At UW–Madison, admissions and funding decisions are made by the specific graduate program(s) to which you apply rather than by a centralized cross-campus process. Because of the diversity of graduate programs available on campus, graduate programs differ in how they make admissions and funding decisions. For example, some graduate programs only admit students if they can support them financially with assistantships, traineeships, or fellowships, while other graduate programs admit students without a funding offer.Graduate programs at UW–Madison also differ in the timing of their admissions and funding decisions. Some graduate programs make admissions and funding decisions at the same time while other programs make admissions decisions first and funding decisions later. As a result, you should always start your search for information about funding by contacting your intended program(s). Program staff will be able to tell you how, when, and to what level funding is typically awarded to incoming students. Likewise, if you have been admitted to a program, but have not received an offer of funding, you should contact the program to inquire about the timing of their funding decisions.
The Office of Training Grant Support (OTGS) is a campus resource for Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award (NRSA) training grants administered by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), and Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) at UW–Madison. OTGS also serves non-NRSA NIH training grants.
In addition to funding through their program, graduate students are strongly encouraged to apply for fellowships from external federal agencies, professional organizations, and private foundations. UW–Madison graduate students can use the table below to identify external funding opportunities for which they may be eligible. Graduate programs and the UW–Madison Graduate School may supplement some externally-funded fellowships. Please talk to your program staff about the opportunity to receive tuition assistance and benefits if you are selected for an externally-funded fellowship.