Bowdoin Research Grants

Martha Reed Coles Fellowship (Summer)

The Martha Reed Coles Fund supports fellowships for students doing research under the guidance of a faculty/staff member. Coles Fellowships in the Arts and Humanities are intended to support substantial participation in an arts or humanities research project by a student under the direction of a faculty member who is independently interested in the area under study. Students opt to carry out 8, 9, or 10 weeks of research.

Ellen and Herbert Patterson Research Fellowship (Summer)

The Ellen M. P'78 and Herbert M. Patterson '42, P'78 Research Fellowship was established in 2009 by Ellen Patterson, widow of Herbert Patterson.  This fund celebrates Ellen and Herb's long association with the College and honors the couple's daughter Amy Baird '78 and her two children, their grandchildren, Bruce Baird '08 and Emily Baird '09.  This fellowship is designed to support students engaged in research, with preference to students conducting research in the humanities over the summer months.

First-years, sophomores, and juniors may apply. Current seniors are ineligible.

Surdna Foundation (Summer)

An undergraduate research fellowship program originally established in 1959, this fund was renamed in 1968 to recognize the gifts of the Surdna Foundation. This fellowship is awarded to highly qualified students and is meant to facilitate full time research for 8, 9 or 10 weeks during the summer.

Students interested in applying must apply in February of their junior year. The application is written by both the student and the faculty mentor supervising the project.

Grua O'Connell Research Award (Academic Year)

In 2007 Peter J. Grua ’76 and Mary G. O’Connell ’76 generously created an endowed fund to support, regardless of discipline, faculty-mentored student research. Awards from this fund will not normally exceed $2,000; they may support:

1. student travel that will substantially enhance students’ honors projects or research being conducted under the mentorship of a faculty member (e.g., travel to library/archive or to another location to conduct research, or travel to a conference to present results)
2. students’ research expenses such as purchasing of books and equipment, publishing research results, or any combination of these expenses

Mellon Mays Undergraduate Fellowship (Junior and Senior Academic Years)

Since 1992, the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation has been generously supporting this highly competitive fellowship, which provides intensive intellectual and social support for eligible students committed to increasing diversity in the faculty ranks of institutions of higher learning. Participation in the program is open to talented undergraduates who are planning graduate study toward the PhD in a variety of disciplines. Students receiving the fellowship are expected to work closely with a faculty mentor through their junior and senior years as well as the summer preceding those years on a research project.