Rackham Merit Fellowship Program

Go to the RMF Nomination Website

Information for Prospective or Newly Admitted Graduate Students for 2012-2013

Introduction

Across the United States, graduate education seeks to develop, strengthen, and diversify the professoriate. Graduate education opens opportunities for highly talented and motivated individuals from all walks of life and backgrounds who have varied perspectives that contribute fresh approaches to complex research problems and bring new expertise into the classroom. The programs and departments of the Rackham Graduate School produce outstanding individuals of accomplishment and integrity from many backgrounds who become leaders in research, teaching, the arts, and professional fields.

The Rackham Merit Fellowship (RMF) Program helps sustain the academic excellence and inclusiveness of the Michigan graduate community, one that embraces students with diverse experiences and goals, and who come from many educational, cultural, geographic, and familial backgrounds. By offering financial assistance to those students who might not otherwise have access, we aim to reduce disparities in graduate education. We also aim to promote the values of diversity and inclusion by encouraging the admission and funding of students who represent a broad array of life experiences and perspectives, because this enhances the quality of the intellectual environment for all students.

Award Description

The RMF is competitive and recognizes entering students who have outstanding academic qualifications, show exceptional potential for scholarly success in their graduate program, and demonstrate promise for contributing to wider academic, professional, or civic communities. The RMF for doctoral students is a five-year funding partnership between Rackham and the graduate program that includes tuition, stipend, health and dental coverage, during each fall and winter term, with select summer stipend and benefits. The RMF for master’s students provides tuition, stipend, health and dental coverage during the semester of the award.

Graduate students do not apply directly for the RMF, but are nominated by faculty in their graduate program. Nominees are encouraged to provide their graduate program with relevant information regarding their personal background and life experiences, including educational, cultural, familial, or other opportunities or challenges in their personal statement in the Rackham application for admission. Nominations are reviewed by faculty committees on an individual basis.

In addition to the five-year funding package, Rackham Merit Fellowship doctoral students are invited to participate in the Summer Institute (SI), sponsored by the Rackham Graduate School. The SI is an eight-week program that provides an accelerated introduction to graduate studies for newly awarded Rackham Merit Fellowship recipients who are pursuing a Ph.D. and takes place the summer before students begin their doctoral studies. Tuition and required fees for courses are covered by the Rackham Graduate School as well as a summer stipend, health and dental insurance. The SI stipend is separate from and in addition to the RMF fellowship stipend distributed during the academic year (September through April). SI fellows are responsible for their own housing and transportation costs during the Institute.

Award Eligibility

The Rackham Merit Fellowship is open to newly admitted students in a Rackham graduate degree program who:

  • have a record of superior academic achievement (e.g., grade point average, honors, or other designation);
  • are U.S. citizens or permanent residents;

And meet one or more of the following criteria:

  • come from an educational, cultural or geographic background that is underrepresented in graduate study in their discipline in the United States or at the University of Michigan;
  • have demonstrated commitment to diversity in the academic, professional, or civic realm through their work experience, volunteer engagement, or leadership of student or community organizations. By diversity, we mean efforts to reduce social, educational or economic disparities based on race, ethnicity or gender, or to improve race relations in the U.S.;
  • have experienced financial hardship as a result of family economic circumstances;
  • are first-generation U.S. citizens or are the first generation in their families to graduate from a four-year college.

Information for All Rackham Merit Fellows

Award Conditions

Satisfactory Academic Progress

Rackham Merit Fellows are expected to meet the satisfactory academic progress standards established by their graduate degree program and the Graduate School throughout the period of fellowship tenure. All graduate students are encouraged to routinely seek direction and counsel from their faculty advisor, graduate program chair, and faculty mentor(s) during every term. Fellows experiencing academic difficulties are strongly advised to obtain early assistance from their graduate program and the Rackham Office of Graduate Student Success.

Award Tenure

The Rackham Merit Fellowship provides five years of funding to doctoral students. RMF awards may be deferred on a term-by-term basis with prior approval from the fellow’s graduate program and Rackham. Fellows and graduate programs are expected to intersperse non-Rackham support with the RMF to provide the maximum educational benefit for the student.

