The Southeastern Universities Research Association (SURA) Board of Trustees approved the initiation of a SURA/Jefferson Lab Graduate Fellowship Program in 1989. SURA has awarded 115 fellowships to date.

SURA plans to award up to eight fellowships in March 2006 to doctoral program graduate students at SURA member universities for research at the Jefferson Lab in Newport News, VA. Application deadline: January 27, 2006. Seven fellowships are available for advanced training related to the theoretical and experimental research programs of the Jefferson Lab, including nuclear and related particle physics, accelerator physics, and in associated scientific and engineering fields. One additional fellowship is available for basic or applied research related to the Free Electron Laser (FEL) program at the Lab.

SURA will award an amount equal to one-half of a normal academic year(~9 months) research assistant stipend paid by the awardee's home institution (the other matching half to be paid by the institution either from institutional funds or research funds provided by the student's supervisor) plus a supplemental stipend of $2000 and up to an additional $2000 in university approved research travel support for the student.

Awards are based on competitive evaluation of academic qualifications, references, plan of study, research potential and relevance to the Jefferson Lab research program. If an application for the FEL program fails to measure up in quality to other applications the eighth fellowship may be awarded for research in the nuclear physics and related theoretical and experimental research programs of the Jefferson Lab.

Purpose
SURA fellowships are intended to encourage graduate students to undertake research at the Jefferson Lab by offering financial support beyond that regularly provided as a research assistant at his/ her home institution.

Eligibility
Eligible students are those who are or plan to be enrolled full-time in a SURA member university doctoral program relevant to a program of the Jefferson Lab. (SURA universities are listed at the SURA website: www.sura.org.) Students may apply at any stage of their graduate careers or while undergraduate seniors. Awards are limited to two years. Students must re-apply and compete for a second year award.

Award Amount
The SURA fellowship will provide an awardee's home institution with a stipend amount equal to one-half of a normal academic year (~9 months) research assistantship plus $2000. The institution must agree to provide a matching half-time research assistantship stipend which, when supplemented by the SURA fellowship, will result in a total award that is $2,000 above a normal academic year research assistantship.

Travel Allowance
In addition to the stipend, SURA will also provide an awardee's home institution up to $2000 for awardee research related travel. Such travel is subject to the rules and regulations of the awardee's home institution.

Summer Employment Opportunity
Awardees may be considered by the Jefferson Lab for employment as research assistants at the Laboratory during the summer of 2006.

Application Requirements
The following must be received at the SURA Fellowship Office by January 27, 2006:

• Completed application form (see attached)
• Copy of GRE scores (SURA cannot receive scores directly from the Education Testing Service)
• An official academic transcript
• Three references (reference form attached)
• Letter from a university official (department chair or higher) agreeing to the matching requirement and stating the dollar amount of the matching stipend.

Required application information should be mailed to:

Fellowship Program Office
Southeastern Universities Research Association
1201 New York Ave., NW Suite 430
Washington, D.C. 20005

Selection Criteria
The evaluation of applicants and selection of awardees will be based on the available data including, but not limited to, the following:

• Academic qualifications: academic record, copies of Graduate Record Exam (GRE) scores (both General Test and Subject Test), and letters of recommendation. (GRE exam scores must be available.)
• Merit and quality of proposed research. (A statement of applicant's research plan must be included.)
• Utility/relevance of proposed research to Jefferson Lab and proposed utilization of lab resources.
• Likelihood that the proposed research plan objectives can be accomplished by graduation.

Selection Process
Applications are evaluated competitively by a SURA Fellowship Selection Committee which recommends awards. Notification of awards are scheduled to be made in March 2006.

Conditions of Fellowship Award

• Awardees must be enrolled full-time in study leading to a doctoral degree at a SURA member university.
• Awardees may not concurrently hold another major full-time fellowship or traineeship.
• Within 90 days of completing a fellowship awardees should provide a written report to SURA on accomplishments during the period of the fellowship, including:
  • Results of experimental or theoretical research undertaken at the Jefferson Lab
  • Summaries of talks or lectures based on such research, and
  • Copies of preprints/publications based on such research.