Waffarn Family Maternal Child Health Endowment
Fellowship details
The Waffarn Family Maternal Child Health Endowment provides financial support for doctoral research on maternal, fetal, and pediatric health. It offers support to Ph.D. students who demonstrate outstanding academic achievements and career goals in the above areas.
Award background
The Waffarn Family Maternal Child Health Endowment honors the memory of Dorothy Waffarn, who was a Nurse Educator and Pediatric Nurse practitioner at UC Irvine Medical Center. One of her last professional positions was as a Nurse Practitioner at the Orange County Jail in Santa Ana, where she helped incarcerated women maintain healthy pregnancies.
$5,000 award to be used as a stipend for Summer quarter. It may be renewed for a total of two years, subject to review of academic progress. Renewals require a summary of research activities at the end of year one.
Applicants must meet the following criteria:
- Have a minimum graduate-level UCI GPA of 3.7 (at least 3 quarters of graduate coursework completed at UCI)
- Satisfy the minimum eligibility criteria for fellowships as well as additional criteria below
- Be a current, full-time doctoral student in good academic standing (i.e., not past academic program’s maximum time-to-degree at the time of nomination; no incompletes; within normative time to degree)
- All STEM and non-STEM fields are eligible, including Public Health, Criminology, and Nursing
- Engaged in current research on maternal and/or child health (Possible areas include stress in high-risk pregnancies or premature birth; effects of incarceration, immigration, economic status, or climate change on fetal or child development and outcomes.)
- Demonstrate academic achievement
Students apply directly. Be prepared to provide the following information:
- Applicant Biographic Statement (300 word maximum)
- Include, where applicable, undergraduate university and previous degrees, research interests, current projects, honors, work experience, outside interests, and any special characteristics or activities.
- Applicant Research Statement (500 word maximum)
- Description of your research as it relates to maternal/child health
- Future Plans & Impact Statement (300 word maximum)
- Statement that speaks to your plans for the future and the potential impact of this award
- Current Curriculum Vitae
- Letter of recommendation from your faculty advisor/mentor
- Letters may be confidentially submitted using the Letter of Recommendation Upload Form
- Letters should not address personal circumstances or financial need
- Letters should address the applicant’s role in their research, academic qualifications and any noteworthy characteristics or qualities they exhibit
- Students should review the terms and conditions to ensure that they are eligible to receive fellowship or scholarship funding before applying.
- For students already receiving financial aid, acceptance of additional funding may affect their overall financial need-based support package. In such cases, students are strongly encouraged to consult with the UCI Office of Financial Aid and Scholarships.