To receive Rackham’s support during the Fall and Winter terms, fellows must be registered full-time (minimum of 9 hours each term for master’s students and precandidates, and 8 hours for candidates). The stipend level is currently $8,800 per term for the 2012-2013 academic year.

Doctoral students may receive stipend support during one Spring and Summer term if they are involved full-time in activities related to the completion of their degree requirements. A signed and approved Spring/Summer utilization form from the graduate program is required before the stipend can be released. Note: Spring/Summer RMF support does not include tuition.

Doctoral fellows are expected to achieve candidacy prior to the beginning of the Fall term of their fourth year. If candidacy is not achieved by the beginning of the term, the term of candidacy RMF fellowship will be forfeited. To receive Candidacy support, a signed and approved Fall/Winter Utilization Form. from the graduate program is required before the award can be processed.

Program Changes/Dual Degrees

Rackham Merit Fellowships are awarded for study in the Rackham program that nominated the student. Fellows who wish to change fields or add programs must have their eligibility for continued RMF support reviewed and approved by their new graduate program and the Rackham Fellowships Office prior to making the change.

Note to joint or dual degree students: Fellows pursuing joint or dual degrees with non-Rackham degree programs must file their program(s) of study with the Rackham Fellowships Office before the funding can be released. Rackham funds may not be used to pay tuition for University of Michigan courses taken while registered in a non-Rackham degree program.

Employment

Because Rackham Merit Fellowship awardees are expected to be engaged full-time in the program of study for which the RMF was awarded, a fellow may not accept any employment obligation involving more than 10 hours of work a week while receiving RMF support. In the case of Graduate Student Instructors (GSIs), Graduate Student Research Assistants (GSRAs), or Graduate Student Staff Assistant (GSSAs), this is equivalent to a 0.25 appointment.

According to University contracts and policies, units appointing Rackham Merit Fellows to GSI, GSRA or GSSA positions are required to pay the tuition and benefits. Therefore, the Rackham Merit Fellowship does not cover tuition and benefits for any term in which a Fellow receives a University appointment greater than 0.25 unless it is part of a support package previously approved by the Graduate School.

Benefits

Health and dental insurance are provided as a part of all Rackham fellowships. Health and dental coverage may be continued over an intervening summer between two academic terms of benefit-eligible support.

Students awarded Rackham fellowships are eligible to elect vision insurance and/or the legal plan. There is no university contribution for these benefits. For more information, please see the Graduate Student section of the Benefits Office website.

Information for Faculty and Staff in Doctoral Programs

Guide to Assessing Rackham Merit Fellowship Eligibility

Guide to Assessing Rackham Merit Fellowship Eligibility (pdf 122KB) is intended to help graduate chairs and admissions committees identify newly admitted students who may be nominated for the Rackham Merit Fellowship (RMF) Program. Deciding which students to nominate requires a holistic evaluation process, and information found in different parts of the Rackham Admissions Application can help determine which students are best qualified for a RMF nomination.

Academic Responsibilities of Doctoral Programs

Graduate programs are expected to provide the following support for Rackham Merit Fellows in their academic programs:

  • Each program has a responsibility to develop and maintain a program to recruit high quality graduate students who will enrich and promote the diversity of the graduate community and to assure fellows of a welcoming, inclusive and supportive academic and social environment as graduate students at the University of Michigan.
  • At the time of admission, a faculty mentor must be assigned to each fellow who, together with other members of the graduate program, will work to assist the student in becoming a fully functioning member of the program. The mentor should provide guidance in such critical areas as the student’s choice of first year courses, first year research opportunities, understanding of and inclusion in the academic and social life of the program, and participating in relevant research programs and summer institutes.
  • An annual academic evaluation of each Rackham Merit Fellow’s progress must be shared with the graduate student and submitted by the graduate program.

