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MEMO: Dean's Normative Time Fellowship Program (DNTF)

Office of the Dean
Graduate Division
University of California, Berkeley

March 22, 2001

To: Graduate Programs in:

From: Mary Ann Mason, Dean

Re: Dean's Normative Time Fellowship Program (DNTF)

DESCRIPTION OF THE PROGRAM

The Dean of the Graduate Division is establishing new fellowship programs, effective 2001-2002, to enable students in most humanities and social sciences departments as well as some professional schools to make more timely progress in completing their doctoral degree requirements.

There are two categories of fellowships:

1. The Dean's Normative Time Fellowship (DNTF) and

2. Competitive Fellowships

The Dean's Normative Time Fellowship (DNTF)

1. Students who are advanced within the Normative Time for passing the Qualifying Examination and being advanced to doctoral candidacy previously established for their majors will receive a two-semester stipend of $14,000 plus fees (and non-resident tuition for international students);

2. Students who are advanced within the following year will receive a one-semester stipend of $7,000 plus fees (and non-resident tuition for international students). NOTE: the one semester award was discontinued for students admitted to the 2009-2010 or later academic years.

Conditions:

1. These fellowships are to be used after advancement to candidacy but before the expiration of the final Normative Time established for the major. They may be used in any semester during this period.

2. These fellowships may not be used while students are employed by the University.

Competitive Fellowships

1. Continuing students who have completed at least their first year in a doctoral program but are not yet advanced to candidacy may apply for one-semester fellowships of $6,500 plus fees (and non-resident tuition for international students). A Fellowship Committee will be established to review and award up to 40 fellowships annually.

2. Students who have been advanced to candidacy after May 31, 2001, but did not receive the full year fellowship, may apply for a for one-semester fellowship of $7,000 plus fees (and non-resident tuition for international students) for dissertation work. A Fellowship Committee will be established to review and award up to 40 fellowships annually.

Conditions

1. These fellowships may not be used while students are employed by the University.

2. All students must complete the FAFSA. Consideration of merit and need will both be taken into account in awarding these fellowships. Failing to meet the FAFSA need budget amount will not preclude students from receiving this award.

Application Procedures

1. Applications will be available in the fall with a deadline of October 1 and awards are to be used the following spring semester.

POLICIES AND PROCEDURES FOR THE DEAN'S NORMATIVE TIME FELLOWSHIPS

Eligibility

Students must file the Advancement to Doctoral Candidacy application with the Graduate Division within the required semester for completing this benchmark as established by their disciplines. Eligibility is based on the date of filing the Advancement Form in the Graduate Division, not on the date the Qualifying Examination was passed.

Registration and Approved Withdrawals for DNTF Purposes

A. A one-year withdrawal for documented non-academic reasons (such as health or parental leave) will not count in calculating a student's eligibility.

B. A withdrawal for research or other academic purposes will count in accrued time.

C. If no withdrawal form is filed, the interim semesters will count in accrued time.

D. Retroactive withdrawals will not be permitted for purposes of the calculation of Normative Time.

Requests for Changes in Established Normative Times

A. A Graduate Council committee has been appointed to review departmental requests for changes in their Time to the Qualifying Examination and Advancement to Candidacy as well as their total Normative Time.

B. The department must submit a request detailing the rationale for the change. Since speeding the time to degree is a major reason for this fellowship, the argument must be compelling. Departments should present information from competitive programs as part of their request. An important consideration will be the time of advancement to candidacy and the time to degree in other competitive programs. This information is publicly available.

Requests to Change from the Block Grant Category to the DNTF

A. Departments may present requests, with justification, and the Graduate Council's subcommittee will advise the Graduate Division.

B. The Graduate Division has very limited resources. Since a major purpose of the program is to help departments that have been poorly-funded historically, demonstrated lack of funding is the principal criterion.

Transition Issues

Regrettably, there are a large number of students who fall under the old Normative Time Award (NTGA) initiated in Fall 2000. With the Graduate Division's very limited resources, we will not be able to accommodate them.

A. Students who have already filed for advancement to candidacy with the Graduate Division are eligible only for the Normative Time Grant Award (NTGA).

B. Students who have received an NTGA offer letter, but have not activated their award yet, cannot change to the DNTF.

C. Students who have activated the NTGA cannot change to the DNTF.

Administrative Procedures

Students will be required to complete a DNTF Activation Form which they will receive from the Graduate Division when they are advanced to candidacy. They will be advised to discuss their plans for accepting the award with their major departmental adviser and the Graduate Fellowship staff.

Informational Workshops

The Graduate Division will offer workshops for departmental personnel during late April 2001. Staff members from Graduate Degrees and Fellowships will be available to answer questions. The exact date and place of these workshops will be announced soon.