Departmental Funding

Western is committed to fostering graduate research, and provides research funding in addition to the financial support normally available to all students in the MA and PhD programs. For students whose thesis plans involve fieldwork, the Department of Anthropology offers some awards to help support their research:

Regna Darnell Graduate Award for Fieldwork in Sociocultural Anthropology

Awarded to a full-time graduate student in Sociocultural Anthropology who is engaging in fieldwork. Preference will be given to a doctoral student. The recipient must have achieved a minimum 78% average and demonstrated a commitment to research. Applications must be submitted annually to the Department of Anthropology along with a statement outlining fieldwork requirements, outcomes and expected costs to be incurred. Final selection will be made by the Awards Committee in the Department of Anthropology, with at least one participant holding current membership in the Faculty of Graduate Studies, in consultation with the Department Chair. This award is made possible through a generous gift from Dr. Regna Darnell, as well as the Premier's Discovery Award she received from the Ministry of Research and Innovation.Applications are invited for sociocultural fieldwork research funding. The amount of the award will depend on the funds available each year.

Graduate Fellowship (GF) in Lieu of GTA

PhD students who are within their funding window and will be doing extended fieldwork that requires them to be away from Western can apply to replace their Teaching Assistantship with a Graduate Fellowhip (GF) in lieu. A major external scholarship would affect your eligibility for this (similarly, in those circumstances if you were on campus you would only be eligible for one term of GTA funding). Please contact the Graduate Chair as soon as possible if you think this will apply to you during the upcoming academic year.

Terry Demers Memorial Bursary

The Terry Demers Memorial Bursary will be presented to a masters student in the Faculty of Education or the Department of Anthropology (alternating annually) who demonstrates financial need. Eligible applicants are to provide a two-page summary of their thesis proposal that includes the research questions, rationale for the study, potential contribution to the research literature, methodology and an itemized list of necessary expenses. The recipient will be selected in consulation with the Graduate Committee of the respective Faculty or Department. Terry Demers was a long time member of the UWO community having earned her 25-yr pin in 1993. She had been the Supervisor of Graduate Education in the Faculty of Education and also served as the Administrative Assistant to the Department of Anthropology Eligible students should contact the Faculty of Education in odd numbered years and the Department of Anthropology in even numbered years for deadline and application details. Recipient must meet OSOTF eligibility requirements.

Value up to:$1,000.00.

Christine Nelson Graduate Award for Research in  Archaeology and Bioarchaeology

Awarded annually to a full-time graduate student(s) in Archaeology and Bioarchaeology who are engaging in field or lab work as part of the requirements for their degree.  Preference will be given to female students. The completed application form (available on the Department Graduate Program web site) must be submitted to the Graduate Program Assistant in the Department of Anthropology by May 15th. Final selection will be made by the Graduate Committee in the Department of Anthropology, with at least one participant holding current membership in the School of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies. This scholarship was established through a bequest from Mrs. Christine Sharon Nelson. Christine was an archaeologist, a heritage planner, an artist, a world traveler and a great friend to many. She passed away in April 2013 after a long struggle with cancer.
Value: Applications are invited for research funding of up to $3,000. Partial awards may be made.

Henry Bogal-Szot Graduate Anthropology Fieldwork Award

Awarded annually to a graduate student in Anthropology, based on participation in fieldwork, academic achievement. Applications are to be submitted to the Department of Anthropology. The recipient will be selected by the Scholarship Committee in Anthropology, of which at least one representative holds membership in the School of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies. The award was established with a generous gift from Mr. Henry Szot.
Value: One award of $3,200.

  • Application Process: Students who apply for the Christine Nelson or Regna Darnell Award will be automatically considered for the Henry Bogal-Szot Award.

Zenon and Mary-Anne Andrusyszyn Award

Awarded annually to annually to a graduate student in either the Department of Anthropology or History based on research merit, academic achievement, and demonstrated financial need. Applications are available through the graduate committee in the Departments of Anthropology (odd fiscal years) and History (even fiscal years). A committee with representation from the Department of Anthropology or the Department of History, and at least one representative who is a current member of the School of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies, will select the recipient. The award recognizes the research contributions of the History and Anthropology departments through their study of people and events over time, thus, promoting understanding of the human experience. This award was established with a generous gift from Mr. Zenon P. Andrusyszyn M.S.M, and Dr. Mary-Anne Andrusyszyn (MScN 1986).
Value: One award of $1,000.

Graduate Conference Travel & Research Support Fund

Anthropology graduate students who will or have done a podium or poster presentation at a conference (as sole or first author) can apply for a Graduate Conference Travel & Research Support Fund (up to $500).

Students can also apply for support for equipment (e.g. voice recorder), software (e.g. NVivo license) or anything else they need to support their research.

Students can apply annually, although priority will be given to people who haven’t been funded previously. Other factors that will be weighted in allocating awards include the scale and location of the conference.

There will be two application deadlines per academic year, on November 31 and February 28.