FAQ

Graduates of the Division of Behavioral & Organizational Sciences often go on to prominent positions in academia, applied research, consulting, human resources, and more.

Each student admitted to the Division of Behavioral & Organizational Science’s programs is offered a merit-based fellowship. The amount of this fellowship varies and is communicated to students at the time of admission by their new faculty advisors.

In addition to this funding, many other sources of financial aid are available. A sample of these sources is listed below.

Funding from CGU

• Merit-Based Scholarships: Offered to every admitted DBOS student at time of admission.
• Community Fellows Program: The Community Fellows Program provides valuable evaluation and technical assistance services to nonprofit organizations in Los Angeles and San Bernardino counties. Consultants provide critical services to help complete projects, build organizational capacity, and ensure the success and longevity of organizations working to solve pressing social problems.
• Research Assistantships: The vigorous grant activity in DBOS allows doctoral students to gain vital experience through paid grant positions. These are generally advertised through Handshake.
• On-campus Teaching Assistantships: Advanced students are regularly hired to assist with courses at Claremont Graduate University and the surrounding Claremont Colleges.
• DBOS Travel Awards: The school is piloting a program to offer funding to students who are traveling to present or participate at academic conferences.
• DBOS Administrative Positions: Students are hired in a variety of administrative positions within the Division of Behavioral & Organizational Sciences. These are generally advertised through Handshake.
• CGU Administrative Positions: Students from DBOS with Federal Work Study funds are eagerly sought by CGU’s administrative offices and other schools at CGU for on-campus part-time employment.
• Paid Internships: The DBOS Research and Jobs Coordinator works to keep students aware of paid internships. Join Handshake for more information.
• Local Teaching: There are more than 100 colleges in the Southern California area. The Southern California Higher Education Recruitment Consortium is an excellent resource for finding teaching positions in the area.
• Local Employment: The CGU Career Development Office offers resources to students seeking employment, including regular on-campus career fairs.

Generous contributions from friends of our programs have led to an expanding range of named fellowships available to both incoming and current DBOS students. Some recent fellowships include:

• Stuart Oskamp Fellowship
• Maguire Intercollegiate Funds
• Si and Bob Fluor Fellowship
• Charles A. Reckefus Memorial Fellowship
• John Stauffer Charitable Trust Fellowship
• George Mayr Fellowship
• Forest Lawn Fellowship
• Larry and Jane Rosen Fellowship
• Douglas and Ethel Pearce Endowed Fellowship
• Anonymous Fellowship

DBOS students have received funding from the following sources:

• American Psychological Association Travel Award
• Jacob K. Javits Fellowship Program
• National Science Foundation Graduate Fellowship
• McNair Scholars Program
• California State Fellowships
• National Science Foundation
• APA Minority Fellowship Program Funds
• National Association of Junior Auxiliaries Graduate Scholarship Program
• Carr Scholarship Foundation Scholarship Program
• Ford Foundation International Fellowships
• Luso-American Education Foundation Financial Aid Grant
• Hispanic College Fund
• The Paul & Daisy Soros Fellowships for New Americans
• Federal work study funds
• Federal low-interest student loans
• The Haynes Dissertation Fellowship

Perhaps the most prestigious means of funding your graduate education is by applying for a grant. The number of foundations and institutions offering grants for social science research and education is much larger than can be listed on this page. However, the groups below have funded DBOS students in recent years and may be a good place to start your search.

• American Psychological Foundation (APF)/COGDOP Graduate Research Scholarships in Psychology
• International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans Grants for Research
• National Research Service Award, Individual Predoctoral Fellowships In Alcohol Abuse, Drug Abuse, and Mental Health
• Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues (SPSSI) (several funding opportunities listed)
• APA Minority Fellowship Program, Research Training Fellowships
• American Psychological Association Dissertation Research Awards
• American Education Research Association (AERA) Dissertation Grants Program
• American Heart Association (Western States Affiliate) Predoctoral Fellowships
• Dissertation Fellowships for the Study of International Migration to the United States
• Harry Frank Guggenheim Foundation Dissertation Fellowships
• Charlotte W. Newcombe Doctoral Dissertation Fellowships
• Spencer Dissertation Fellowships for Research Related to Education
• State Farm Companies Foundation Dissertation Awards
• Woodrow Wilson Dissertation Grants In Women’s Studies Awards
• Woodrow Wilson–Johnson & Johnson Dissertation Grants In Children’s Health Awards
• Woodrow Wilson–Johnson & Johnson Dissertation Grants in Women’s Health Awards
• American Association of University Women Dissertation Fellowships
• Association for Women in Science Educational Foundation
• Ford Foundation Dissertation Fellowship for Minorities
• Social Science Research Council

Division of Politics & Economics alumni are university instructors, global economists, CEOs, policy analysts, judges, and more.

