Financial assistance for qualified graduate students is available from the Department. There are three major categories of assistantships. The Abiola Fellowship in the amount of $3,000. This is a grant which was offered directly to the Department of African Studies by the prominent Nigerian Chief M.K.O. Abiola. This fellowship, like the others, is granted on a competition basis. Applicants are requested to write a publishable research paper on any contemporary issue concerning Africa. The second category of assistance is the teaching assistantship. Students receiving this type of aid will be required to teach an African language. The third category is a limited number of university research assistantships for graduate students. In all cases applicants for fellowships and assistantships will be evaluated by the Committee on Admission and Financial Aid. The minimum G.P.A. required for the last two categories of fellowship is 3.00. Thus, the competition shall be among those applicants with the G.P.A. between 3.00 and 4.00. Unless otherwise specified, all applications for financial aid must be received by February 28 of each year. The deadline for fellowship and assistantship applications have been extended to mid-April. Contact the Department for more information.
Students should also consult the Associate Dean for Student Relations in the Graduate School or the chairperson of the Department for current information about other types of financial assistance.