Break #2

Hello again everyone,

I am working to a big deadline this Thursday and will not be posting this week.  Check back on Monday for the next installment in my "Breaking Down the Application" series.

Thanks for reading,

Casey

Breaking Down the Application Part 1: The Personal Statement

It's called a variety of names, depending on the funding institution, but the personal statement (or
statement of purpose, or statement of intent, etc.) is a ubiquitous and important part applications for funding.   Some of the smaller grants and scholarships may not require this component, but you can be fairly sure that you will be asked to supply a personal statement for any large graduate fellowship (or grad school application, for that matter).

Many of us dread writing personal statements, especially if we are used to writing in a technical or scientific format.   The switch from talking about running experiments to talking about your goals in life can be incredibly jarring.  What's more, writing about one's self can be a really uncomfortable experience. Unfortunately, the only advice I can give you here is: buck up.  Nearly everyone has the same issues with writing about themselves.  The sooner you can set aside your reservations or self-consciousness about it, the more effective your finished product will be.

The personal statement is your time to shine as a human being.  Your primary goal should be to distinguish yourself as motivated, interesting, and unique.  The more you can set yourself apart from the other applicants (in a positive way of course), the better your chances are of being awarded funding.  The reviewers who read your application will have been spending hours reading page after page of personal statements that start with:

"Ever since I was a child, I have been passionate about _______."

Avoid this, please.  At all costs.  If you truly do have a unique and important anecdote from your childhood that spurred your interest in your field and set you on a path towards your current goals, then by all means write about it.  But simply saying you love what you love because you have always loved it will likely be the death knell of your application.  Finding your true motivation may take a little introspection, which is another reason why writing a personal statement can be uncomfortable.  Do a little digging internally and see if you can remember any key events, stories, trips, or other memories that can help you weave an otherwise dull personal statement into a compelling narrative.

Before you begin writing, it is very important that you understand exactly what the funding agency is asking for.  Every application will ask for something different, usually based on the priorities of the funding agency.  Federal funding opportunities will almost always focus on the "Broader Impacts" of your proposed work, and your personal statement is the perfect place to expound upon all the impacts you have had and will have in your career.

Pick out specific words and phrases that are emphasized in the application.  If they say they are looking for students who have demonstrated leadership skills, make sure you explicitly state:

"The position involved managing a team of undergraduate research assistants, and allowed me to greatly develop my leadership skills."


Reviewers are given a specific list of criteria to look for when reading through the applications.  As upsetting as this may be to the students putting all their time, energy, and thought into each application, reviewers will literally scan through looking for keywords and check them off their list.  Your best bet in getting funded (and this applies to other components of the application) is to identify the keywords they will be looking for, and make sure each and every one of them is included in your personal statement.



So, you're probably thinking:

"That's ridiculous.  They want me to craft a beautifully written, elegant, and original personal statement that includes a pre-determined list of words and phrases inserted verbatim into the narrative?"

Well, yes.  That is the conundrum of the personal statement, and that is why so many people struggle with writing them.  I advocate that they be written in the following order:

1. Read the funding announcement and determine exactly what the funding agency wants to hear.
2. Outline your narrative.  Find the common thread that ties your experiences together.
3. Figure out how to weave each of the keywords into your story.  Tie them into anecdotes or work experiences.  Add these to your outline.
4. Actually write the thing.

Not everyone's brain works that way, but this method has helped me to organize my thoughts in the past.

That's all there is to it!  (Speaking facetiously of course)

Happy writing.  Show the funding agencies that you are a unique butterfly that fits perfectly into their mold.  Thousands of people have done it successfully in the past.  So can you.

Good luck!

Casey

Week Off

Unfortunately, I won't be able to post this week. I thought I'd be able to pull it together, but let's consider this a bye week and we'll get back in the swing of things this coming Monday. Thanks for your patience and get ready for more good stuff to come! - Casey

Doing Your Taxes

After talking with a number of friends and colleagues about their graduate funding, it has become increasingly clear to me that many grad students are very unclear about how to deal with scholarships and fellowships when it comes time to file their taxes.  For small research grants, this is less of an issue, though they do add up and could cause the IRS to notice you if you file incorrectly.  For large graduate fellowships, however, you are dealing with a substantial chunk of money and it is important that you are informed about how to report that money on your tax return.  Let's begin with a couple of definitions.


The IRS defines a scholarship as:

"an amount paid or allowed to, or for the benefit of, a student (whether an undergraduate or a graduate) at an educational institution to aid in the pursuit of his or her studies."

While a fellowship is defined as:

"an amount paid for the benefit of an individual to aid in the pursuit of study or research."

Both scholarships and fellowships may be tax free, as long as you meet a number of key requirements.  The first and most obvious requirement is that you must be currently enrolled in a qualified academic institution.  Beyond that, there are three more important factors that will qualify your funding as tax free:

• The total sum cannot exceed your expenses, otherwise it counts as taxable income (you're supposed to be offsetting your educational expenses, not making a profit after all)

• It cannot be given with the requirement that it not be used for qualified educational expenses, and it also cannot be given for specific non-educational expenses such as room and board

• The scholarship or fellowship does not represent payment for a service, including teaching and research duties in the course of your graduate schooling

So, the good news here is that you might not have to pay taxes on a large portion of your graduate fellowships and scholarships.  The flip side of that, is that any funding you receive (including graduate stipends) that exceed your annual educational expenses (tuition, fees, books, supplies, equipment, etc.), is considered taxable income and must be included as such on your tax return.  Notice also, that any money you receive in exchange for your services (teaching, TAing, working in your advisor's lab) is considered taxable income.

Fortunately for many grad students, it is often the practice of universities to compensate students for their TA or RAships by giving them tuition reductions.  It seems like a no-brainer that tuition reductions would be non-taxable, but that's actually not always the case.  Tuition reductions are considered "qualified" and are non-taxable if you meet the following requirements:

• You are provided the tuition reduction by an eligible educational institution

• You are a grad student providing teaching or research services to a qualified educational institution (not necessarily the one granting you the tuition reduction, interestingly enough)

Hopefully most or all of you receiving tuition reductions meet those two easy requirements, and won't end up having to pay taxes on your tuition reduction.

For a great deal further reading, check out the IRS's webpage on the matter.

Hopefully you all have to worry about taxes, because that means you got yourself some funding!  That's the glass-half-full approach at least.

Until next time, watch out for the IRS,


Casey