• Eligibility
• Overview of Required Materials
• The Online Application
• Supplemental Materials
• Letters of Recommendation

Eligibility

Who should apply?

• • Mellon Mays Undergraduate Fellowship Programs alumni
• • Minority junior faculty: African Americans, Latinos and Latinas, Native Americans, and Native Alaskans
• • Junior faculty with a demonstrated commitment to eradicating racial disparities, breaking down stereotypes, and promoting cross-racial understanding in their university communities.

Applicants must meet the following criteria:

• • Currently in the third year of the tenure-track teaching appointment when applying (the award is distributed in the fourth year of the tenure track);
• • Teaching in one of the designated fields (see fields here); and
• • Able to accept the Career Enhancement Fellowship in the upcoming academic year. Please note that the Fellowship must be continuous and cannot be transferred to another institution.
• • Applicants must be U.S. citizens or permanent residents of the United States as of October 23, 2020 (include copy of green card if a permanent resident).

While all faculty members who meet these criteria may apply, those who have been Mellon Mays Undergraduate Fellows are strongly encouraged to do so.

 

Overview of Required Materials

A complete application for the Career Enhancement Fellowship for Junior Faculty will include:

• • A completed online application form
• • A single PDF file of supplemental materials in the order listed below. Label the PDF as follows: “LastNameFirstName_CEF_Supplemental” with no spaces.
  • – Institutional Acknowledgement Form
  • – Curriculum Vitae
  • – Teaching Experience
  • – Personal Statement
  • – Research Plan
  • – Writing Sample
  • – Green Card, if applicable.
• • Two (2) letters of recommendation requested through the online application system and submitted directly by referees.

All application materials, including letters of recommendation, must be received by the application deadline: October 23, 2020 at 11:59 pm EST.

 

The Online Application

Online Application Form: Click here to begin the application process (link will open in fall 2021 for the 2022 application cycle).  It is recommended that you bookmark this web page.

• • Create an account by registering and remember to write down your username and password. After creating an account, you will be taken to your personal account page where you can return at any time to edit your personal information, change your password, start and/or complete your application, and submit and/or verify receipt of your supplemental materials.
• • Choose the correct application, “Career Enhancement Fellowship for Junior Faculty.”
• • Begin the application and remember to click on “save and continue” before leaving a page, or “save application” before logging out in order to save your work. The application can be completed during more than one session.
• • To complete an unfinished application simply return to your bookmarked page, log in with your email and password, and continue filling out remaining sections
• • Please note that recommendation letters and supplemental items must be received PRIOR to submitting the application. Submit the application when complete, using the submit button at the left-hand side of the application. If you have missed any required fields, you will receive an error message.  Click on the item(s) listed within parentheses and you will be taken directly to the missed field.  Once all required fields have been completed, click on the submit button.

 

Supplemental Materials

To upload your supplemental materials, click on “supplemental items” on the left-hand side of the application, Make sure to upload your supplemental materials as a single PDF file in the order listed below. Label the PDF as follows: “LastNameFirstName_CEF_Supplemental” with no spaces.

1. Institutional Acknowledgement Form. This form verifies the applicant’s tenure track status and confirms the institution’s knowledge and approval of the application. This form must be signed by the department chair and/or an institutional official who holds fiscal responsibility and can commit to supplementing the fellowship to allow the faculty member to receive his or her academic salary. If the department chair also has fiscal responsibility, only one signature is needed. If another official, such as a provost or dean must also sign, please include their title along with their signature.
   • – Download the Institutional Acknowledgement Form here.
   • – After collecting the required signatures, scan and save the signed Institutional Acknowledgement Form. The scanned document will be the first page of your combined PDF of supplemental materials.
2. Curriculum Vitae
3. Teaching Experience. List, by semester, all courses taught since the start of your tenure-track appointment. Include the name of the department or program; class title; class size; level (lower/upper-division undergraduate or graduate); and whether it is a required or elective course in the department/program.
4. Personal Statement (4 pages maximum, double-spaced and in 12-pt font). Please include the following:
   • – An explanation of how the award will allow you to enhance your academic credentials and assist you in attaining tenure;
   • – A description of the tenure process at your institution;
   • – A demonstration of how the award will make a difference for you and your institution;
   • – A statement of your teaching philosophy and academic service experiences;
   • – Evidence of your commitment to eradicating racial disparities and promoting cross-racial understanding and support for students on your campus.
5. Research Plan (3 pages maximum, double-spaced and in 12-pt font). Describe in detail your research plan and the role of a prospective mentor during the sabbatical period.  (You do not have to know who the mentor will be at time of application.)  Please do not reiterate your Personal Statement; this plan is research focused.
6. Writing Sample (20 pages maximum). Submit a published work or an unpublished draft of scholarly work completed in the past 18 months. If submitting an unpublished writing sample, it much be double-spaced and use 12-pt font. Do not submit a dissertation chapter or partial chapter. The page limit does not include references.

 

Letters of Recommendation

Two (2) Letters of Recommendation: Each letter (one to two-pages in length) should evaluate your research interests; assess the quality of your scholarship; explain how the award will benefit your tenure process; briefly discuss your teaching qualifications and service commitment; and assess your commitment to diversity in the campus community.  Letters of Recommendation must be written on institutional letterhead, signed and submitted through the online application. It is strongly recommended that you request letters of recommendation as early as possible.  Do not wait until you have submitted your application.

• • Request Letters of Recommendation by clicking on section Recommenders.
• • Add contact information for two recommenders and click “Send Invitation.”
• • It is suggested that you contact each recommender and specify the due date and information needed to be provided from the above instructions. You will not be able to submit your application until recommendation letters have been received. Once you have started the process, your recommenders will receive an email requesting they submit a letter of recommendation on your behalf. They have the option to accept or decline this request.  Recommenders who accept the request will be taken to an online form where they will enter some information before uploading and submitting their recommendation letter.  If a recommender declines your request to provide a recommendation, you will be notified by email.  If you receive a “decline” notification, you will need to return to your account page to request a new recommendation from a different recommender.  You can also change a recommender by clicking on “cancel” and then following the procedures to “start” a new recommendation process with a different recommender. You can also resend a request to one of your recommenders, if necessary.

The deadline for all application materials is October 23, 2020 at 11:59 pm EST.

Please direct any questions to Mellon Program Associate, Ritu Mukherjee at [email protected].

Fellowships are awarded on a competitive basis.  The WW Foundation does not comment on the deliberations of its award panels and does not provide evaluations of successful or unsuccessful applications.

Applications and supporting documents become the sole property of the WW Foundation and will not be returned or held for another year.