Financial Awards & Teaching Opportunities
Financial Awards
Pacific Asian scholarships (tuition waivers), general tuition waivers, graduate teaching assistantships, and teaching apprenticeships are awarded by the Dean of the Graduate Division upon recommendation by the Department's Grants and Awards Committee. Final decisions rest with the Graduate Division. In the middle of each semester, announcements regarding the application process for the awards will be put out. The application forms may be obtained from the Department office. Teaching awards are discussed in the following section.
Approximately seven (7) Pacific Asian Scholarships (tuition waivers) and nine (9) general Tuition Waivers are awarded each semester. The Department’s Grants and Awards Committee evaluates applicants on the basis of grades, other evidence of scholarly abilities, and financial need. Preference will be given to in-state residents and to under-represented groups in the awarding of tuition waivers. Both kinds of tuition waivers are for one semester only but may be renewed for additional semesters upon reapplication and recommendation of the Grants and Awards Committee.
Pacific Asian Scholarships (which are a special form of tuition waivers) are provided by the Graduate Division for students whose field of interest includes the Pacific. Criteria of general eligibility and selection are the same as for tuition waivers except that Pacific Asian Scholarships are limited to students whose studies are relevant or important to the Pacific and/or Asian areas and who possess a 3.5 grade point average or higher for their graduate studies.
General Tuition Waivers are awarded by the Department's Grants and Awards Committee on the basis of academic merit. Eligible full-time students may submit an application form to the Department office. These tuition waivers require a minimum of 3.0 grade point average.
Harry Friedman Memorial Award (Fall) is funded with donations from friends, family, and colleagues of the late Harry Friedman to assist students who has some degree of financial need in the graduate program in Political Science at the Manoa campus. Recepients must be enrolled full-time in a graduate program. This award of $250 is given in the fall semester for academic merit demonstrated by a research paper in the sub-field of Comparative Politics. The award-winning research paper ought to reveal a combination of theoretical sophistication and empirical depth on a specific area in Comparative Politics, with sensitivity to issues of third-world development and progress.
Norman Meller Award (Fall) was created in honor of the Department’s expert in Pacific Islands Studies, now Professor Emeritus. This award is available to graduate students enrolled or accepted in the graduate program in Political Science. Applicants must not hold grants or awards from University sources or the East-West Center during the same period. This award of $1,500 is given in the fall semester for meritorious academic achievement, especially for progress in the Ph.D. program.
Werner Levi Award (Spring) was named in honor of the Department’s distinguished senior scholar in international relations. The Werner Levi Award is available to graduate students enrolled or accepted in the graduate program in Political Science. Applicants must not hold grants or awards from University sources or the East-West Center during the same period. This award of $1,500 is given in the spring semester for meritorious academic achievement, especially for progress in the Ph.D. program.
Jorge Fernandes Memorial Fellowship and Award (Spring) was created in honor of the Department’s beloved graduate student. The Jorge Fernandes Memorial Fellowship and Award is available to graduate Students enrolled in the Political Science graduate program. This award was created to aid an outstanding graduate student to support the completion of his or her dissertation.
Glendon Schubert and James Neal Schubert Political Science Endowed Scholarship (Spring) was created in honor of the Department’s most creative and influential political scientist of the mid-20th century. The scholarship is available to graduate students enrolled or accepted in the graduate program in Political Science. Graduate students who specialize in public law, law and society, or biopolitics will have preference over graduate students with other specializations.
Research Assistantships are occasionally available to graduate students enrolled or accepted in the graduate program in Political Science who hold no equivalent grants or awards from University sources or the East-West Center. Research assistant positions are not on-going but open only when resources become available.
Student Help jobs involve working with a faculty member as a research assistant or typist. The Department announces the availability of such positions. Various other part-time employment is available through the Center for Career Development and Student Employment office, located in Queen Liliu`okalani Center for Student Services Room 212, or can be found online at http://www.hawaii.edu/sece.
Department Travel Funds are occasionally available in small amounts to support research and professional activities. The Department announces the availability of these awards, which are administered by the Department's Budget & Advisory Committee.
Other grants are occasionally available to students enrolled or accepted in the Department. In addition, students may apply for small loans for specific purposes from the Political Science Department Fund. This fund is made available through voluntary contributions of faculty, students, and others.
For more information concerning departmental financial assistance, contact the chair of the Grants and Awards Committee.
Financial Aid Opportunities Outside the Department
East-West Center Graduate Degree Fellowships. Both M.A. and Ph.D. students are eligible for East-West Center Graduate Degree Fellowships. For M.A. students, the term of the grant ranges from 12 to 24 months. Ph.D. students may receive the grant from 12 up to (but rarely) 48 months. Applications are available in August from the Selection Office at the East-West Center.
Jacob Peace Endowment Fund. Supported by an endowment contributed in honor of the late Philip E. Jacob, an internationally-renowned scholar in international relations and cross-national analysis, the award provides approximately $500 to a graduate or undergraduate student for a project, paper, or equivalent endeavor related to efforts for achieving peace. Applicants submit either completed work or a proposal for work to be completed to the Matsunaga Institute for Peace.
