Fellowships for Graduate Students in Wildlife Ecology and Related Areas
* Applicants' research interests must relate to wildlife management and conservation or a closely related area.
* Scholarships are awarded directly to properly accredited U.S. colleges or universities for bona fide graduate students who are approved candidates for M.S. or Ph.D. degrees, after project proposals have been submitted to and approved by the Foundation. To be eligible for financial support, a student must have a minimum GRE score of 1100 (verbal plus quantitative) and a "B" average in the last two years of undergraduate or graduate work.
The Rob and Bessie Welder Wildlife Foundation's graduate research scholarship is designed to promote the education of exceptionally qualified students and provide research information to manage wildlife populations. The scientific breadth of the research scholarship program includes the following academic units: animal behavior, biology, botany, conservation education, ecology, mammalogy, ornithology, parasitology, range science, veterinary pathology, and wildlife sciences.
Proposals are ranked in the following order of descending priority:
1. Studies already in progress which need to be extended into or through the coming year.
2. New studies initiated on the Foundation's Refuge.
3. Proposals concerning problems or species on which we previously worked or in which we have special interest because of its relationship to our research. These normally are within a reasonable radius of our locality and most of them are restricted to south Texas.
Initially, the application and abbreviated proposal may be submitted in letter form, and must be co-signed by a qualified member of the faculty at the parent university.
The complete proposal should include the following (please be concise):
Objectives
Background and Relevance
Study Site
Methods (to meet each objective)
Analytical Procedures
Itemized Budget (by calendar year, or remaining portion thereof)
Timetable (please estimate the schedule for field and academic work, including completion date)
Materials concerning the proposed scholarship recipient should include:
Biographical data
Degree sought
Three letters of recommendation
Complete academic records
Students receiving full-time scholarships from the Foundation are precluded from any other form of assistance for those months they receive our scholarship support. Neither does the Foundation pay scholarship funds for those months when and if students are fulfilling teaching assignments with remuneration.
Funds for equipment and supplies are allocated sparingly, and careful advance planning for them is necessary. Smaller grants also are made for partial support of cooperative projects. In no instance shall the Foundation pay overhead or indirect costs to the parent university.
Travel will be allocated at a maximum of $1,200 per year, or pro-rated at $100/month based upon the number of months the student is doing field work. The student's major professor is encouraged to travel to the project study area at least once, and one trip may be budgeted, this not to exceed $500. All Welder Fellowship recipients are encouraged to present the results of their field research at appropriate professional meetings. The Foundation will reimburse the student for travel to one (1) professional meeting if the student presents a paper at that meeting.
The Foundation desires to promote fellow publications. Page charges are ordinary costs of research and are becoming very expensive. The student should not budget page charges in requests for funds. These funds will be provided when evidence of acceptance of the paper is received at the Foundation, and when a Welder contribution number has been provided for the paper. The paper must have a Welder contribution number to be eligible for page charges. All articles resulting from work supported by the Foundation (feature articles and notes) must have a Welder number. Support of publications will be limited to a period of four years after the student has filed a thesis or dissertation.
Scholarships for full-time students amount to $1,300 per month for M.S. candidates and $1,400 per month for Ph.D. candidates, to cover living costs, tuition, fees, and books. A maximum of $1,200/year for travel. Funds for page charges may be available.
Students working on or near the Refuge are provided dormitory apartment living quarters, utilities, office space, computer access, and such field and laboratory facilities as are available.