To inspire leading-edge graduate-level study, PLAS offers a limited number of summer grants for pre-dissertation and dissertation research. The program features funding via three, PLAS-supported channels:

• PLAS Summer Travel Grants: These grants are offered directly through PLAS.
• William Ebenstein Student Research Fund: Endowed by Bradley N. Currey, Jr. ’51, the fund gives preference to students from Latin America.
• Kingston Family Fund for Student Research: Endowed by Timothy Kingston ‘87, M. Kingston ‘62 P87 P92, and C.K. Pflaum ‘92, the fund gives preference to those conducting research in or about Chile.

Application Details

Eligibility

• Graduate students conducting relevant pre-dissertation or dissertation research
• Students must be able to work in the local language of the region visited (Note: Grants do not cover language training, except for indigenous languages not taught at Princeton.)

Parameters

• Funding: Up to $3,500
• Application cycles: Summer
• Funding covers: Air and ground travel (coach only), room and board, living expenses
• Not covered: Equipment, materials, and other expenditures
• The application should include a two-page statement of project goals (700 - 1000 words) that details the central idea of the dissertation, work accomplished to date, and precisely what the applicant expects to learn during the research period.  Be as specific as possible: provide names of archives, interviewees, and field sites, and summarize the contribution this research trip will make to (a) the selection of dissertation research sites (b) the ability to apply/compete for external grants following this initiative; and (c) the completion of the thesis itself.  
• A detailed budget must be included that explains how the projected costs were calculated.

Students will be required to register their travel in the University Travel Enrollment System(Link is external) and to have Institutional Review Board(Link is external) (IRB) approval if the research involves human subjects.

Opportunities

Upon return, graduate students submit a narrative evaluation of progress made toward their research goals and photos taken in the region to [email protected]. Caption details to be included for each photo:

• Project name if applicable
• City, State, Country as applicable
• Name of whom to receive photo credit

Funding Note

Graduate students are strongly encouraged to also apply to their home department and to the Princeton Institute for International and Regional Studies (PIIRS) graduate summer research funding opportunity in SAFE.

PLAS should be acknowledged in any publications, conference talks, or papers resulting from the supported research.