Students in the Applied Plant Sciences graduate program are supported through half-time research assistantships, graduate fellowships, or a combination of both. Half-time research assistants work up to 20 hours per week on research projects. Work on a thesis project usually fulfills this requirement. Once all required classwork has been completed, students usually need to devote more than 20 hours per week to thesis-related research to obtain their degrees. Competition for available assistantships and fellowships is intense, although we are confident in being able to offer financial support to the very best students.
The hourly rate for students (regular RA for both MS and PhD and advanced MS) is $30.16 for the 2025-26 academic year. The hourly rate for students on advanced PhD status is $31.65. Research assistants and graduate fellows do not pay tuition but need to pay university and health insurance fees. For information on health insurance, please see Graduate Assistant HealthPlan. You will be responsible for mandatory student fees of approximately $2,000 - $3,000 per year. Please visit One Stop fees page to estimate the amount of fees.
The Graduate School has university-wide fellowship and scholarship opportunities; please visit the Graduate School webpage for more information and deadlines.
Students should budget $1,500 for first month expenses in addition to the fees.
Other funding opportunities
Other funding opportunities
Outside funding opportunities
| Name | About |
|---|---|
| Community of Scholars Program (COSP-University of Minnesota) | The Community of Scholars Program (COSP) has travel grants available for students actively participating in COSP. To continue the process of professional development for all graduate and professional students who participate in the program, up to $1,000 per student is budgeted by COSP for students to present a paper at a national or international conference or workshop. Priority will be given to first-time applications. A second award may be funded at 75% of an initial grant award. A third award may be funded at 50% of the initial award. |
| Council of Graduate Students (COGS) Travel Awards | The COGS Endowment allows COGS to give Travel and Educational awards every year to graduate students at the University of Minnesota. Students must apply no later than April 1 to be eligible for that year's fund. |
| The Department of Energy/Computation Science Graduate Fellowship | The Department of Energy provides the Computational Science Graduate Fellowship Program, administered by the Krell Institute, to support highly capable students pursuing graduate study at US universities in scientific or engineering disciplines with applications in high-performance computing. Fellows also participate in off-campus research at DOE laboratories. Annual stipend is $28,000, plus payment of tuition and fees, and is renewable for up to four years. Citizenship: US and permanent residents. |
| Diversity of Views and Experiences (DOVE) Fellowship | The DOVE Fellowship seeks to assist graduate programs to promote a diversity of views, experiences, and ideas in the pursuit of research, scholarship, and creative excellence. This diversity it promoted through the recruitment and support of academically excellent students with diverse ethnic, racial, economic, and educational backgrounds and experiences. Programs are encouraged to consider students from groups that have been traditionally underrepresented in the graduate programs. Students may contact the graduate program directly and request to be considered for the DOVE Fellowship. |
| Doctoral Dissertation Fellowship | The purpose of the Doctoral Dissertation Fellowship (DDF) program is to give outstanding final-year Ph.D. candidates who are making timely progress toward the degree--typically those entering their fifth year of graduate study--an opportunity to complete the dissertation within the upcoming academic year by devoting full-time effort to the research and writing of the dissertation. Candidates must be nominated by their graduate program's Director of Graduate Studies (DGS) to an all-University competition. Up to 50 Doctoral Dissertation Fellowships are awarded annually. |
| Doctoral Dissertation Improvement Grants in the Directorate for Biological Sciences | The National Science Foundation awards Doctoral Dissertation Improvement Grants in selected areas of the biological sciences. These grants provide partial support of doctoral dissertation research to improve the overall quality of research. Allowed are costs for doctoral candidates to participate in scientific meetings, to conduct research in specialized facilities or field settings, and to expand an existing body of dissertation research. |
| Environmental Leadership Program | The Environmental Leadership Program offers the Environmental Leadership Fellowships, as part of ELP's highly experiential and innovative national initiative that aims to build the leadership capacity of the environmental movement's most promising emerging professionals. Each year, a new class of 20-30 fellows is chosen to receive intensive training, institutional support, and mentoring for a three-year period. Fellows gain access to funding to pursue further skill training and develop new projects. |
| Fulbright Program | Offers a variety of grants for one year of study or research abroad to over 100 countries. Applicants must have proficiency in the written and spoken language of the host country. Campus information and applications are available in May each year for the upcoming academic year. |
