As part of our series How to Fully Fund Your PhD, here is a list of universities that offer fully funded PhD programs in Gender Studies, Women’s Studies, and Sexuality Studies. Earning a PhD in Gender Studies can aid the pursuit of careers in education, health and social services, public service, philanthropy, and many more. Below is a list of universities that fully fund their students across the United States, and that offer research opportunities, insurance plans, and more.
“Full funding” is a financial aid package for full-time students that includes full tuition remission as well as an annual stipend or salary during the entire program, which is usually 3-6 years. Funding usually comes with the expectation that students will teach or complete research in their field of study. Not all universities fully fund their doctoral students, which is why researching the financial aid offerings of many different programs, including small and lesser-known schools both in the U.S. and abroad, is essential.
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Emory University Fully Funded PhD in Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies
Emory University, based in Atlanta, Georgia offers a fully funded PhD in Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies. The program also includes other important aspects of identity, including race, ethnicity, religion, class, disability, nationality, and sexuality. All admitted students receive 5 years of fellowship support. Standard tuition scholarship fully covers tuition costs and enrollment fees. Students will also receive an annual stipend paid over twelve months as well as subsidized health insurance. Additional fellowships may be awarded to exceptional students, increasing the amount of stipend for the full 5 years.
Indiana University Fully Funded PhD in Gender Studies
Indiana University, based in Bloomington, IN offers a fully funded PhD in Gender Studies. The department offers both a PhD major and a PhD minor in Gender Studies. This institution also emphasizes integrative and transdisciplinary modes of analysis for the study of sexualities and sexual identities. Indiana University offers a variety of graduate student fellowships and assistantship packages on a competitive basis. Accepted students will receive packages consisting of five years of funding through teaching assistantships and/or fellowship stipends, along with fee remission and health insurance.
Ohio State University Fully Funded PhD in Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies
Ohio State University, based in Columbus, OH offers a fully funded PhD in Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies. Graduate coursework prepares students for the intellectual capacity to read for their tailored candidacy exams and design and implement dissertations projects. With rare exceptions, the Department of Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies offers full funding during the Autumn and Spring semesters of the academic year for all admitted PhD students, including international students. This funding will come through a Graduate Associateship or a fellowship that includes tuition and fee waivers, a health insurance subsidy, and a nine-month stipend for five to six years.
Rutgers University Fully Funded PhD in Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, offers a fully funded PhD in Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies. The PhD program in Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies provides advanced and systematic coursework investigating the multidimensional aspects of gender and sexuality. All students admitted to the PhD Program are funded for five years through fellowships and teaching assistantships or Graduate Research Assistantships. Additional work and research opportunities are available in the units of the Institute for Women’s Leadership. Full-time students who receive departmental funding are expected to maintain good academic standing.
Stony Brook University Fully Funded PhD in Women’s, Gender & Sexuality Studies
Stony Brook University, based in Stony Brook, NY offers a fully funded PhD in Women’s, Gender & Sexuality Studies. This program is particularly strong in transnational social movements and globalization; the politics of representation and media analysis; gender and health; and the critical analysis of sexuality. Students accepted into the PhD program are often offered a four-year Teaching Assistantship which consists of a base stipend, Graduate Tuition Scholarship, and insurance coverage for the four years.
University of Arizona Fully Funded PhD in Gender and Women’s Studies
The University of Arizona, based in Tucson, AZ offers a fully funded PhD in Gender and Women’s Studies. Graduates will produce original knowledge in the field from a foundation in diverse theories of gender, critical race theory, feminism and other social movements, history, literature, critical and cultural studies, and the relation of gender, race, ethnicity, sexuality, and transnational economic and political processes. Most students are primarily funded through their years in coursework as Teaching and Research Assistants. The department is able to provide some fellowship funding from the Graduate College and the Elizabeth Lapovsky Kennedy Endowment. Travel stipends to professional meetings are available for graduate students.
University of California Los Angeles Fully Funded PhD in Gender Studies
The University of California Los Angeles offers a fully funded PhD in Gender Studies. The UCLA Gender Studies PhD program is designed for students preparing to work in the intellectually rigorous atmosphere of post-secondary teaching and research. UCLA’s Department of Gender Studies has consistently been able to provide a minimum floor of funding for tuition and living expenses for all of its incoming graduate students for four years. This bare minimum guarantee to all incoming graduate students ensures that no one in the Department is “paying to play” while others are fully supported. PhD fellowships provide approximately $18,000-$21,000 annually in support and fee remission.
University of Kentucky Fully Funded PhD in Gender and Women’s Studies
The University of Kentucky, based in Lexington, KY offers a fully funded PhD in Gender and Women’s Studies (GWS). The GWS PhD program is designed to train cutting-edge scholars in feminist, gender, and sexuality studies. Most GWS students are supported by teaching assistantships. Teaching assistantships cover tuition and health insurance and provide a stipend for living expenses. In some cases, students are offered research assistantships that provide the same coverage. Students can apply for fellowships that cover tuition, health insurance, and living expenses while allowing students to focus on their own scholarships.
University of Michigan Fully Funded Joint PhD in Women’s and Gender Studies
The University of Michigan, based in Ann Arbor, MI offers a fully funded Joint PhD in Women’s and Gender Studies. This department has three joint interdisciplinary PhD options. The joint degree is unique in that it combines grounding in one of three disciplines, training in feminist theories and methodologies, and interdisciplinary coursework in Women’s and Gender Studies. The joint PhD programs are Women’s and Gender Studies with English, History, or Psychology. All joint PhD students are fully funded thanks to a combination of fellowships and teaching or research assistantships that last at least five years. All first-year students will receive a fellowship. Check the joint disciplines here.
University of Minnesota Fully Funded PhD in Feminist Studies
The University of Minnesota, based in Minneapolis, MN offers a fully funded PhD in Feminist Studies. The department admits three to four new students each year ensuring a strong and successful match between students’ academic interests and goals with the intellectual strengths of the faculty. All students admitted to the PhD program are promised five years of total funding through competitive fellowships, teaching assistantships, and research assistantships. This combination of funding includes full tuition, a 9-month stipend, and health insurance. Additionally, a lump sum of $10,500 for research and travel and fees is included.
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