At-Large Application

A few at-large PDRF positions are not attached to specific colleges. The Office of Research will accept applications from faculty, departments, and colleges until late October each fall for any positions available the following academic year. At that time, a committee of Office of Research and School of Graduate Studies representatives will convene to review applications. If a suitable applicant is not determined, the at-large position will be reopened in the spring for any entities to forward individual students as candidates for the available position.

For postions starting in Fall 2024, there are two available Office of Research at-large PDRF position. Applications should be submitted by 11:59pm on October 30 using the portal below. Guidelines for the application are broken down by the nominating entity:

Individual Faculty

Application materials:

  • Faculty contact information
  • Faculty career information including:
    • Time at USU
    • Faculty rank
    • All prior PhD students mentored, including status (graduated, withdrew, terminated at MS, etc.); this can be as a text field or attachment
    • All existing student researchers that will be active during the academic year the PDRF is being requested for, including graduate and undergraduate
    • All personal funding sources including internal and Office of Research funds (seed or start-up grants) and external funds
  • A letter outlining the request, illustrating how receiving a PDRF position would benefit the PDRF program, the department, college, or discipline, and/or the university
  • A short letter (no longer than one page) from the department head that this student would be enrolled in, confirming their consent to your application
  • An attachment outlining how the PDRF position would be funded if granted:
    • Any document format is accepted
    • 4+ years of assistantship support
    • 4+ years of health insurance subsidies
    • Any additional supports that the student would have access to (dept/college grants or scholarships, other fellowships, travel funding, etc.)
  • A brief summary of your planned recruitment strategy, with preference given to those plans that consider Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
  • Agreement to terms of the PDRF program

Departments

Departments can request a PDRF position for their general recruitment efforts or for specific research areas in need. However, if the department has a specific faculty member in mind, it may strengthen the request to have that person submit an individual faculty request where they can outline their qualifications more fully. Any at-large positions granted to the department will still need to be assigned to a faculty member by the spring deadline for submitting candidates to the Office of Research.

Application materials:

  • Departmental contact information for the faculty or staff member managing the recruitment efforts for this potential position
  • A letter outlining the request, illustrating how receiving a PDRF position would benefit the PDRF program, the department, college, or discipline, and/or the university
  • An attachment outlining how the PDRF position would be funded if granted:
    • Any document format is accepted
    • 4+ years of assistantship support
    • 4+ years of health insurance subsidies
    • Any additional supports that the student would have access to (dept/college grants or scholarships, other fellowships, travel funding, etc.)
  • A brief summary of your planned recruitment strategy, with preference given to those plans that consider Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
  • Agreement to terms of the PDRF program

Colleges

Colleges can request a PDRF position for their general recruitment efforts or for specific research areas in need. However, if the college has a specific department or faculty member in mind, it may strengthen the request to have that person or unit submit a request directly. Any at-large positions granted to the college will still need to be assigned to a department and individual faculty member by the spring deadline for submitting candidates to the Office of Research.

Application materials:

  • College contact information for the faculty or staff member managing the recruitment efforts for this potential position
  • A letter outlining the request, illustrating how receiving a PDRF position would benefit the PDRF program, the department, college, or discipline, and/or the university
  • An attachment outlining how the PDRF position would be funded if granted:
    • Any document format is accepted
    • 4+ years of assistantship support
    • 4+ years of health insurance subsidies
    • Any additional supports that the student would have access to (dept/college grants or scholarships, other fellowships, travel funding, etc.)
  • A brief summary of your planned recruitment strategy, with preference given to those plans that consider Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
  • Agreement to terms of the PDRF program

All Office of Research at-large positions revert back to the Office of Research when vacated; this includes vacancies from withdrawal as well as graduation. At-large positions may not be available every year, as the number of total positions are limited and student schedules may vary. These positions are bound by the same guidelines as all other PDRFs, including financial matching requirements, teaching limitations, and expectations of the student, mentor, department, and Office of Research. Once filled, these students are not differentiated from other fellows in any way.

Applications are due through the portal below by 11:59pm on October 30. Award decisions will be announced in November for PDRFs to start in the following fall semester. Please direct any questions to the PDRF Program Coordinator Athena Dupont at athena.dupont@usu.edu.