The Research Corporation of the University of Hawai`i (RCUH) provides six assistantships annually to graduate students from all fields of study. These highly competitive awards provide support for intensive participation in research. More information is available through the Graduate Division.
A small sum of money is available each semester from the Graduate Student Organization (GSO) Travel Fund to help offset travel expenses for qualified graduate students who will be making presentations or reading papers at out-of-state conferences. Competition for the awards is high, with only a few of those applying being selected.
Other forms of financial assistance, including tuition waivers, scholarships, and loans are available through the Financial Aid Services Office and other entities on and off campus. These include the Basic Educational Opportunities Grants, Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants, National Direct Student Loans, and the Guaranteed Student Loans program. In addition, there are Student Employment, a Co-op Program, and a Federal Work-Study Program. State Higher Education Loans are also available; however, one-year Hawai`i residency is a criterion for such awards. Information and applications should be requested directly from the Financial Aid Services, Student Services Center, Room 112, 2600 Campus Road, University of Hawai`i at Manoa, Honolulu, Hawai`i 96822. Telephone: (808) 956-7251. Fax: (808) 956-3985.
Teaching Opportunities
Opportunities Within the Department
The University and Department are Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) and Affirmative Action (AA) employers. Appropriate EEO and AA criteria are utilized in all selection and hiring processes. The Department awards four different kinds of teaching opportunities, as follows:
A. Teaching Assistants have complete responsibility for teaching their own courses at the introductory level. Approximately six to eight teaching assistantships are available each year. The awards, made on a competitive basis, are provided for one year. Applicants for Teaching Assistantships must be currently enrolled in the Department's graduate program and must hold no equivalent grants or awards from University sources or the East-West Center during the award period. Students who have held Teaching Assistantships and/or Apprenticeships for three years are ineligible for further Teaching Assistantships.
The Teaching Assistantships are awarded each year on a competitive basis by the Department's Grants and Awards Committee. Completed applications must be submitted to the Department secretary by the announced deadline for awards that are to begin in the fall semester of the same year. Applications should include a completed application form, three letters of recommendation, a proposed syllabus, and a statement from the advisor or dissertation chair stating that the applicant is making satisfactory progress.
B. Teaching Apprenticeships are provided for students who will assist professors in the conduct of their courses. Teaching Apprenticeships are available only to newly matriculating graduate students. No more than two apprenticeships are available each year. All entering students are eligible for this award, which will be made by the Admissions Committee. Teaching Apprentices must hold no equivalent grants or awards from University sources or the East-West Center during the award period. The Teaching Apprenticeship lasts one year. Teaching Apprentices may subsequently apply for Teaching Assistantships.
C. Teaching Interns design and teach their own courses and participate in a seminar on pedagogy within Political Science for which they receive up to 6 units of graduate credit in lieu of a stipend. Interns are lightly supervised by a faculty member who also convenes the seminar. The Teaching Intern program allows up to four additional graduate students each year to gain teaching experience and integrate philosophies of teaching into other scholarly pursuits. Teaching Interns can use this teaching experience to aid their applications for Teaching Assistantships and for jobs within the academic marketplace. Teaching Interns are selected competitively. As with awards for Teaching Assistants, completed applications must be submitted to the Department secretary by the announced deadline for awards that are to begin in the fall semester of the same year. Applications should include a completed application form, three letters of recommendation, and a statement from the advisor or dissertation chair stating that the applicant is making satisfactory progress.
D. Visiting Teacher is a title given to graduate students who arrange with individual faculty members to lead a discussion or give a lecture or series of lectures in undergraduate classes. There is no formal committee approval necessary for visiting teachers, and there are no stipends awarded. Visiting teachers are encouraged to use the departmental teaching evaluation forms after their lectures in order to improve their skills and to maintain a record of teaching effectiveness for job applications and for Teaching Assistantship awards. Visiting teachers are welcome to participate in the Teaching Intern seminar, and graduate students interested in teaching opportunities can contact the Teaching Liaison Committee Chair for referrals.
Opportunities Outside the Department
Summer Session Teaching positions are open to advanced graduate students. Announcement of openings occurs in the fall. To apply, submit a proposed course description to the Department's Hiring Committee. For doctoral graduate students, the starting salary in Summer 2008 was $3,670 per course.
Each semester and during the summer, the Outreach College Summer Session offers Political Science courses, both on and off campus. Most of the courses are held at night, and most are taught at military bases. The Department's Hiring Committee selects instructors for these courses. To apply, graduate students must submit a proposed course description and a statement of visible progress toward the Ph.D. degree to the Committee. Requests for applications are usually made several times each year via Department memoranda.
Teaching opportunities are also available at other local colleges and universities, such as other campuses in the University of Hawai`i system, Chaminade University, and Hawaii Pacific University.