Financial Responsibilities of Doctoral Programs

Doctoral programs and Rackham work together to ensure that recipients of the Rackham Merit Fellowship receive a five-year funding package which includes tuition, stipend, health and dental insurance during each fall and winter term, with select summer stipend and benefits. Graduate programs are expected to credit the Rackham Graduate School as a funding source in Rackham Merit Fellowship recipient award letters.

Graduate programs are expected to submit signed and approved Fall/Winter or Spring/Summer utilization forms to the Rackham Fellowships Office by the deadlines listed on each form, so Spring/Summer and Candidacy funding can be processed.

Graduate programs are responsible for dispersing all funds to Rackham Merit Fellows for each Fall and Winter term for the two academic years that are funded from the program’s resources. Graduate programs are strongly encouraged to process appointments according to the University’s guidelines and deadlines so fellows receive the tuition and required fees payment (if applicable) and stipend as early in the term as possible. Graduate programs are also expected to provide health and dental coverage for the Spring/Summer term following Years 2 and 3. Funding for a student who is awarded an individual fellowship does not substitute for a graduate program’s funding commitment. Rather, the total terms of available funding for the student will be extended by the number of terms of the additional award.

Graduate programs are expected to give Rackham Merit Fellows equal consideration for awards and appointments under the control of the program. Graduate program should assist RMF students in securing additional funding in the same manner as recipients of any other competitive, external award.

Types of Rackham Merit Fellowships

RMF Funding for Most Doctoral Programs

Table 1 list the funding arrangement for most doctoral programs. Rackham funding is provided during Years 1 (pre-candidacy), 4 (candidacy) and 5 (candidacy). Graduate programs are expected to provide two academic terms of matching support during Years 2 and 3. Typically, the student is supported by the doctoral program from any number of sources including GSI, GSRA, federal training grant, or other departmental funding equivalent to a 0.50 FTE appointment or above. This 0.50 level will assure that full tuition, health and dental benefits and a stipend are provided to Rackham Merit Fellows for each academic term. All RMF awardees must achieve candidacy by the beginning of a Rackham-funded candidacy fellowship term (Years 4 and 5), or Rackham’s support for the term will be forfeited.

Table 1: Rackham Merit Fellowship funding arrangement for most doctoral programs.
  Year 1 Year 2 Year 3 Year 4 Year 5
Student level: Precandidate Precandidate Precandidate/Candidate Candidate* Candidate*
Supported by: Rackham Graduate Program Graduate Program Rackham Rackham
Example of Type of support: RMF GSI/GSRA/Training Grant GSI/GSRA/Training Grant RMF RMF
*Student must be a Candidate to receive RMF support in Years 4 and 5. If candidacy is not achieved by the beginning of Year 4, the student will forfeit a Rackham-funded candidacy term for each semester the student is not a candidate.
RMF Funding for Select Doctoral Programs

To meet the needs of specific graduate programs, Rackham has created some customized versions of the RMF. Although the intent and purpose of these fellowships is similar to the Rackham Merit Fellowship, the award terms differ from the RMF described below. Please contact the Rackham Fellowships Office for additional information. These awards are:

  • Doctoral Students in the School of Education. Recipients are awarded the Rackham/Education Scholar’s Award (RESA).
  • Doctoral Students in Engineering Programs within the College of Engineering. Recipients are awarded the Rackham Engineering Award (REA).
  • Doctoral Students in the Program in Biomedical Sciences (PIBS) within the Program in Biomedical Sciences (PIBS).
  • Doctoral Students in Science Programs within the natural science departments in the College of Literature, Science and the Arts as well as doctoral programs in the Medical School. Recipients are awarded the Rackham Science Award (RSA).
  • Doctoral Students in Social Work and Social Science departments in the College of Literature, Science and the Arts.
  • Doctoral Students in Musical Arts (DMA) departments in the School of Music, Theatre and Dance.

Table 2 lists the funding arrangement for Rackham Engineering Award (REA), the Rackham Science Award (RSA) and the RMF for PIBS students. These specialized versions of the RMF consist of Rackham funding during Years 1 (full), 2 (partial), and 3 (partial), and graduate programs provide the balance of support at a level equivalent to a 0.50 GSRA appointment during years 2 and 3 and full support in Years 4 and 5.

