Fall 2011 EPA Greater Research Opportunities (GRO) Fellowships For Undergraduate Environmental Study
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), as part of its Greater Research Opportunities (GRO) Fellowships program, is offering Greater Research Opportunities (GRO) undergraduate fellowships for bachelor level students in environmental fields of study. The deadline for receipt of applications is December 9, 2010 ET 4:00 PM for receipt of paper applications, and December 9, 2010, at 11:59:59 PM ET for submittal of electronic applications to Grants.gov. Subject to availability of funding, the Agency plans to award approximately 40 new fellowships by July 29, 2011. Eligible students will receive support for their junior and senior years of undergraduate study and for an internship at an EPA facility during the summer between their junior and senior years. The fellowship provides up to $19,700 per academic year of support and up to $9,500 of support for a three-month summer internship.
Award Information:
Anticipated Type of Award: Fellowship
Estimated Number of Awards: Approximately 40 awards
Anticipated Funding Amount: Approximately $1,956,000 for all awards
Potential Funding per Fellowship: Up to a total of $48,900 over a two-year period. Fellows will receive support for their junior and senior years of undergraduate study and for a paid summer internship at an EPA facility between their junior and senior years. Cost sharing is not required.
If selected to receive a fellowship, you will be contacted no later than May 31, 2011 and should subsequently receive your official notification of award by July 29, 2011, for the fall term. Please note that this schedule may be changed without notification due to factors that were not anticipated at the time of announcement. The earliest anticipated start date for these awards is September 1, 2011.
Eligibility Information:
- Students must attend a fully accredited U.S. college or university (located in the U.S. or its territories) for their last two years of undergraduate studies during the fellowship period.
- Students must also be citizens of the U.S. or its territories or possessions, or be lawfully admitted to the U.S. for permanent residence. Resident aliens must include their green card number in their application (you must have your green card at the time of application to be eligible for this Fellowship opportunity). EPA may verify this number with the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service of the Department of Homeland Security.
- The GRO Undergraduate Fellowship is intended for students entering their last two years of study before obtaining their first bachelor’s degree. The fellowship tenure is for two academic years (9 months each) with a required paid internship during the summer after the first year. Thus, only students who will be entering their last two years of college will be considered eligible.
- Students must have at least a “B” average overall at the time of application and during the tenure of the fellowship.
- During the tenure of the fellowship, students must attend fully accredited four year U.S. institutions of higher education. These schools must be listed as not highly funded for research and development capacity. For the purposes of this solicitation, EPA considers ineligible those institutions identified as receiving more than $35 million in annual federal research and development funding in the National Science Foundation’s publication “Federal Science and Engineering Support to Universities, Colleges, and Nonprofit Institutions: FY 2007,” Table 12, column 2. Those institutions either not listed, or listed as having received $35 million or less as designated in column 2 of Table 12 are eligible. These data can be found at: www.nsf.gov/statistics/nsf09315/pdf/tab12.pdf (28 pp, 76 KB, about PDF).
- Students attending two-year institutions or community colleges are eligible to apply. Additionally, students not in attendance at an institution of higher education may apply. However, in order to receive the fellowship, students attending two-year institutions or community colleges or students not in attendance at the time of application will need to show evidence of having received their Associate’s degree, and will need to demonstrate that they only have two years left of undergraduate studies for completion of the Bachelor’s degree, and that they have been accepted to attend an accredited eligible four year institution. This requirement is considered satisfied if the student is transferring to an accredited eligible four-year institution which has an Articulation Agreement with the two-year institution, thus meaning that all credits will transfer towards requirements for the Bachelor’s degree. See III.A. Eligible Applicants below.
Application Materials:
The following Application Materials must be submitted:
- Application for Federal Assistance, Standard Form (SF) 424 (for electronic submissions via Grants.gov) or Standard Form (SF) 424 I-Individual (for paper submissions)
- EPA Key Contacts Form (5700-54)
- Front Page
- Personal Statement
- Background Information:
Education & Relevant Experiences
Publications & Presentations
Course Work
- Letters of Recommendation (sent by referees via e-mail)
You may submit only one application for this announcement, which means choosing only one Funding Opportunity Number (FON).
You may submit either a paper application or an electronic application via Grants.gov but not both for this announcement. The necessary forms for submitting a GRO Fellowship paper application can be found on the NCER web site, www.epa.gov/ncer/rfa/forms/.
To apply electronically, you must use the application package available at Grants.gov (see “Submission Instructions for Electronic Applications”). See Section IV for further information on application submission procedures.
Agency Contacts:
Further information, if needed, may be obtained from the EPA/NCER resources listed below. To obtain information most quickly, consult the “Guidance & FAQs.” If your question is not covered, then call the toll-free number 1-800-490-9194 or send an e-mail to 2011FellowshipsRFA@epa.gov. You will receive a personal response through a return telephone call, voicemailand/or e-mail. Information regarding this announcement obtained from sources other than those indicated below may not be accurate.
Guidance & FAQs: www.epa.gov/ncer/guidance/faqs.html
Toll Free Number: 1-800-490-9194
E-mail: 2011FellowshipsRFA@epa.gov
Online inquiry: www.epa.gov/ncer/contact_us.html
Electronic Submissions Contact: Ron Josephson (josephson.ron@epa.gov); phone: 202-343-9643
Eligibility Contact Person: Georgette Boddie (boddie.georgette@epa.gov); phone: 202-343-9741
E-mail Address for Letters of Recommendation Submission Only: 2011NCERFellowLetters@epa.gov