| Ford Foundation Pre-doctoral Scholarships | |
| The Garden Club of America Scholarships and Awards | The Garden Club of America offers a selection of unusual and excellent opportunities for further study to college and graduate students, doctoral candidates and recent Ph.D.s, as well as to landscape architects. |
| Gates Millennium Scholars | |
| GCA/Fellowship in Ecological Restoration | Annual grants to support study and research in ecological restoration as well as advance knowledge and increase the numbers of scientists in this field. Study should conform to the Society of Ecological Restoration’s definition:“ The process of assisting the recovery and management of ecological integrity (which) includes a critical range of variability in biodiversity, ecological processes and structures, regional and historical context and sustainable cultural practices". Open to graduate students pursuing an advanced degree. |
| GCA/Summer Scholarship in Field Botany | Annually, the award provides financial aid toward summer studies to encourage study in pure botany. It addresses the need to promote the study of field botany to the horticulture public and increase the awareness of the importance of botany to horticulture. With this scholarship, young men and women who have demonstrated a keen interest in botany can pursue studies specifically related to field botany. It does not support time spent on research and lab work. The summer projects can be pursued beyond the regular course of study to gain additional knowledge and experience. Work may award academic credit but should be in addition to required course study must be in any of the 50 United States College undergraduates following their freshman year and graduate students up to the Master’s degree are eligible to apply. |
| ICGC Scholar Fellowships | ICGC Scholar Fellowships support outstanding students who are clearly committed to the interdisciplinary study of the Global South in the context of global change. |
| Juran Fellowship Program | In addition to the potential of earning cash awards to further research, applicants get direct feedback from an esteemed panel of faculty and industry reviewers; gain valuable experience in grant writing; and receive coaching throughout the application process. |
| Link Energy Fellowships | The Link Foundation invites applications for the Energy Fellowship Program. Fellowships are awarded for research proposals related to the aims of the foundation: fostering energy research, enhancing both the theoretical and practical knowledge and application of energy research, and dissemination of the results of research through lectures, seminars, and publications. Preference will be given to proposals dealing directly with energy and exploring ideas not yet fully tested. |
| National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship | The National Science Foundation (NSF) solicits applications for the NSF Graduate Research Fellowships, including Women in Engineering and Computer and Information Science Awards. Fellowships are awarded for graduate study leading to research-based master's or doctoral degrees in the following fields supported by NSF: engineering; mathematical sciences; computer and information science and engineering; chemistry; geosciences, physics and astronomy; psychology; life sciences; and behavioral and social sciences. Awards are also made for work toward a research-based Ph.D. in science education that requires a science competence comparable to that for Ph.D. candidates in scientific disciplines. Applicants must be near or at the beginning of their graduate study. In most cases, an individual has three opportunities to apply: during the senior year of college, the first year of graduate study, and the beginning of the second year of graduate school. |
| Sigma Xi Grants-in-Aid of Research | The Sigma Xi Grants-in-Aid of Research program has been providing undergraduate and graduate students with valuable educational experiences for more than 80 years. The program awards grants of $1,000 or less to students from all areas of the sciences and engineering. Students use the funding to pay for travel expenses to and from a research site, or for the purchase of non-standard laboratory equipment necessary to complete a specific research project. |
| Torske Klubben Fellowship for Minnesota Residents | This fellowship award has been established to support outstanding students currently enrolled in the Graduate School in any field, who are Minnesota residents. Applicants must have outstanding academic achievement, excellent leadership potential, and an interest in or connection with Norway. Awardees receive a stipend for the academic year plus tuition. Recipients may supplement the stipend with funds in any amount from any source. Sponsored by the Torske Klubben of Minneapolis. |
| Wood-Whelan Research Fellowship/International Union of Biochemistry | This fellowship is designed to support young biochemists and molecular biologists, from countries that are full or associate members of the International Union of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (IUBMB), who need to travel to other laboratories in the IUBMB and International Council for Science (ICSU) region for the purpose of carrying out experiments that require special techniques or for other forms of scientific collaboration or advanced training. The fellowships will be awarded for travel lasting one to four months. A fellowship is intended to cover travel and incidental costs to a total of $2,000. |