The 2015 Tinker Summer Filed Research Grant application is available now. The deadline to submit
proposals is Friday, March 13th at 12noon. Submit electronically to: rbjames@email.arizona.edu.
2015 Tinker Field Research Grant
Call for Applications
The Center for Latin American Studies is pleased to announce the 2015 Tinker Grant competition for
summer fieldwork in Latin America. The 2015 application deadline is Friday, March 13th at 12:00
noon. Electronic copies should be submitted to rbjames@email.arizona.edu, please reference “2015
Tinker FRG Applicant” in subject line of email.
The Tinker Field Research Grants competition was initiated in 1979 within the Foundation's institutional
grants program. These awards are available to recognized Centers or Institutes of Ibero-American or
Latin American Studies with graduate doctoral programs at accredited United States universities.
The Grants provide graduate students with travel funds (international and in-country) to Spanish and
Portuguese-speaking Latin American or Caribbean countries as well as limited field research expenses.
These awards allow students to acquire a comprehensive knowledge of language and culture, to
familiarize themselves with information sources relevant to their studies; to conduct pilot studies and
preliminary investigations, and to develop contacts with scholars and institutions in their fields. They are
awarded by the university institutes/centers for brief periods of research in Iberia or Latin America and
should reflect primarily the Foundation's broad areas of interest. Awards are limited to graduate
students conducting pre-dissertation research.
The Tinker Foundation supports travel expenses for master’s and pre-dissertation fieldwork in Latin
America during Summer 2015 (May through August). Applicants who plan to complete an MA or PhD
thesis will be given priority over students who plan to utilize an examination option to complete their
degree. Tinker applicants must comply with UA Human Subjects requirements.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
1) The Tinker application states that travel must be completed in August of the summer I’m doing my
research. However, I have additional funding to allow me to stay on into the Fall semester or
beyond. Am I still eligible for a Tinker grant?
A: In this circumstance, you are eligible for airfare only assuming that you make your travel
arrangements through the travel agency CLAS uses, so we can directly pay for the round-trip
ticket. Also, you are required to return in the Fall to participate in the Tinker symposium (or, if you do
not return until Spring, to give a presentation at a CLAS brown bag colloquium session). Just like all
Tinker recipients, your written report is still due to the Center for Latin American Studies on the required
date.
2) Will Tinker fund research in Belize, Haiti or Puerto Rico?
A: No, these countries are not among the Spanish and Portuguese-speaking countries that Tinker
includes within its program. These are Tinker requirements, not UA restrictions.
3) I’m studying the Latino immigrant experience in the United States. Will Tinker cover this?
A: No, Tinker will only support international travel expenses in Latin American and Caribbean countries.
4) I don’t need to ask for airfare, but rather want to travel by car. Is this covered by Tinker?
A: In particular circumstances, coverage of car travel may be more appropriate than air travel and yes,
we can cover such arrangements up to a certain level of funding assuming you spend at least 21
research days (3 weeks) in the country of study. One common example is research on the Mexico side
of the Mexico-U.S. border. Another might be if you are already living in the country where you want to
conduct research, but need additional funding for travel to your research sites by car.
5) I need to study another language (Spanish, Portuguese, or an indigenous language) prior to
conducting my fieldwork. Can I do this with a Tinker grant?
A: Tinker funds can only cover fieldwork related to your research, and cannot be used to cover
education-related expenses, either for language study or any other kind of class. However, if you have
other funding to cover your language study, Tinker funds can be used to pay for the time you spend
beyond the language program, as long as you meet the minimum requirement of at least 3 weeks of
fieldwork.
6) I want to do an internship in a Latin American or Caribbean country. Can I combine this with a
Tinker research project?
A: The answer is similar to the one above. The internship will have to be conducted on your own time,
but you can apply for Tinker funds to pay for travel to the country as long as you plan to stay for at least
3 additional weeks to conduct research on an approved project.
7) I need to do my research when it is Summer in the Southern Hemisphere (for example, scientific
data can only be collected during summer months). That means I have to go during Winter in the
Northern Hemisphere. Is that allowed?
A: Yes, Tinker will make exceptions to the requirements in particular cases. You must initiate the
request with the Center for Latin American Studies and they will forward it to the Tinker Program for a
response.
8) The country where I’m doing my research is in a civil conflict or has experienced a coup d’etat. I
would like to defer my research to a later time when it is more politically feasible. Is that possible?
A: Yes, we can accommodate specific requests owing to political unrest in a given country. However,
deferrals must be within the same 12-month timeframe as when the grant was originally awarded.
9) My mom/friend/professor speaks really good Spanish (or Portuguese). Can they sign off on my
language proficiency for the Tinker application?
A: No, the language proficiency is a specific assessment used by professionals. Thus, unless you are a
native speaker of the language OR can document via transcript that you have had 300-level or higher
training in the relevant language that you need, you must go to the Spanish and Portuguese Dept. for an
assessment of proficiency. Take your form so they can sign off on it.
10) I would like to drive my car to my research site, rather than fly, but it costs more to drive. Can I
request funding to drive rather than fly to my site?
A: The Tinker Program can support you to travel to your research site, but the travel amount will
correspond to the amount it would cost to fly, even if you decide you want to drive. For example, if you
plan to drive to central Mexico to conduct your research, you would receive an award equivalent to
round-trip airfare ($500 or so). Finally, if you drive, you must spend at least 3 weeks (21 days)
conducting fieldwork. It is not possible to count your driving time as part of your research time.