Advanced Degree Financial Support

At this time, Stanford Law School is unable to provide scholarships or stipends to support graduate students except to an extremely limited degree and only for SPILS applicants. We are unable to provide any kind of funding for any of our LLM programs. All applicants are encouraged to seek scholarships, grants and fellowships from their home countries, law firms or international programs. Applicants should seek out these sources of funding as early as possible in the application process as many scholarship applications are due prior to graduate program application deadlines. Some of these programs are listed below.

NOTE: The deadlines, requirements and nature of the financial support programs listed below are subject to change. Please check the respective websites for current information.

Stanford University Fellowships

Knight-Hennessy Scholars Program

The Knight-Hennessy Scholars program awards full funding to Stanford graduate students from all disciplines, with additional opportunities for leadership training and collaboration across fields.

Applications for the Knight-Hennessy Scholars are due in early Autumn one year prior to enrollment. View dates and deadlines. You can also sign up for Knight-Hennessy Scholars email alerts to stay up to date on the availability of their online application.

Learn more about the Knight-Hennessy Scholars program

Dissertation Grants in Japanese Studies

Grants support research related activities of advanced level graduate students specializing in Japanese studies. Awards will be given primarily to those who are preparing dissertation proposals, undertaking field research and requiring supplemental assistance, or writing up the results of the dissertation research. Expenses which may be covered include tuition, travel to, from and within Japan and reasonable living expenses. No funds are available to cover travel or maintenance costs of dependents.

Deadline: early March

Littlefield International Graduate Fellowships

Five awards will be made to outstanding graduate students whose dissertations treat some aspect of international political economy. Applicants must have completed all qualifying exams and be engaged in dissertation research or write-up. The awards will provide TGR fees and a living stipend for up to one year.

Deadline: early March

O'Bie Shultz Fellowships in International Studies

Grants for graduate students to assist with costs associated with advanced work in international studies. Awards support modest travel and research expenses during periods of dissertation field research conducted abroad, or for supplemental cost-of-living stipends and tuition for students in the final write-up phase of the dissertation. Funds are not available to support costs related to dependents. Field research grants can be used in any country.

Deadline: mid April

The Luce Scholars Program

Each year the Luce Scholars Program offers a select group of young Americans an experience in Asia designed both to broaden their professional perspectives and to sharpen their perceptions of Asia, of America, and of themselves. The Foundation has been noted for its efforts to broaden understanding between Asia and the United States. One of the criteria is that nominees are ineligible if they have a professed career interest in Asian Affairs, or if they have made that an area of academic concentration. Nominees may be selected from the class of graduating seniors at the nominating institution, from ranks of recent alumni, from graduate or professional students, from recent recipients of advanced or professional degrees at the institution, or from junior faculty. IIS nominates potential candidates to be submitted for national competition; Stanford can make two nominations per year, and there are 15 recipients annually.

Stanford deadline: mid November

Stanford MacArthur Consortium Fellowships in International Peace and Cooperation

The MacArthur Consortium in International Peace and Cooperation provides fellowships and research assistantships for doctoral students working on dimensions of change affecting international peace and cooperation in contemporary global society.

Funding will go primarily to doctoral students at Stanford. All applicants must show the connection between their work and one or more of the following dimensions of change affecting international peace and cooperation in global society:

  1. war and peace in historical context
  2. global governance and transnational norms
  3. environmental sustainability and social justice
  4. production, performance, and representation of identities.

Applications and accompanying materials are due in mid-February.

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Scholarships, grants and fellowships

American Association of University Women

International Fellowships are awarded for full-time study or research to women who are not U.S. citizens or permanent residents. The Foundation awarded more than 244 fellowships and grants for the 2014-15 academic year. Both graduate and postgraduate study at accredited institutions are supported. Applicants must have applied to their proposed institution of study by the time of application. Selection criteria include an outstanding academic record, professional potential, and the potential of the field of study to improve lives of women and girls in the country of origin. Preference is given to women residing in their home countries at the time of application.

Application deadline: early December.
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Ford Foundation

The International Fellowships Program (IFP) provides opportunities for advanced study to exceptional individuals who will use this education to become leaders in their respective fields, furthering development in their own countries and greater economic and social justice worldwide. The International Fellowships Program provides support for up to three years of formal graduate-level study.

