University seniors, in any department, working on a senior thesis topic in public policy or international relations may apply to the Woodrow Wilson School for funding to support their thesis research during the academic year. Research may be conducted during the fall break and the period between semesters. Fall funding is open to WWS students only.  All students are encouraged to apply for funding during winter break.  Students who received research grants for the summer may apply again.

Funding is available for travel expenses, reasonable research expenses, and on-site living expenses (@ $450/week) associated with this research. Grants will not be made for course work, for language study, for group research projects, for research done in Princeton, or for research done elsewhere as an assistant on a faculty research project. Travel expenses will not be provided for travel to or from a student's home or to conferences.

 Students may apply for funding through the University's Student Activities Funding Engine (SAFE.)

Students should be familiar with the University Travel policies and register all travel plans and contact information in the University Travel Database.

Grants are awarded based on the academic merit of the project and the availability of funds. All applications are read and reviewed by a faculty committee. The Committee will consider: the merits of the topic and the research plan; the feasibility of the proposed research and travel plans; the qualifications of the student to do the work; the necessity of travel to secure the required information; and other relevant issues. The committee will also review the proposed budget; grants can not always be provided for the full amount requested.

Applications for fall funding are due the first week of October and the deadline for winter funding is in late October.

The application requests the following:

• General Information: name, PUID number, address, phone.

• University transcript (one original and the necessary number of photocopies).

• An itemized budget of your expenses including the total amount of funds requested.  List travel expenses separately.

•  Project Statement of not more than two double-spaced pages. This statement should describe your proposed research, the researchmethods employed, and the work accomplished to date. You should indicate the relevance of your research to public policy issues and problems, include a precise description of how the funds will be used, and include a brief bibliography.

•  Planned Itinerary indicating where you are going, what you plan to do and whom you will see at the research site. If your research requires access to specific documents, archives, or agencies, indicate whether you have contacted the appropriate person at the research location.

• Qualifications list that includes languages, quantitative skills, course work or other training or skills which have prepared you for this research.

The Office of the Dean of the College administrates the spring senior thesis funding round. Juniors in any department may apply for funding from the following sources with one application: Office of the Dean of the College general fund; the Shultz Fund; Economics (for majors only); History (for majors only); Latin American Studies; Politics (for majors only); Regional Studies; and the Woodrow Wilson School. Please note that there are restrictions on funding and the expenses covered by each funding source. The list of restrictions is provided below.

Students may apply for funding through the University's Students Activities Funding Engine (SAFE.)

The Dean of the College General Fund is unrestricted.

The Dean of the College Shultz Fund provides funding for research on public policy issues only.

The Woodrow Wilson School provides funding for public policy topics only. Support will only be awarded to students who plan to devote a substantial portion of the summer to their research. Grants will not be awarded for travel to and from a student’s home, travel to take courses, language study or study at an academic institution, for research done in Princeton, or for research done elsewhere as an assistant on a faculty research project.

If the thesis research you plan to conduct is expected to take place during the term of your internship, you are not eligible for Senior Thesis Research Funding.  Exceptions may be made with the explicit recommendation of your University program or internship sponsor; please contact the appropriate person in order to inquire about possible approval before submitting this application.

The application requests the following materials and information:

1. General information: name, social security number, address, phone.
   
    
2. University transcript: (one original and the necessary number of photocopies).
   
    
3. An itemized list of your expenses including the total amount of funds requested. Travel expenses should be clearly marked.
   
    
4. Project Statement (Research Proposal) Attach a project statement of up to two, double-spaced, typed pages, beginning with brief summary (no more than 25 words) of your research question. This statement should describe your proposed research, the research methods employed, and the work accomplished to date. It should include an explanation of why travel is essential to your research, a precise description of how the funds will be a list of documents, archives or libraries to be used, and a brief bibliography.
   
    
5. Planned Itinerary: Indicate where you are going, what you plan to do and whom you will see at the research site. Indicate whether you have contacted the appropriate person at the research location for the necessary documents or archives.
   
    
6. Qualifications: Include languages, quantitative skills, course work or other training or skills which have prepared you for this research.
   
    
7. Students wishing to acquire a data set for their research must submit a letter from the appropriate Princeton librarian that states that the data set is not available at Princeton and will be of use to others in the future.