This Week's Ph.D. Newsletter Includes |
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Student Spotlights: Jernej Grlj
- Announcements: Fall 2026 Registration Deadline, Dean's Dissertation Completion Fellowship
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Upcoming Events: Mathematics Department Seminars, Mathematics Tea, Dornsife PhD Academy, NSF GRFP Bootcamp
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Archived newsletters can be found here.
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Congratulations to Jernej Grlj! Jernej is a fourth-year PhD student studying Mathematics. He has received the Simons Dissertation Fellowship in Mathematics, which provides research support to excellent graduate students in the final years of their PhD studies. This fellowship was created to honor the work of Jim Simons and his commitment to the field of mathematics.
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Dean's Dissertation Completion Fellowships Spring 2027 |
Semester-long dissertation completion fellowships will again be available in spring 2027 for PhD students who are making good progress toward the degree and who can provide a compelling statement about their research completion timeline. The stipend for the spring semester will be $21,218 distributed from January 2027 – May 2027. Preference will be given to students in the later stages of their careers, and funds will only be available to students with no remaining fellowship support. Students who receive a Dissertation Completion Fellowship will be expected to defend their dissertation within a year of receiving the fellowship.
Students will not apply to the Graduate School directly, but are expected to submit application materials to Alexis Teodoro, PhD Student Services Advisor, at ateodoro@usc.edu no later than Friday, October 2nd at 11:59pm. Please note that programs may only nominate one candidate per program.
The application for the fellowship includes the following:
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A description of the student’s dissertation, which should demonstrate the project’s contribution to the field and its grounding in relevant scholarship and methodology. The proposal should make a compelling statement about the planned work and be accessible to scholars in a broad range of fields. The research area/dissertation description submitted by the candidate to the PhD program should be in 12-point Times New Roman, single-spaced with 1” margins, numbered pages, and a header on every page that includes the student’s name and title of the dissertation 500-1,000 words).
- A curriculum vitae
- Summary of progress and plans for degree completion, including dates of screening, qualifying exams and anticipated dissertation defense, listed in a table format
- Brief summary of funding to date. For example, dates of internal and external fellowships, RA and/or TA appointments, listed in a table format
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USC unofficial transcript or STARs report (scanned documents are acceptable).
- Signature page signed by the student’s dissertation advisor, department chair, and Dean or Dean’s proxy affirming that the student is making satisfactory progress to the degree.
- One letter of recommendation provided by a faculty member in the student’s home program uploaded as a PDF document by the program’s designated nominator
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The USC Graduate School will be hosting an intensive NSF GRFP proposal-writing workshop for eligible students on Thursday, Sep 17 from 1:00 pm - 4:00 pm in STU B3.
Applicants to the NSF GRFP must be:
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- A U.S. citizen, national, or permanent resident
- A first-year graduate student pursuing their first graduate degree (i.e., you should not already have a master's degree).
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Be enrolled in a program named as one of the NSF fields of study, i.e., Life Sciences, Computer and Information Sciences, Engineering, Materials Research, Chemistry, Geosciences, Mathematical Sciences, Physics and Astronomy, Psychology and some Social Sciences.
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TO APPLY for the workshop, please submit your CV & a brief overview of your academic goals by Tue, Sep 8 here.
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Dornsife PhD Academy will be hosting a Time Management, Balance, and Success: Advice from Senior PhD Students.
Wednesday, September 16, 2026
MCB 101 + Zoom
5:30-7:00pm
Designed for first-year Ph.D. students, this event brings together senior Ph.D. students to share practical advice on managing time, maintaining balance, and navigating the demands of graduate school. Attendees will hear candid insights on building effective routines, staying organized, and creating sustainable habits for success throughout the Ph.D. journey.
*This event is designed for Dornsife Ph.D. students (YR 1). If you are not a Dornsife Ph.D. student and are interested in attending, please email us at phdacademy@dornsife.usc.edu.*
Bonus for Dornsife Ph.D. students only: Attending this event counts toward the 4-event minimum to apply for the PhD Academy Scholarship and Research Fund (up to $500).
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