GISC Black Islam Focused Fellowship

For the 2022 Year, GISC is launching the GISC Black Islam Focused Fellowship in collaboration with Arab and Muslim American Studies and Dr. Su’ad Abdul Khabeer. This fellowship is for U-M Graduate students who are researching topics related to Black Islam and Black Muslim communities. Funds may be used to pursue individual research projects domestically and internationally, or to attend/present research for a conference, workshop, or course that explores topics in Black Islam and/or Black Muslim communities. Awards of up to $2000 are granted, depending on the number and character of successful proposals. Awards are disbursed on a rolling basis with a final submission date of April 29. Students who are awarded Graduate Funding are required to complete a short 1,000-word fellowship report after their travel/research. 

The application deadline is rolling with a final submission date on April 29. All fellowship application materials must be received by the GISC office before or on April 29. Submit your complete application materials to islamicstudies@umich.edu.

All students currently enrolled at the University of Michigan (U-M) in a graduate/professional degree program (master's or doctoral level) are eligible to apply. 

The GISC Graduate Fellowship Funding may be used for the following:

• Language training - to offset costs of program fees for language learning.
• Research support - to offset costs for an original project supporting Senior, Master’s, or Doctoral thesis completion.
• Travel expenses - associated with conducting original research, language training, attending conferences or workshops. Please see important travel policy guidelines at the end of this page.

Awards are typically announced 1-2 weeks after application submission, by email, on a rolling basis. The final submission date is on April 29; all applicants must submit their application before the deadline in order to be considered for Graduate funding.

*Due two weeks after project completion*

Students who are awarded Graduate Funding are required to complete a short 1,000-word fellowship report summarizing their activities to be shared in the GISC News & Events Newsletter. Reports are due two weeks after research/travel completion. Please review the report requirements here before submission.

All application materials should be submitted to islamicstudies@umich.edu. Reports should be submitted two weeks after research/travel completion to islamicstudies@umich.edu.

The following application materials are required of all applicants. Please read the instructions carefully.

GISC Graduate Student Fellowship Funding Application

• Statement of Purpose: No more than 1,000 words describing what you plan to do with the GISC Black Islam Focused Fellowship Funding.
• Budget Statement: Please attach a budget statement with exact costs (e.g., tuition statements), or reasonable estimates of costs citing 2-3 references (e.g., airline tickets, rental estimates, etc.). Please also include anticipated costs and all sources of support (pending and confirmed)
  • You may request tuition and mandatory fees, health insurance, living costs, direct research expenses (such as books, photocopy, small equipment, library and museum fees, and subject fees) as well as travel expenses related to your language study (such as airfare, ground transportation, and lodging).
  • Computers, including laptops, are not allowed.
  • If you are requesting living costs, please provide an estimate of rent, utilities, and food.
  • If you are requesting direct research expenses or travel expenses, please give a detailed breakdown.
  • Please note that if your fellowship project involves travel outside of North America, you are required to purchase international travel health insurance. Please include the cost of this insurance in your budget.
• Curriculum Vitae (CV): Your up-to-date CV.
• Current U-M Official Transcript: You may include a signed note granting permission to the GISC staff to access electronically your current U-M transcript and to place a copy in your fellowship application file. If you choose NOT to do so, you must submit a current official U-M electronic transcript. To be considered official, transcripts must be prepared by the office of the registrar.
• IRB Approval Required: Compliance with all appropriate regulations governing the conduct of research will be required. Research proposals involving the use of human subjects will be subject to project review and approval by the appropriate IRB. It is the responsibility of the applicant to obtain IRB approval in accordance with the University’s guidelines and timeline. 
  
• ITOC Approval Required: Due to COVID-19 travel restrictions, all travel must follow current guidelines, which are detailed in the International Institute Travel Policy. Any student who receives funding from a U-M unit for their travel abroad must follow the directives of the U-M International Travel Policy and the specified guidelines regarding U-M Travel Warning and Restriction locations. Please visit Global Michigan to check the current travel designation for the destination country. Approval MUST be received from The International Oversight Committee (ITOC) prior to departure to a destination on the U-M Travel Warning or medium risk list. Travel to a restricted or high-risk destination is prohibited for undergraduate students. Steps for completing requirements are outlined in the Flowchart for Travel and Safety Plans.

We expect applicants will also explore other sources of support, where appropriate. Successful applicants will be asked to submit a project description for the GISC website and annual report; a final report is expected as a condition of future support.

Successful proposals have demonstrated long-term scholarly impact, shown educational value for graduate or undergraduate support, contributed to the broader mission of GISC, and leveraged other sources of support. Funds may be requested for pilot projects or to supplement existing projects. GISC reviews funding requests on a rolling basis. Please submit all materials to IslamicStudies@umich.edu.

Due to COVID-19 travel restrictions, all travel must follow current guidelines, which are detailed in the International Institute Travel Policy.

Any student who receives funding from a U-M unit for their travel abroad must follow the directives of the U-M International Travel Policy and the specified guidelines regarding U-M Travel Warning and Restriction locations. Please visit Global Michigan to check the current travel designation for the destination country. Approval MUST be received from The International Oversight Committee (ITOC) prior to departure to a destination on the U-M Travel Warning or medium risk list. Travel to a restricted or high-risk destination is prohibited for undergraduate students. Steps for completing requirements are outlined in the Flowchart for Travel and Safety Plans.