Funding and Eligibility for Thoenes Award

Funding Requirements

You must meet these requirements before applying:

CS funding is available for Div II and Div III students.
You must be a current student at the time of the research project/internship. Graduating students are not eligible.
Applications will be evaluated on the intellectual merit of the proposed work and the necessity of the budget items, as justified in your proposal.
Applicants must have the support of a faculty supervisor or mentor.
Grant recipients are expected to submit a final report prior to the grant ending.
If you plan to be on leave, it must be a field study leave and not a leave of absence.
Projects must not yet be completed upon request for funding.
You must be in good academic and good disciplinary standing.
The application process is competitive and all applications may not receive funding as funds are limited.

Important
If you are an international student, make sure to visit the office of multicultural and international student services to confirm that your research project is compatible with your visa status.

If you plan to pursue your research abroad, the global education office provides information on visas, immunizations, etc. and offers resources for field study in the U.S. or abroad.

Application Review Process

Applications will be reviewed by the designated faculty contact and any related advisory committees. You will be notified of the final decision made regarding your application.

Project Requirements

If your application is accepted, you will receive the awarded amount by check directly from the business office.

In addition, you will receive an official Award Letter outlining the following requirements:

Submit a mid-project report by the deadline indicated.
Submit a final report at the end of your research/internship.
Send in copies of your receipts but keep the originals in case you are audited by the IRS.
Any variation from the original budget during the course of the project requires submission of a revised budget to the School of Cognitive Science for approval prior to any purchase or payment.
All equipment and remaining supplies purchased with the awarded funding become the property of Hampshire College at the completion of the project.
Unused funds should be returned to the research grant at the end date of the proposed project.

You will be asked to agree to the grant requirements outlined in the Award Letter by signing and returning the Award Letter. You will also need to sign a Waiver and Release form for projects conducted off-campus.

Kindly provide photos of yourself and your work during your project or internship to be used by Hampshire College for promotional purposes. Submitted reports and photographs may be used in the Hampshire College websites, newsletters, and notices. Please inform the grants administrator if you would like for your work not to be used publicly.

You may occasionally be asked to give presentations of your work at a CS event such as the Wednesday Lunch Talks.

Funding Questions

1) Should I apply for CS funding in the fall or in the spring?

It depends on when you are planning to work on your research or complete your internship.

If you apply in the fall, you are typically expected to work on your research or your internship in January and/or during the spring semester. You must use your grant funds by the following May.

Spring applications are typically for students who expect to complete their project during the summer. You must use your grant funds by September of the same year.

Div III students can apply either in the fall or spring as long as you complete the grant requirements (submit all reports and reimbursement requests) by your graduation date.

2) May I apply for several grants from different sources to fund my project?

Absolutely. You may apply for several grants at once. Some grants don't award as much as you need or don't cover all your expenses (ex. housing, but not transport) and as a result, you can get funding from various sources. Usually, the application forms will ask whether you are applying for other grants so that they can make a better informed decision on how to split their contributions.

3) May I apply for a CS grant to study abroad this summer?

No, CS grants are only for research projects or internships. If you are able to work on an individual project while taking summer classes, however, you can apply for funding from the School of Cognitive Science.