Aid and Awards

Standard Financial Support

Students in the Program of Biological Sciences receive full financial support from the College of Arts and Science, including full tuition and student health insurance. Students also receive an annual stipend ($36,500 for the 2023-24 academic year), which covers living expenses. The department pays the Student Service Fee on behalf of each student that provides access to the Vanderbilt Recreation and Wellness Center. Additional support and awards available to students are listed below.

Vanderbilt Fellowships and Prizes

• Harold Stirling Vanderbilt Fellowship
• Vanderbilt Prize Student Scholar
• Russell G. Hamilton Leadership Institute – provides a number of funding opportunities, including Dissertation Enhancement Grants, Professional Development and Training Grants, and Travel Grants
• Outstanding Graduate Teaching Assistant and Graduate Student Teaching Awards
• Graduate Student Summer Research Awards
• Outstanding Graduate Student Lab Instructor Award
• Vanderbilt Travel Grants – The Graduate School at Vanderbilt offers $500 in travel funds per year to enable graduate students to present their research at regional, national, and international conferences

Grants and Awards Bestowed by the Department of Biological Sciences

• Mosig Travel Funds – The Mosig Endowment for Biological Sciences
• Graduate Student Research Excellence Award in Biological Sciences – this award is presented to a graduate student in biological sciences who has performed outstanding scholarly research over a sustained period of their tenure in the department. Nominees must have achieved at least third year status and be in residence at the time of the award presentation.
• Ann Bernard Martin Award for Excellence in Graduate Research – this award is presented annually to a graduate student of second or third year status who has demonstrated exceptional promise in research and scholarly activities in the early stages of their graduate career in biological sciences.
• Hickory Stick Award for Outstanding Teaching Assistant – presented annually to a graduate student who has done an outstanding job as a teaching assistant.
• Several other awards are presented to the best presenters at the Department of Biological Sciences Annual Retreat, these include: Gisela Mosig Best Presenter Award, Best Poster Award, Best Short Research-In-Progress Award, Best 3-Minute Thesis, Best Postdoc Talk.

View previous awards winners here.

Federal Grants and Awards

Many of our students have been awarded their own extramural fellowships, including NIH National Research Service Awards, Pre-doctoral F31 Fellowships, and NSF Graduate Research Fellowships.