On Wednesday I attended my first Mellon meeting of the semester. We had some classes scheduled before but through all the snow days everything got pushed back. The seminar discussion was pretty interesting. Being the senior Mellons of the group Ugo and I presented on some of the readings about Affirmative Action and Academia so I decided to write a blog to inform students about the Mellon Mays Undergraduate Fellowship. =]
The Mellon program is really dedicated to increasing minority representation in academia, particularly in university faculty. This undergraduate fellowship strives to provide guidance, mentorship and financial support to students interested in pursuing PhDs in the humanities fields (so no science, business, or law students- you guys already have enough fellowships and organizations to help you out ^^). Although you do not have to be a minority to apply, Mellon is particularly interested in recruiting students who have an interest in exploring issues of race, diversity and culture. This program is for those who are really committed to pursuing a career in academia, to ultimately teach and research at the university level.
The benefits of receiving the Mellon Fellowship are phenomenal. Those accepted into the program will have their tuition at QC waived and those who already have full undergraduate scholarships will receive $10,000 financial aid for their graduate school fees after completion of their PhDs. Each month Mellon fellows also receive $411 checks so that they will ideally not have to work and be able to concentrate fully on their studies and research. In addition the fellowship gives students approximately $400 to spend on books as well as $3000 for summer research. Other benefits include the Mellon mentorship program where students will be able to work closely with a professor that specializes in their field of interest (ideally) and be able to help them develop their own research as well as guide them through the graduate school application process. Lastly perhaps one of the greatest benefits is to be a part of a small group of students with similar career goals and be able to engage in intense intellectual conversations and exchange ideas in a safe, open space. Also the Mellon Fellowship is a very respectable organization that always looks great on a resume, especially when applying for grad school.
So there are a lot of incentives to apply for the program and it is really a great opportunity but as someone who has been part of Mellon for over a year now, I think it is also important for students to be aware of the kind of commitment they are making. Joining Mellon means really dedicating yourself to a career in academia and more specifically to becoming a professor because conducting research and teaching others is the way to sort of give back to the program that has helped you so much. I guess one important thing to be aware of is that getting a PhD is a very long and arduous process so don’t think that not having to pay for grad school (yes if you are generally accepted into a PhD program tuition will most likely be waived for you, and if it isn’t there is really no point to going because paying for 6-7 years of academic study is ridiculous unless of course you can shell out $700,000 for your education) because you will definitely be paying in other ways. ?+> I just wanted to put this out there because I had some amazing professors from the English department who raved about their jobs (how they could plan their own schedules, summers to travel abroad and do research, and only have to teach one class a day ^^), got into the program and was shocked at the much more dismal and frightening reality >_< (the difficulty of getting into a PhD program- chances are sometimes less than 1%; balancing coursework, personal research and teaching, graduating; finding out there are only 6 job openings in your field…). So I guess just be really aware of these things before you jump into the program because it is really a commitment. This is not to say that you should not have any doubts or will never have them, but you need to be sure that teaching and researching is something that you really enjoy doing otherwise you will not survive the process- luckily I love English so I have been able to push forward despite my anxieties (they are still there but I guess I will just have to wait and see where life takes me ^^). So again apply if you can really imagine yourself becoming a professor and researching in your field of choice, otherwise don't because Mellon is frankly shelling out a lot of money to support you and it would be a shame if you take the spot of someone who really wants it. The program at QC is actually quite competitive and I think a max of 5 students are chosen each year.
Below I listed the qualifications to apply:
Acceptable Mellon Majors
Anthropology, English, Musicology Area Studies, Ethnomusicology, Philosophy, Art History, Foreign Languages, Physics, Classics, Geology, Political Theory, Computer Science, Demography, History, Religion, Earth Science, Literature, Sociology, Ecology, Mathematics
1. 3.3 GPA
2. Two essays (one personal statement about why you want to become a professor, one essay about how you have explored issues of diversity in the past or how you plan to in the future through your research)
3. Two recommendations preferably from full-time professors
4. Selected fellows must attend a 6-week summer program at Wesleyan University after their acceptance
5. You must be a sophomore or a student willing to stay for at least 2 years in the Mellon Program
6. This program is not for those interested in teaching at the secondary or elementary level. Generally those who have taken education courses in the past will not be eligible to apply (unless you contact fellowship coordinators and explicitly tell them you are interested in pursuing a career in academia)
Future Obligations
1. Participate in a Mellon seminar for your remaining 2 years at QC (generally held on Wednesdays during free hour every other week) You will read theory from various disciplines and have to write a 10-20 page paper by the end of the spring term. During the fall term we just mostly eat and discuss graduate school concerns.
2. Participate in a summer research program of your choice (students will be given a $3000 stipend to either study abroad or at another US institution)
3. Apply to graduate school
I think that there is an info-session coming up soon so I will try to get more details about that. If anyone is interested in the program just contact me for more information or email Prof. Pierre-Louis from the Political Science Department who runs the Mellon seminars ([email protected])
