The Human Rights and Human Diversity Initiative provides funding, budget permitting, to support UNL graduate students through fellowships and a graduate assistantship. Competition for awards is currently suspended.

Graduate Student Summer Fellowships

The Human Rights and Human Diversity Initiative has, in the past, made available summer fellowship awards of up to $3,000. These fellowships are offered to support graduate students’ education related to the Initiative’s central theme: the study of the interplay between internationally recognized human rights and diversity, especially diverse identities. Applications that have no clear link to international human rights will not be considered. More information about the Initiative can be found on this website. The fellowships have supported three kinds of activities:

1. Graduate student research.
2. Internships.
3. Dissertation research.

Application Requirements

1. Applicants must be making good progress in a graduate degree program in any academic unit at UNL.
2. Applicants may not engage in remunerative employment or hold another major fellowship during the fellowship period without special permission.
3. Applicants that can show a clear interest in international human rights in their coursework will be given extra consideration.
4. Preference will be given to applicants who have received no previous HRHD summer fellowships. Grantees who have received summer fellowships once can still apply, however.
5. Awardees must make a report as to how the fellowship was used.

Application Guidelines

All applications should include the following:

1. A cover sheet that contains contact information and a brief one paragraph summary statement of the project, dissertation or internship.
2. A project proposal (no more than three single spaced pages) that describes the research problem and design, the internship and how it relates to the student’s research, or the dissertation. A budget should also be included.
3. Two letters of recommendation, one of which must be from the thesis or dissertation advisor. The letters must state when comprehensive exams have been or will be taken for those applying for a dissertation fellowship.
4. A curriculum vitae and a transcript (an unofficial transcript is acceptable).
5. Eight copies of all application materials must be submitted. If applicants choose to make their letters of recommendation confidential, only one copy need to be sent, which can be done directly by their letter writers.

   All application materials should be sent to the Department of Political Science, 511 Oldfather Hall, 0328.

Examples of Past Awards

Summer 2004

• Student, Political Science, travel to a workshop in Utrecht, The Netherlands, on international law and international criminal law, related to dissertation on humanitarian intervention.
• Student, History, travel to archives in New York state for research on trans-Atlantic race and reform movements circa 1900.
• Student, Spanish, Modern Languages, travel to Columbia for identification and interpretation of various types of poetry referring to human rights, as affected by the violence in that state.
• Student, Political Science, travel to the United Nations in New York City, for interviews on the subject of UN Security Council management of human rights and humanitarian issues arising in African civil wars.
• Student, French, Modern Languages, travel to France, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom, for research on Voltaire, the rights of man, and views toward freedom of the press and particular journalists.
• Student, Political Science, internship in Tanzania, Africa dealing with socio-economic rights.