Graduate NYC is an organization dedicated to spurring policy and practice change to
dramatically increase the college graduation rate in New York City. It was founded with support from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation in 2010 with the initial goal of doubling the number of college degree recipients at CUNY by 2020. Today, Graduate NYC partners directly with the New York City Department of Education (DOE) and the City University of New York (CUNY) to develop and support initiatives dedicated to student success at the post-secondary level throughout New York City.

In support of these efforts, Graduate NYC is pleased to announce a call for proposals for its first annual dissertation fellowship. The Graduate NYC Fellowship will last one academic year and will provide $28,000 in funding. It is intended to support advanced doctoral work dedicated to questions of educational progress and success at the secondary and post-secondary levels. Work that focuses particularly on college preparation, the high school to college transition, two-year to four-year transfer, college persistence, and college degree completion will resonate most with the intentions of the Fellowship.

Within this parameter, the Fellowship is open to a broad range of topics. The only major
requirement is that the proposed work must focus specifically on high schools within the New York City DOE and/or colleges within CUNY. Proposals for both quantitative and qualitative work will be accepted, though qualitative proposals focused on the CUNY context are preferred. Graduate NYC will help to negotiate access, yet it will be the responsibility of the researcher to design and implement all research procedures and report the findings of the project.

Regardless of research type, Internal Review Board (IRB) approval from the applicant’s home institution will be required prior to the commencement of the research.

It is expected this fellowship would begin in August 2016 and conclude with all final reports deliverables by the end of September 2017.

To apply for the 2016-2017 Fellowship, please submit your proposal of no more than 1,800 words, your curriculum vitae, and one letter of recommendation from an academic advisor or other appropriate supervisor in one PDF to the attention of Sharae Brown, Senior Project Manager, Graduate NYC at sharae.brown@cuny.edu by April 15. Please use the subject line, “Graduate NYC Fellowship Submission.”

The proposal should include:

• A description of the project and the central research question(s) and its
  significance;
• A brief summary of relevant literature, reports, and/or policy, the relationship of the proposed research to existing knowledge; and the new knowledge expected to result from the proposed research; and
• A summary of the conceptual framework, research methods, data collection instruments, and modes
  of analysis that the project will employ.

Please state your word count in parentheses at the end of your proposal.

Do not hesitate to email Sharae Brown, sharae.brown@cuny.edu, with any questions
might have. We look forward to receiving your proposals.