. Any applicant meeting the criteria above is eligible; applicants do not need to apply. Graduate Group Chairs should submit their nominations directly to the Graduate Division.
- This fellowship will follow a multiple step review process that considers all applicants. Review criteria will include adherence to the fellowship guidelines, intellectual merit and academic qualifications of the applicant.
- First Review - Nominations submitted by the Graduate Group Chairs should include a brief description highlighting the nominee’s qualifications for the non-expert reviewer, plus any information not in the Ph.D. admissions applications that might help the review committee evaluate the nominees and their fellowship qualifications.
- Second Review - Nominee admissions applications are provided to the review committee, and the committee then makes recommendations to the Graduate Division. Review criteria will include adherence to the fellowship guidelines, the academic qualifications of the nominee, and the letters of recommendation.
- Third Review - Final award decisions will be made by the Graduate Dean.
* The Graduate Division reserves the right not to make an award in any given year for which a call for applications/nominations has been issued.
Deadlines
Admissions Application:
January 15
Graduate Group Nomination:
February 2
