Many sources of funding are available for graduate student and postdoctoral researchers in the College of Natural Sciences.

Strategic Research Initiatives posts graduate student and postdoctoral fellowships, travel awards and other opportunities on our List of Funding Opportunities website. To search the list, follow these steps:

1. Visit the List of Funding Opportunities page
2. Click on the “Type of Opportunity” column heading to sort the funding opportunities according to award type.
3. Browse the opportunities marked “Student/Postdoc Fellowships and Awards.”
4. Pay close attention to the deadlines! Most programs have annual submission deadlines.

More information about selected fellowship and travel grant opportunities for graduate students and postdocs is provided below:

Institutional Training Grants

Institutional training grants are programs funded by federal agencies in which a cohort of students or postdocs are provided funding to work on research that is of shared interest to a group of faculty. Training grants often revolve around a central research theme that spans multiple departments or colleges, allowing students/postdocs to interact with faculty and other researchers outside their home department or college. More information about how to apply for training grant support can be found on each program’s website.

Institutional Training Grants in the College of Natural Sciences

Pre-Doctoral Training in Interdisciplinary Neuroscience
(NIH T32)
Principal Investigators: Profs. R. Adron Harris and Kristen Harris (Institute for Neuroscience)

Other Institutional Training Grants at UT-Austin

The following institutional training grants are overseen by principal investigators outside the College of Natural Sciences. Students and postdocs interested in one of these programs should consult with their advisors to determine whether potential for cross-college collaboration exists.

Alcohol Research Training in Neurosciences
(NIH T32)
Principal Investigator: Prof. Ruben Gonzales (Waggoner Center for Alcohol and Addiction Research)

Training in Molecular Toxicology and Environmental Disease
(NIH T32)
Principal Investigator: Prof. John H. Richburg (College of Pharmacy)

Population Studies Training Program
(NIH T32)
Principal Investigator: Prof. Kelly Raley (Center for Population Studies)

Center for Perceptual Systems Training Program
(NIH T32)
Principal Investigator: Prof. Mary Hayhoe (Center for Perceptual Systems)

Imaging Science and Informatics Portfolio Program
(NIH T32)
Principal Investigator: Prof. H. Grady Rylander (Department of Biomedical Engineering)

Sustainable Grid Integration of Distributed and Renewable Resources
(NSF IGERT)
Principal Investigator: Prof. Thomas Edgar (Cockrell School of Engineering)

Individual Student/Postdoc Fellowships

Unlike institutional training grants, which are awarded by a sponsor to a group of faculty at a university, individual fellowships are awarded directly to students or postdocs who apply for them. A list of student/postdoc fellowship opportunities is provided below, and more fellowship opportunities can be found on our List of Funding Opportunities website. Students and postdocs should consult with their advisors to select a fellowship opportunity that best suits their individual career plan.

National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship Program (NSF GRFP)
NSF GRFP fellowships provide three years of full salary and tuition support to graduate students. College seniors and first- and second-year graduate students are eligible to apply.

National Institutes of Health F-Series Fellowships

NIH F31 (for graduate students)
NIH F31 fellowships provide support for promising doctoral candidates who will be performing dissertation research and training in scientific health-related fields.

NIH F32 (for postdocs)
NIH F32 fellowships provide support to promising postdoctoral applicants with the potential to become productive, independent investigators in scientific health-related research fields.

Other Funding Opportunities (Including Fellowships and Travel Awards)

• Other Funding Support for Graduate Students (UT Graduate School website)
• NSF Funding Opportunities for Graduate Students (link to NSF website)
• NSF Funding Opportunities for Postdoctoral Fellows (link to NSF website)