Table 2: Example of other RMF Funding (e.g., REA, RSA, PIBS programs).
  Year 1 Year 2 Year 3 Year 4 Year 5
Student level: Precandidate Precandidate/Candidate Precandidate/Candidate Candidate Candidate
Supported by: Rackham Rackham and Graduate Program Rackham and Graduate Program Graduate Program Graduate Program
Example of Type of support: RMF GSI/GSRA/Training Grant GSI/GSRA/Training Grant GSI/GSRA/Training Grant GSI/GSRA/Training Grant

Awarding the RMF to Doctoral Students

RMF Doctoral Competition Nomination Procedures and Evaluation

Doctoral programs may nominate eligible entering doctoral students for the RMF doctoral competition through the RMF Nomination website. Faxed, e-mailed or paper copies of nominations are no longer accepted. Instructions for using the RMF Nomination website are available. Within the nomination website, graduate programs will need to:

  • Select nomination type “Doctoral Competition, deadline: specific date”
  • Complete the RMF nomination; and
  • Upload a PDF of the nominee’s admissions letter.

Doctoral programs must complete and submit nominations prior to the Thursday, February 2, 2012 and Thursday, March 8, 2012 deadlines. Programs may submit nominations in both rounds, but may not nominate a student more than once. An e-mail will be sent to the graduate program confirming Rackham’s receipt of the nomination.

Nominations for the Rackham Merit Fellowship competition are reviewed by faculty committees on a rolling basis following each submission deadline (February 2 and March 8, 2012). Individual nominations are evaluated on a competitive basis based on the nominee’s academic excellence and contributions to diversity. The Rackham Fellowships Office will notify graduate programs of award decisions within three (3) weeks of the nomination deadline.

Selected Doctoral Programs Receiving a RMF Allocation

Selected Rackham doctoral programs receive an award allocation to administer their own internal Rackham Merit Fellowship award process using the RMF eligibility criteria. Award allocations are considered on an annual basis, based on the graduate program’s ability to successfully recruit, retain and graduate a diverse student body. Allocation letters are sent to select graduate programs late in the Fall term, prior to the admission season. Doctoral students newly admitted in these programs are selected for RMF awards by their admitting program and are not entered in the doctoral competition.

RMF allocations are awarded to doctoral students through the RMF Nomination website. Faxed, e-mailed or paper copies of nominations will no longer be accepted. Instructions for using the RMF Nomination website are available. Within the nomination website, graduate programs will need to:

  • Select nomination type “Doctoral Allocation, deadline: April 16, 2012”
  • Complete the RMF nomination; and
  • Upload a PDF of the nominee’s admissions letter.

All doctoral program allocations that have not been awarded by April 16, 2012 will revert back to Rackham.

If your graduate program fully commits the RMF allocation and has identified additional students who meet the RMF criteria, the graduate program may nominate the additional students in the second round of the RMF competition (March 8, 2012 deadline). If the program plans to nominate eligible students for the doctoral competition, please notify Assistant Dean Shelly Conner prior to the March 8 deadline.

RMF Doctoral Notification Process

Graduate programs are responsible for notifying graduate students of award results. All graduate programs are expected to credit the Rackham Graduate School as a funding source in Rackham Merit Fellowship recipient award letters. Graduate programs are expected to include an invitation to the Summer Institute in their award letters. Suggested text and promotional material regarding the SI will be sent to graduate programs early in the Winter term.

RMF Doctoral Award Acceptance

RMF awardees must indicate their award acceptance decision by completing and returning the Awardee Acknowledgement and Decision Form (pdf 172KB) form to the Rackham Fellowships Office no later than April 16, 2012. With graduate program approval, fellowship recipients may defer the RMF award for up to one academic year.

External Fellowship Funding for Doctoral Students

Graduate students are strongly encouraged to seek funding from sources external to the University of Michigan. Rackham Merit Fellows may not hold other competitive fellowships simultaneously with the RMF, with the exception of the GEM fellowship which is used concurrently with the RMF. In the case of awards external to the University for which Rackham provides cost-sharing (e.g., Ford, NSF, DOD, NASA), fellows may be able to use a portion of, or defer the entire, RMF award. Please see the Rackham cost-sharing guidelines for more information.

