2025-2026 Graduate Research Fellows Program
Call for Applications
Application Deadline: Thursday, May 15, 2025
View/download full RFP in PDF format
ABOUT THE PROGRAM
PhD students in the social sciences at UW–Madison who have an interest in U.S. poverty research and expect to complete a poverty-related dissertation are eligible to apply for the Institute for Research on Poverty’s (IRP) Graduate Research Fellows (GRF) Program.
The elements of the GRF program are:
- attendance at the IRP Seminar Series;
- participation in weekly Fellowship training meetings;
- eligibility to apply for financial support for research training;
- eligibility to apply to access the Wisconsin Administrative Data Core (WADC) for use in their dissertation research on a US-based poverty research topic; and
- eligibility to compete for an IRP Dissertation Research Fellowship in the final years of their PhD program.
ABOUT IRP
IRP is a center for interdisciplinary research into the causes and consequences of poverty and economic inequality and the impact of related policies and programs. As the National Research Center on Poverty and Economic Mobility sponsored by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, IRP coordinates the U.S. Collaborative of Poverty Centers (CPC) in an integrated set of activities with the ultimate goal of improving the effectiveness of public policies to reduce poverty and inequality.
TERMS
Eligibility
Enrolled PhD students who are on-campus at UW-Madison are eligible to apply for the IRP GRF program. Students should have an interest in poverty and economic mobility research and expect to complete a related dissertation. In selecting Fellows, preference is given to students working with an active IRP Affiliate or who receive financial support through IRP. Successful GRF applicants have typically completed most of their program milestones but may still be taking some coursework.
Fellowship Period
Programming for the GRF program begins in September 2025 and goes until the end of the academic year.
Commitment
GRF students are expected to:
- participate in IRP seminars and GRF meetings regularly;
- provide their peers with appropriate feedback and support;
- commit to develop their skills and knowledge as interdisciplinary poverty researchers; and
- become active members of the IRP community at UW and beyond.
IRP Seminar Series: Fellows are expected to consistently attend the regular IRP Seminar Series held in-person on Thursdays from 12:15–1:30pm during the academic year. Limited exceptions will be considered for teaching conflicts or job market travel.
Training Seminar Meetings: Most training seminar meetings occur on campus on Thursdays from 1:45–3:00pm during the academic year. Meeting times may change occasionally throughout the year to accommodate conference attendance and other events at IRP. Receipt of other support (described below) depends on regular attendance at the training seminar meetings.
Meeting content comprises:
- substantive policy and research discussions that are connected with the IRP seminar themes and often include a guest speaker;
- methodological training and discussions, which are also frequently linked with seminar presentations;
- peer support and mentoring on poverty-related research;
- professional training sessions that focus on preparing students for responsibilities associated with their research careers; and
- support of students’ dissemination of research.
We will use UW Canvas for file sharing and course organization.
APPLICATION INSTRUCTIONS
Applicants should provide the following materials as a single PDF file through the online Application Form:
Full link: https://irpwisc.formstack.com/forms/grf_applications_25_26
- A one-page (about 500 words) or less description of:
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- Your graduate student status;
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- How you define yourself as a poverty researcher;
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- Your research plans and the potential focus of your dissertation; and
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- How being a GRF will advance your work related to US-based poverty research (if you are a current GRF, please reflect on how being a GRF has helped advance your work).
- Your curriculum vitae (CV)
Contact
Questions should be directed to: irpapply@ssc.wisc.edu
Timeline
| Call Release | April 7, 2025 |
| Application Deadline | May 15, 2025 |
| Notification | By June 9, 2025 |