Fellowship & Assistantship Application for New Students
In order to be considered for any of the following awards, please complete and submit this application form with all
supporting materials to sphadmissions@albany.edu by February 1st or the deadline required by the program or
department to which they are applying, if earlier than February 1 st. Applicants must also submit all required
materials via www.sophas.org by the deadline required by the program or department to which they are applying.
Applicants will NOT be considered for an award if the application for the degree program is not COMPLETED and
RECEIVED by the specified deadline.
Name: _________________________________________________________________________________________
Home Address: __________________________________________________________________________________
Number and Street
Apt. No.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________
City
State
Zip
E-mail: ______________________________________________ Phone: ____________________________________
Degree Sought (check one):
⎕ MPH
⎕ MS
⎕PhD
⎕ DrPH
Department/Concentration (check one):
⎕ Biomedical Sciences ⎕ Biostatistics
⎕ Epidemiology
⎕ Health Policy & Management
⎕ Other: _________________________________
⎕ Environmental Health
⎕ Social Behavior & Community Health
Citizenship and Residency Status (check all that apply):
⎕ US Citizen
⎕ Permanent Resident ⎕ NYS Resident
⎕ Undergraduate GPA ______________
Did you participate in: ⎕ EOP
⎕HEOP
⎕ Graduate GPA ________________
⎕SEEK
⎕LSAMP
Name: ______________________________________________________________________________________
Please indicate which award you wish to be considered for:
⎕ The David Axelrod Fellowship – Awarded to an MS or MPH Student
The David Axelrod Fellowship was founded in 1994 in honor of the former New York State Health Commissioner, for the
purpose of promoting academic and creative excellence in public health. Dr. Axelrod's career exemplified an activist,
innovative vision of the role of public health policy. This fellowship seeks to support students with a strong passion for
public service and public health policy.
Award: A full tuition scholarship at the New York State rate and $10,000 for the first academic year of study, awarded
to one student per year.
Criteria:
 Applicants are selected on the basis of academic merit and commitment to and interest in public service.
The award is open to students enrolling in any of the masters level degree programs, regardless of
concentration.
 Only those students who have submitted a complete application via www.sophas.org for either the MS or
MPH degree program by February 1st will be considered.
 Applicants must be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident.
Additional Application Materials: Applicants must submit an essay describing their interests and outlining their goals
in public health and public service. The Axelrod Endowment Committee meets in early March to review the
applications. Only students admitted to the School of Public Health at that time will be considered.
⎕ The William Randolph Hearst Fellowship – Awarded to an MS or MPH Student
The Hearst Fellowship of the School of Public Health promotes academic and creative excellence in public health
among students from diverse ethnic backgrounds. The fellowship is available to support incoming minority students. It
is intended that fellowship recipients will use their degree to improve the practice of public health among minority
populations.
Award: A partial tuition scholarship at the New York State rate and up to $10,000 for the first academic year of study,
awarded to one student per year.
Criteria:
 Applicants are selected on the basis of academic merit and commitment to and interest in serving an
underrepresented community. The award is open to students enrolling in any of the masters level degree
programs, regardless of concentration.
 Only those students who have submitted a complete application via www.sophas.org for either the MS or
MPH degree program by February 1st will be considered.
 Applicants must be a member of one of the following underrepresented groups: African-American (a person
having origins in any of the black racial groups of Africa); Latino (a person having origins in Mexico, Puerto
Rico, Cuba, the Caribbean, Central America and South America); Native American (a person descended from
any of the original peoples of North America and who maintains cultural identification through tribal
affiliation or community recognition, which includes American Indians and Alaskan Natives); Native Hawaiian
or Pacific Islander.
 Applicants must be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident.
Additional Application Materials: Applicants must submit an essay describing their interests and outlining their goals
in public health and improving the health of minority communities. The Diversity Committee meets in early March to
review the applications. Only students admitted to the School of Public Health at that time will be considered.
⎕ Carson Carr Diversity Teaching/Graduate Assistantship – Awarded to MS, MPH, PhD & DrPH students
The University at Albany offers competitive, merit-based Diversity Teaching and Graduate Assistantships to students
who will contribute to the diversity of the student body in their graduate or professional program. Carson Carr
recipients will be expected to either teach or provide administrative support over the course of their graduate program.
New doctoral students will receive first priority for these awards.
Award: The value of the award ranges from $9,000 to $17,500 depending on the degree and program of study of the
recipient. MS and MPH students receive 6 credits of tuition a year whereas PhD and DrPH students receive 18 credits
of tuition a year.
Deadline: Fellowship/assistantship deadline corresponds with departmental deadline for financial assistance.
Criteria:
 Applicants must be a US citizen or permanent resident.
 Only those students who have submitted a complete application via www.sophas.org by the required
deadline will be considered.
The University-wide Selection Committee will give special consideration to students who are of a race or ethnicity that
is underrepresented in our graduate and professional programs but will not make awards solely on that basis. Every
applicant will be evaluated on his or her own merits.
Some or all of the following criteria will guide the Selection Committee's evaluation of applicants:
 Member of an educationally underrepresented racial/ethnic group.
 Experience with and/or commitment to working with historically underserved or underprivileged populations
(for example, interest in health disparities)
 Graduation from a historically black college or university or other minority-serving institution
 First generation in one's family to attend college
 History of overcoming substantial educational or economic obstacles, or any other impediment to success
Additional Application Materials: To be considered for this award, applicants must also complete the Carson Carr
Graduate Diversity Scholar Application, which can be found on the Graduate Admissions website at
http://www.albany.edu/graduate/assets/Carson_Carr_Scholar_Application.pdf. This application must be submitted
directly to the University at Albany Office of Graduate Studies via the link provided in the application.
A copy of the Carson Carr Graduate Diversity Scholar Application, in addition to this application, must be submitted
directly to Caitlin Reid, Assistant Dean for Admissions and Student Affairs, School of Public Health at
sphadmissions@albany.edu.
Decisions for new students are typically made in March and applicants selected for the award will be notified of their
status once the committee has reviewed their application.