Awards external to the University with a minimum stipend of $20,001 will extend the student’s funded period at the University. Graduate programs are required to provide their support of RMF students prior to post-candidacy RMF funding. Fellows and their graduate programs are expected to notify the Rackham Fellowships Office about any supplemental fellowship awards or other funding received by a fellow, or the student’s remaining RMF funding may be forfeited. Upon notification, the Rackham Fellowships Office will work with the graduate program to create an individualized funding plan for the student that integrates the RMF, graduate program, and external award funding.

Information for Faculty and Staff in Master’s Programs

Guide to Assessing Rackham Merit Fellowship Eligibility

Guide to Assessing Rackham Merit Fellowship Eligibility (pdf 122KB) is intended to help graduate chairs and admissions committees identify newly admitted students who may be nominated for the Rackham Merit Fellowship (RMF) Program. Deciding which students to nominate requires a holistic evaluation process, and information found in different parts of the Rackham Admissions Application can help determine which students are best qualified for an RMF nomination.

Awarding the RMF to Master’s Students

Selected Master’s Programs Receiving an RMF Allocation

Selected Rackham master’s programs will receive an award allocation to administer their own internal Rackham Merit Fellowship award process using the RMF eligibility criteria. Award allocation letters are sent to select graduate programs late in the fall term, prior to the admission season.

To provide master’s programs with additional flexibility, all Rackham Master’s Awards (RMAs) and Rackham Merit Fellowships for the Master’s in Fine Arts (RMF-MFA) are semester-length awards. Graduate programs may award single or multiple semesters to an incoming master’s student. Graduate programs are expected to provide the RMF recipient with matching support for at least one semester of the RMF award.

RMAs and RMF-MFAs are structured to assist eligible master’s students with semester(s) of support consisting of tuition, health and dental insurance, and a stipend of $8,800 per term during the 2012-13 academic year.

RMF allocations are awarded to master’s students through the RMF Nomination website. Faxed, e-mailed or paper copies of nominations are no longer accepted. Instructions for completing the RMF Nomination website are available. Within the nomination website, graduate programs will need to:

  • Select nomination type “Master’s Award, deadline: April 16, 2012”
  • Complete the RMF nomination; and
  • Upload a PDF of the nominee’s admissions letter.

All master’s program allocations that have not been awarded by April 16, 2012 will revert back to Rackham. Master’s programs are responsible for notifying graduate students of the RMF award.

Graduate programs are strongly encouraged to process appointments according to the University’s guidelines and deadlines so fellows receive the tuition and required fees payment (if applicable) and stipend as early in the term as possible. Master’s programs will receive a transfer of Rackham funds in October .

External Fellowship Funding for Master’s Students

Graduate students are strongly encouraged to seek funding from sources external to the University of Michigan. Rackham Merit Fellows may not hold other competitive fellowships simultaneously with the RMF, with the exception of the GEM fellowship which is used concurrently with the RMF.

In the case of awards external to the University for which Rackham provides cost-sharing, fellows may be able to use a portion of, or defer the entire RMF award. Please see the Rackham cost-sharing guidelines for more information. Fellows and their graduate programs are expected to notify the Rackham Fellowships Office about any supplemental fellowship awards or other funding received by a fellow, or the student’s remaining RMF funding may be forfeited.

Rackham Merit Fellowship Forms and Guides

Contact Information

For student inquiries, administrative matters and to submit forms, please call:

Rackham Fellowships Office
Douglas Keasal
Phone: (734) 764-8119
rackham.rmf@umich.edu

For questions about RMF policy matters, please contact:

Rackham Dean’s Office
Assistant Dean Shelly Conner
Phone: (734) 615-3654
shellyah@umich.edu

For benefits inquiries, please contact:

HR/Payroll Service Center
Phone: (734) 615-2000

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