PLAN, Manage Your Professional Development as a Graduate Student
Michigan Society of Fellows
0540 Rackham Building
915 E. Washington St.
Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1070
Phone: (734) 763-1259
Fax: (734)
E-mail: society.of.fellows@umich.edu
The Michigan Society of Fellows was established at the University of Michigan in 1970 with grants from the Ford Foundation and the Horace H. and Mary Rackham Fund. Stephen Spurr, then Dean of the Rackham School of Graduate Studies, was asked by the Ford Foundation to consider the feasibility of establishing an organization modeled on the Harvard Society of Fellows on the campus of a large public institution. The idea was to establish a community of diverse young scholars who would share their creativity and excellence through interaction and mutual enlightenment.
The resources from the grants were to be used to recognize and reward academic and creative excellence; the aim of the program was to encourage original achievement of the highest quality. The University of Michigan Society of Fellows, while recognizing the success of the Harvard Society and at first closely adhering to its model, gradually developed along different lines. The Society continues to be committed to intellectual excellence and interdisciplinary work, with the goal of achieving both academic leadership and the public service that flows from it through the accomplishments of its former Fellows.
In its early years, the Michigan Society elected as Fellows promising graduate or professional students in their respective fields who could make the best use of the resources available at a large research university. The Fellows did not follow a set program of study, although many completed the Ph.D. during their fellowship. In 1977 the program formally became a postdoctoral fellowship society, with each of the Fellows having a part-time appointment in a department or school within the University. This affiliation involves some teaching, but the major occupation of the Fellows remains their research, writing, and creative work. In 2007, the Mellon Foundation awarded a grant to add four Mellon Fellows annually in the humanities, expanding the number of fellowships awarded each year from four to eight.
The Michigan Society of Fellows offers talented, interdisciplinary scholars an opportunity to expand their training and make a firm beginning in their intellectual careers. As a small center of interdisciplinary excellence, the Society makes a unique contribution to the quality of scholarly life at the University of Michigan by providing a setting for intellectual and social interaction among a diverse group of scholars who share the common bond of academic excellence.
Fellowships are awarded each year to candidates at the beginning of their academic careers who have completed their doctoral training within the previous three years. The Ph.D., or comparable terminal degree, is a prerequisite for appointment to the Society and the University of Michigan. The appointment provides a three-year tenure at the University; each Fellow is affiliated with a department that contributes one-third financial support in return for one academic year of teaching.
The selection of Fellows begins with an international announcement of the fellowship competition. All members of the Society and relevant University departments review the applications. Final selection of eight Fellows each year is made by the Senior Fellows.
Senior Fellows are faculty with national reputations as distinguished scholars who are selected annually by the President to serve four-year terms. The Dean of the Rackham School of Graduate Studies, who is the director of the Society, selects a chair to serve at the dean’s pleasure. Additionally there are several ex officio and honorary members, including the President, the Provost, and former chairs of the Society.
In the late Fall, Fellows and Senior Fellows review all applications for the fellowships. In January, after departmental review of the top-ranked applicants, Senior Fellows make the final choices of new Fellows. In April, Senior Fellows participate in the appointment of new Senior Fellows by selecting, from nominations, a list of candidates to submit to the President. Within the Society, Senior Fellows are called upon to help create a spirited intellectual community and to serve as models and colleagues for the Fellows.
The Fellows are invited annually by the Dean of the Graduate School to evaluate and rank distinguished dissertations by Rackham doctoral students for awards to be presented in a spring symposium.
Fellows are expected to be in residence at the University during each academic year of appointment and to participate in the activities of the Society. Off-campus research leave during academic terms will be permitted in rare cases and only upon written application to the Chair of the Society.
The activities of the Society include seven dinner meetings, where dinner talks are presented by Senior Fellows and second-year Fellows; monthly colloquia for Fellows (which Senior Fellows are also welcome to attend) where they meet to discuss their work in progress; and occasional meetings, as called, to select Fellows or Senior Fellows. It is expected that members will attend these functions.
University benefits for Fellows are basically the same as those for other faculty members and employees of the University. Fellows are eligible for participation in the university health insurance options, dental insurance after one year of service, and group term life insurance.
The annual stipend will be $51,500 in 2009-10; fellows are eligible for participation in the University health, dental, and life insurance programs. The department will provide one-third of the total stipend, the Society the remaining two-thirds. Research and travel funds up to $1,500 per year during the fellowship tenure are available to each Fellow, and moving expenses up to $2,500 will be reimbursed.
Fellows are encouraged to participate in departmental seminars. Any exhibits, readings, concerts, etc. of interest to other Society members should be mentioned to the administrator, who can circulate the information.
Each Fellow is asked to submit a short annual report on his or her scholarly work for the year; those completing their tenure are asked to expand this with a summary of their experiences in the Society.
Fellows are expected to cite their affiliation with the Society of Fellows in their published works completed or begun during the fellowship tenure.
