Financial Support

Research Fellowships

The CU Denver Economics Department provides a limited number of research fellowships to advanced undergraduate and graduate students. The purpose of the fellowship program is to encourage students' involvement in faculty research. The fellowship carries a stipend of $500 and carries the title of research fellow. Interested students should discuss their interest with a faculty member to determine whether there is a suitable project available.

A faculty member can also identify a student as a potential recipient of a fellowship and encourage the student's application. In either case, the faculty member should present a summary of the project and a description of the student's involvement in the project to the fellowship selection committee. The number of fellowships is limited to available funds.

Teaching Assistantships

The Department of Economics awards teaching assistantships to both undergraduate and graduate economics students. Teaching assistantships usually require a workload of 10 hours per week during the semester, depending upon the nature of the class. Teaching assistants help professors with grading and conduct office hours and/or computer lab sessions. Typically, students must take, and perform exceptionally well in, the course before they are considered for a teaching assistant position.

Qualifications

The applicant's GPA in economics courses must demonstrate academic merit. A qualified undergraduate student is typically a junior or senior. A qualified graduate student should have completed at least one semester in the MA Program in Economics at CU Denver, or should provide evidence that they can be an effective teaching assistant based on prior course work and experience.

Application Process

Current students will receive the application form through the graduate student listserv. The deadline is one month before the beginning of each semester.

Prospective students who have applied for the master's degree in Economics are automatically eligible.

Research Assistantships

The Department of Economics awards research assistantships to both undergraduate and graduate students, typically carrying a workload ranging from five to 30 hours per week during the semester. Research assistants help professors with research, which can take a variety of forms including data entry, statistical analysis, library/literature search and computer programming.

Qualifications

The department awards research assistantships based on academic merit, as demonstrated by the applicant's GPA in economics courses, as well as personal enthusiasm for doing academic research. Typically, qualified undergraduate students have taken both the statistics and econometrics classes. Graduate students should have completed at least one semester in the MA program in Economics at CU Denver, or should provide evidence that they can be effective research assistants based on demonstrated mathematics, statistics and/or computer skills, or have previous research experience.

Application Process

Current students will receive the application form through the graduate student listserv. The deadline is one month before the beginning of each semester.

Note that in addition to department-funded research assistantship, a number of professors conduct research funded by federal agencies or private foundations. Those professors hire additional research assistants with their own funding. For information on such positions students may contact the graduate advisors.