All applications must be submitted to IFP offices in the country or region where the applicant resides. The application deadlines and selection schedule will be determined by the IFP Fellowship Offices.
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Fundacao Estudar Scholarship Program

Fundacao Estudar is a merit-based scholarship program for Brazilian students which, in addition to the scholarship, provides career development and networking programs for its scholars, both during and after their academic experiences. Brazilian students already accepted to top LLM programs (as well as to degrees in other disciplines), and with great intellectual and professional potential, leadership spirit, entrepreneurial drive and commitment to Brazil are welcome to apply. Application deadline: mid-March.
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Graduate Fellowship Research Grant Program from SCICN

Each Spring, SCICN facilitates the study of international and intra-national conflict and negotiation by awarding grant money to SCICN Graduate Fellows, and possibly some other advanced doctoral students, who are doing work in these areas. The maximum amount for grants is $2,500, although most grant awards tend to be much smaller — between $500 and $1,000. For this reason, SCICN grants are often used in conjunction with other funding sources to help cover the costs of larger-scale research projects. The research grants may be used for travel, payments for experiment or interview subjects, transcription, conference costs, or virtually any other serious use that may further one's scholarly pursuits, but may not be used for living expenses. The program is primarily for the benefit of SCICN Graduate Fellows, but non-SCICN Fellows may also apply.

Deadline: early April
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Institute for Humane Studies

Humane Studies Fellowship: Approximately 100 scholarships covering tuition and stipend are awarded each year to advanced undergraduate and graduate students. Awards are granted to students pursuing degrees at any accredited domestic or foreign school and are based on academic performance, demonstrated interest in classical liberal ideas, and potential to contribute to the advancement of a free society. Awards are of up to $12,000; please check the IHS website for updated application deadlines.
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Stanford Center for East Asian Studies

Although funds are limited, graduate students specializing in East Asia are eligible to apply for financial aid. Students interested in the Master's Degree program in East Asian Studies, or in departmental doctoral programs with a Japan, Korea, or China concentration, may apply for fellowships at the time of their initial applications for admission. In addition, there are a number of other sources of support at Stanford for which students in East Asian Studies may qualify. These include fellowship or research support from the University's Japan Fund, affiliation with the Asia/ Pacific Research Center, part-time associate positions with SPICE's China Project or Japan Projects, and teaching or research assistantships. Center for East Asian Studies Funding page lists also other programs and institutions that offer grants and fellowships are listed in the following categories: China, Japan, Korea, Asia/General, and Travel Grants.
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Stanford Center for Latin American Studies

The Center for Latin American Studies awards a variety of grants for short-term, summer research in Latin America to graduate and professional school students from all departments and professional schools. Grants are awarded for summer fieldwork and only in exceptional cases will applications be considered for other periods. Application forms and additional information are available from the Center for Latin American Studies (582 Alvarado Row, Stanford, CA 94305, 650 723.4444).
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The Institute for the Study of World Politics

The Institute for the Study of World Politics (ISWP) supports doctoral students' research into issues that affect global environmental, political and economic integrity and stability. These intricate and interrelated issues—whose resolution requires detailed knowledge and analysis, to which scholars contribute importantly—include arms control and conflict resolution; international environmental and population pressures; political and economic disorders that lead to conflicts between and within developing countries and between the North and South; and the complex processes of democratization, protection of human rights and alleviation of destructive ethnic rivalries.

For additional information on program deadlines, contact:

Institute for the Study of World Politics (ISWP) 1755 Massachusetts Avenue, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20036 202/588-9797

The Margaret McNamara Memorial Fund - Grants For Women From Developing Countries

The purpose of the grant is to support the education of women from developing countries who are committed to improving the lives of women and children in their home countries. Previous grant recipients were studying fields such as agriculture, architecture and urban planning, civil engineering, education, forestry, journalism, nursing, nutrition, pediatrics, public administration, public health, social sciences, and social work.The MMMF awards five grants of about $11,000 each year; they are not renewable.

Deadline: early February
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