Renamed Graduate School office plans open house

In response to an evolving funding landscape for graduate students, the Graduate School’s newly renamed Office of Fellowships and Funding Resources (OFFR) is changing how it does business. This reorganization will involve expanded educational and informational activities and a greater collaboration with units within and beyond the Graduate School.

To celebrate the venture and to introduce campus to OFFR staff, the Graduate School is holding an open house from 2–4 p.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 16, in 231 Bascom.

The Graduate School Office of Fellowships and Funding Resources (OFFR) facilitates collaboration across units in the area of graduate student support. OFFR engages in educational and informational activities, serving as a conduit for bringing resources together and distributing them efficiently. Three core functions define OFFR’s work:

• Graduate School fellowship administration: Each year, OFFR administers the University Fellowship competition designed to recruit stellar graduate students to UW–Madison programs. In addition, OFFR and the Graduate School’s Office of Diversity Resources collaborate with the Graduate Research Scholar communities in the administration of the Advanced Opportunity Fellowship (AOF) program aimed at increasing the diversity of the graduate student population and supporting fellows’ research and professional growth.
• Clearinghouse of graduate student funding information: OFFR is working to optimize database resources that promote funding opportunities specifically aimed at graduate students. The office is arranging its information collection and serving as a conduit for other organizations on campus that already effectively address student needs, such as the Writing Center and the Grants Information Collection. In addition, OFFR is developing a file of sample proposals for internal and external funding sources, often requested by students as they prepare their own applications.
• Graduate student funding advising: OFFR works closely with the Graduate School’s Office of Professional Development and Engagement to develop workshops on funding aimed at graduate students, to advise departments and other units on campus on external fellowships and funding packages, to prepare a FAQ Web site on student funding, and to advisestudents on an appointment or walk-in basis.