Dean's Excellence Fellowship

The Dean’s Excellence Fellowship is a distinguished two-year program that supports undergraduate students in the College of Sciences who are ready to take the next steps in pursuing advanced research experiences under the mentorship of UTRGV faculty.

Designed to cultivate academic excellence and scientific inquiry, the fellowship provides both financial and academic support to help students actively engage in meaningful research, present their findings in professional settings, and become part of a collaborative community of emerging scholars.

Program Benefits

Fellows selected for this program receive a total of $3,500 per academic year, distributed as follows:

• Summer Research Support: A $2,500 stipend will be awarded in Summer 2026 and again in Summer 2027 to allow Fellows to conduct full-time research with their faculty mentor.

• Conference Travel Funding: Each Fellow will also receive $1,000 to support travel to academic or professional conferences for research presentations. These funds can be split across multiple events or combined for a single trip.

• Annual Fellowship Luncheon: Fellows and their mentors will be invited to a yearly luncheon hosted by the Dean (Dr. Macri) and Associate Dean for Research (Dr. Pereira), offering an opportunity for networking, recognition, and cross-disciplinary dialogue.

The fellowship is renewable for a second year contingent upon satisfactory progress. Both the student and faculty mentor will submit annual reports outlining research milestones, academic growth, and plans for continued collaboration.

Eligibility

To be considered for the Dean’s Excellence Fellowship, applicants must:

• Be a current undergraduate student majoring in a discipline within the UTRGV College of Sciences

• Be available to participate from Summer 2026 through Spring 2028. Priority will be given to students who plan to complete the entirity of the program

• Identify and confirm a faculty mentor within the College of Sciences who will supervise a sustained research project over the two-year period

Students selected for this fellowship are expected to demonstrate academic commitment, intellectual curiosity, and the initiative to contribute meaningfully to scientific research at UTRGV.

Application Form

Ready to take the next step? Sign up by completing this form

Mentor List

Below is the current list of faculty who have indicated interest in serving as mentors; please contact them directly to confirm availability. In addition, you are welcome to reach out to any other COS faculty to ask if they are available to serve as your mentor.

In addition, a faculty excellence fellowship catalog [PDF] is also available for reference, providing a visual overview of the participating faculty