Competitive Graduate Awards for master’s degree programs at SIUE
The purpose of Competitive Graduate Awards (CGA) is to support highly qualified new graduate students who are accepted into master’s degree programs at SIUE.
Award Structure & Benefits
Up to 19 CGAs are granted for the nine-month academic year (fall and spring semesters). Recipients of the CGA are awarded a Research Assistantship (RA) position to conduct the research proposed in the application under the guidance of the selected faculty mentor. The RA position will be awarded at the 25% level, which includes an average of 10 hours per week devoted to research activities. The RA position provides significant benefits, including:
- Full tuition waiver for both fall and spring semesters for up to 12 credit hours per semester. (Recipients are responsible for paying fees.)
- Highly competitive stipend rate of $930 per month ($465 per semi-monthly paycheck), for a total of $8370 for the entire academic year, prior to tax deductions. (A stipend rate of over $23/hour!)
- Summer tuition waiver for the summer following the awarded academic year for up to 9 credit hours. CGA recipients wishing to utilize the summer tuition waiver must complete the Tuition Waiver Adjustment Form and submit it to the Graduate School at least 2 weeks before the summer term begins.
As Research Assistants, all Graduate Assistantship eligibility requirements, policies, and procedures apply to CGA recipients. Since the CGA Research Assistantship is a 25% position, CGA recipients ARE eligible to accept a second Graduate Assistantship position at a level of 25% or below.
Eligibility
- The applicants must be one of the following:
- a fully admitted new graduate student who is accepted as a classified student in a masters graduate degree program at SIUE and whose first term of enrollment will be no earlier than the summer preceding the fall award period (in the event that a student applies to multiple graduate programs at SIUE, the student must be fully admitted to the program indicated on the CGA application)
- an SIUE undergraduate approved for admission to and currently enrolled in an approved combined bachelor to masters program provided they will be fully admitted to the graduate program before the fall award period (Note that this requirement includes having completed the baccalaureate degree)
- a previously-enrolled graduate student who have been out of their program for at least 4 semesters at the time of the CGA application
- The applicant must have a minimum 3.25 undergraduate cumulative GPA and, if relevant, a minimum 3.25 graduate cumulative GPA in order to apply.
- The applicant must have an identified SIUE faculty member who will work with the applicant on a scholarly activity during the award period.
- SIUE employees and State of Illinois Civil Service employees at other universities are not eligible for the award.
- Currently-enrolled SIUE undergraduate student workers are eligible to apply provided they meet the above requirements.
Application Deadlines
- The CGA Application and all required materials, as well as the Graduate School application and materials, must be submitted by January 15 at 4:30 pm.
Any applications and materials that are not received by the deadline will not be considered for review.
Steps for Application
To be eligible for consideration for a CGA, an applicant must have both a complete CGA application and a complete degree-seeking application for summer or fall on file by the CGA application deadline. It is the applicant’s responsibility to ensure that the application packet is complete by the deadline. Incomplete applications will not be reviewed. Note that a complete application will show as “complete” and contains all the required uploaded documents.
Step 1: CGA Application
The CGA application must be submitted and completed through the SIUE Application Center. You can submit your CGA application using the link below in red:
Apply for Fall 2020 CGA
In order to submit your CGA Application, you must do the following:
- FIRST – create a user name and password for the SIUE Application Center . Be sure to submit your application prior to uploading any necessary materials.
- NEXT – enter your user name and password and proceed uploading your documents into the Application Center.
NOTE: If you are using Microsoft Edge as your web browser, it may cause complications with your application. (Recommended web browsers are Google Chrome or Firefox.)
Once you create your account, you may go into the SIUE Application Center as often as necessary to upload, review or update your information before the closing date. You do not need to have your entire packet ready before you submit your application. Again, submit your application first, then go back into the portal and upload your documents.
The CGA application includes the following items:
- One letter of recommendation from someone who can speak to the applicant’s ability to be successful in graduate studies
- Competitive Graduate Award Faculty Mentor form – To find a mentor, visit the department within the SIUE website to learn about the faculty and their research. You can also contact the Graduate Program Director in your program for assistance.
- Scholarly Activities Research Plan – This is a statement describing the scholarly activity(ies) you will do during the award period. Scholarly activities may include all components of research and creative activities, from learning to review and evaluate published materials to hands-on assistance in laboratories and studios. Be as specific as possible. The proposed activity(ies) should be suitable for your skill level and reasonable for the time period of the award. You are expected to average 10 hours per week on this work. Include appropriate background information to indicate why these activity(ies) were chosen and why you believe you will be successful in completing the activities.
- Signed release of information (required to comply with the University’s Tuition Waiver Policy)
Statements must be typed.
Hard copy or mailed documents, except for recommendation letters, will not be accepted.
Step 2: Application for Admission
An application for admission as a degree-seeking graduate student at SIUE includes all materials required by SIUE and by the specific graduate program:
- Application form
- Applicable fees
- All official undergraduate and post-baccalaureate transcripts. Unofficial transcripts can be used for the review process, but official transcripts are required for admission.
- Official TOEFL/IELTS scores for international students or meet other acceptable English proficiency standards in Policy 1E1
- Any other materials required by the graduate program to which the student is seeking admission.
Application and Award Timeline
The general timeline for award application, review and notification is as follows.
| Timeline | Task |
|---|---|
| January 15 | Complete CGA application package and complete application for admission as a degree-seeking student for the following summer or fall must be on file. |
| Late January | Graduate Program Directors complete ranking of CGA applications. |
| February | Graduate Student Award Committee reviews CGA applications and recommends awards. |
| March | The Graduate School notifies departments and applicants by email and/or mail of the results. |
Review Criteria
The Graduate Student Award Committee reviews each eligible application. The committee bases its recommendations on criteria such as:
- Overall GPA
- GPA in undergraduate major and, if applicable, previous graduate studies
- Applicant’s potential to excel in graduate work
- Reasonableness and quality of proposed scholarly activity(ies)
- Confidence applicant will complete the master’s degree
- Extent to which applicant is likely to benefit from the CGA
- Strength of recommendation letter
- Strength of evaluation by graduate program
Conditions of Award
Recipients of Competitive Graduate Awards:
- Must carry 6 semester hours or more of graduate-level work throughout the term of the CGA
- Must remain in good academic standing throughout the term of the CGA
- Must participate satisfactorily in a scholarly activity mentored by a faculty member throughout the term of the CGA
- Must present a poster presentation summarizing their research activities at the Graduate School Spring Research Symposium at the conclusion of their first year
- As the recipient of a Research Assistantship, CGAs must comply with all Graduate Assistant requirements, policies, and procedures.
If a recipient fails to comply with these conditions, the Graduate School may revoke the award.