Graduate Research Fellows Program

IRP’s Graduate Research Fellows (GRF) program supports University of Wisconsin–Madison social science Ph.D. students in pursuing their interest in poverty and economic mobility research.

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 Ph.D. program.

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.

GRF Program Elements

IRP Seminar Series

Fellows are expected to consistently attend the regular IRP Seminar Series held in person on Thursdays from 12:15–1:30 pm 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 1:45–3:00 pm 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.

Other Support

Funding

Active IRP Graduate Research Fellows (i.e., current-academic year GRFs who are regularly attending at least 80% of seminars) are eligible to request support for their research training up to $1,000 per year.

WADC

Active IRP Graduate Research Fellows (i.e., current-academic year GRFs who are regularly attending at least 80% of seminars) may apply to access to the Wisconsin Administrative Data Core (WADC) for use in their dissertation research on a US-based poverty research topic. WADC data is limited and must be in compliance with data agreements with partner agencies and IRP policies. See this webpage for more information.

IRP Dissertation Research Fellowship

Active IRP Graduate Research Fellows (i.e., current-academic year GRFs who are regularly attending at least 80% of seminars) who are close to finishing their studies, and are sponsored by an on-campus IRP Affiliate, are eligible to compete for an IRP Dissertation Research Fellowship that provides a year of support to complete their doctoral dissertation. Calls for applications are released in February.