Yes, In the Economics PhD program we have two concentrations:

• Applied Microeconomics
• International Economics & Development Policy

Within Applied Microeconomics we offer the following subfield options:

• Crime & Law Economics;
• Behavioral, Experimental, and Neuro Economics;
• Self-Designed Applied Microeconomics subfield.

In the Politics & Policy PhD programs, we have 6 concentrations to choose from:

• American Politics
• Comparative Politics
• Public Policy
• Research Methodology
• International Political Economy
• International Politics

Time to degree varies by program, though MA students can typically finish in two to three years and have five years to complete their degree from the date of their first registration. If an extension is needed, please complete and submit an Extension of Time for Degree Request form (downloadable from the CGU website) accompanied by a proposed plan of study/research. The request for extension should be submitted by the program coordinator to the Registrar’s Office and must be evaluated and approved by a faculty advisor.

PhD students can typically finish in five years and have seven years to complete the degree from the date of their first registration. If an extension is needed, students must submit an Extension of Time for Degree Request form. Permission for extension of time may be obtained from the dissertation chair and processed through the department.

PhD students may obtain a master’s degree while concurrently working toward their PhD, provided they meet the unit requirement. Students may transfer up to 10 units for the 48-unit degree and 6 units for the 36-unit degree, following the procedures listed here. Students must have a B (3.0) GPA in courses applied toward the MA degree. Students may receive only one MA en route to the PhD.

MA students may petition to transfer up to 10 semester units into a 48-unit master’s degree program and 6 units into a 36-unit master’s degree program. Students intending to transfer units that count toward general degree requirements must consult with their advisor to determine the appropriate entrance point for sequential courses. Successful completion of an advanced course presumes demonstrated competence in earlier sequential courses. Formal transfer of units requires the submission of a transcript to the faculty advisor, who will determine which courses are appropriate for transfer. Student must have earned the equivalent of a B or better in a graduate-level course in order to transfer units from another institution.

PhD students may petition to transfer up to 24 semester units into a doctoral program from another graduate institution. We recommend that core courses (in particular those covered by the qualifying exams) be taken at CGU. Core course transfer may require that the student take an exam to show competence. Only a subset of core courses can be waived. Non-core course transfer can be done after completing at least one year’s coursework. Students intending to transfer units that count toward general degree requirements must consult with the faculty advisor to determine the appropriate entrance point for sequential courses. Students who transfer from an MA program in the department to a doctoral program will retain all of their previously earned CGU credit.

We strongly encourage students to discuss their plans to transfer credits with their advisor.

A formal transfer of units is processed by obtaining a Transfer of Credit Form, which can be downloaded from the CGU website. The completed form must be submitted with a transcript to the student’s faculty advisor for review and approval. In order to transfer units from another institution, students must have earned the equivalent of a B or better in a graduate-level course. Normally, final decisions regarding transfer units are made after students have been in the program for one to two years. This allows faculty to review student performance and develop a clearer understanding as to whether the transfer units are roughly equivalent to courses offered in the department.

Doctoral students are required to complete a transdisciplinary T-Course. This course is an advanced intensive experience that prepares doctoral students for high-level discourse, research, and inquiry and provides practical experience working with colleagues in different fields. The course counts as 4 of the regular 72 units toward the student’s degree. It will not add any additional units to the student’s degree requirements and will not count against the total number of transfer units from previous graduate coursework.

Master’s students may enroll in T-Courses, space permitting.

Both MA and PhD students are allowed to take up to two independent study courses during their academic program, which must be approved by their faculty advisor and department chair.

Yes. Fellowships in the Division of Politics & Economics are merit based. Some students may also be considered for paid research and teaching assistantships based on excellent performance in research or classroom settings.

Yes. Excellent performance in class usually results in an increase in your fellowship. Under-performing students may see their support diminish.

DPE provides students an opportunity to request an increase in their financial aid award, teaching assistantships, and research assistantships through the Fellowship Renewal Request Form, which is made available to students via email during the spring semester.

Students can request to become TAs or RAs through the request for financial aid form distributed by the budget coordinator in the spring semester of each year. Faculty members make their selection once a year at the end of the spring term. We advise students to approach and get to know faculty members during their first year. Typically, excellent researchers get research assistantships, and students who have performed excellently in classes that need TAs get teaching assistantships.