The School of Natural Resources and Agricultural Sciences welcomes and encourages returned Peace Corps volunteers in the Paul D. Coverdell Fellows Program. This is a wonderful way to continue your volunteer service while earning a higher degree.

The Paul D. Coverdell Fellows Program advances the Peace Corps' third goal "to help promote a better understanding of other peoples on the part of Americans," by developing and maintaining educational partnerships that place returned Peace Corps volunteers in internships in underserved U.S. communities. Through the internships, Program Fellows are able to use the knowledge and skills they developed during their overseas service to improve people's lives in the U.S.. As Fellows, they earn graduate degrees while advancing their professional development for careers in a wide range of fields.

We offer a Master of Science degree in Natural Resources Management, a Master of Natural Resources Management and Geography, and a Ph.D. in Natural Resources and Sustainability.  These degrees will help you master a specialty in a natural resources field and give you a chance to practice that specialty in an internship in an underserved community. All our degrees can be tailored to a student's interests and career goals so the curricula are very flexible. Students coming into the programs without sufficient backgrounds in the sciences or natural resources may need to take additional basic courses.

As mentioned above, there is a requirement for an internship in a needs-based community.  Some of the problems needs-based communities in Alaska face include maintaining adequate food resources for family subsistence, providing educational services, especially in small, remote communities or local schools, proper waste disposal in rural communities and technical assistance in natural resources management.

Financial Benefits for Fellows

We offer one fellowship each year that provides funding for the student’s first year with a chance to compete for teaching assistantships or other funding in the second year. The fellowship is offered on a competitive basis. The fellowship includes a stipend in the amount of $13,500 (dispersed in payments of $1687.50 for eight months), plus tuition for up to ten graduate credits per semester ($3380/semester resident or $6910/semester for non-residents), and payment of graduate student health insurance (approximately $1500). The total package is worth up to $21,760 for residents and $28,820 for non-residents.

To be eligible to compete for the fellowship, applications must be complete by March 1st.  This means that transcripts, recommendations, statement of purpose and your GRE scores must all be received by UAF by that date.  Visit http://www.uaf.edu/gradsch/prospective/ for more information and www.uaf.edu/admissions/ to complete the online application.

For More Information

Susan Todd, Ph. D.

Coverdell Fellows Program Coordinator and
Professor of Collaborative Resource Planning

University of Alaska Fairbanks
School of Natural Resources & Agricultural Sciences
PO Box 757200, Fairbanks, AK, 99775-7200
susan.todd@alaska.edu
http://www.uaf.edu/snras