Terms and Conditions of Accepting the Fellowship

Students who are awarded one of UC Irvine’s fellowships must adhere to all university policies and procedures including, but not limited to the following.  Please note that GSR and ASE appointments are subject to separate eligibility requirements.

1. Fellows must maintain satisfactory academic progress in accordance with university policy and individual departmental and/or program requirements.  Students should consult their departments and/or programs for more information.  University-wide requirements on satisfactory progress serve only as minimum standards to be met.  Individual departments and/or programs may have stricter requirements upon which final determination for satisfactory academic progress will be based. If students are employed, they are also required to satisfactorily perform the duties of the job. The Graduate Dean reserves the right to cancel a fellowship should the fellowship recipient not maintain satisfactory academic progress in accordance with university policy and individual departmental or program requirements orshould the fellowship recipient receive an incomplete (I) or any unsatisfactory grade. When accepting a fellowship, students agree to meet and maintain the minimum eligibility criteria for fellowships:
   1. Must be continuously enrolled as a full-time graduate student (at least 12 units of graduate or upper-division credit per quarter) in accordance with university policy.
   2. Must achieve a letter grade of B, S, or above for all coursework during each of the three most recent enrollment quarters.
   3. During the three most recent semesters of enrollment, you can earn no more than two incomplete (I) grades.
   4. Maintain a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher during each of the three most recent quarters of enrollment.
   5. Fellowship recipients must maintain satisfactory academic progress and remain within their program’s approved time-to-degree limits during the award period.
2. Employment restrictions may conflict with fellowship eligibility. If employment is desired for any period of time while on fellowship, please note that all or part of the fellowship support may be forfeited. Please reach out to your fellowship administrator to confirm the terms and conditions of your fellowship.
   1. Exceptions may be granted for required University appointments, including research appointments that are mandated as part of a student’s academic program or funding framework.

3. To receive institutional funding from state funds, students must have US citizenship, lawful permanent residency, F-1 visa status, or AB540 status. Those without AB540 status are restricted to specific funding categories with a prohibition to receive any University of California administered fellowships. Please note that eligibility requirements are subject to change based on California legislative updates. For further information, please refer to  funding sources for AB540 and or DACA or  UCOP  Financial Aid Student Resources 
4. All fellowship recipients who are United States citizens or permanent residents of the United States of America are encouraged to complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) on a yearly basis. For recipients with AB540 status, please complete the California Dream Act Application. For international students, please complete the  Glacier Record.  Any change in student status that may affect this award, such as change of major, change from full-time to part-time enrollment, degree change, academic leave of absence or withdrawal should be reported immediately to the Graduate Division and to your Fellowship Administrator. Such changes may affect fellowship eligibility.
5. Fellowships may affect need-based awards obtained through the UC Irvine Office of Financial Aid and Scholarships.In such cases, Financial Aid awards may be adjusted to account for the total amount of support received from all university sources.  Awardees are responsible for verifying all terms and conditions pertinent to all other awards upon acceptance of a fellowship.
6. Acceptance of any other type of financial resource during the fellowship tenure (other fellowship, internship, gift, grant or otherwise) may affect a student’s fellowship eligibility. All such cases must be reported to the UC Irvine Graduate Division Fellowship coordinator prior to the student’s acceptance of such offers.  Failure to do so may result in immediate termination of all UC Irvine fellowship awards. Please note that this reporting requirement does not apply to eligible GSR appointments, which are governed separately under the applicable bargaining unit contract.
7. All students are required by the IRS to report stipend payments not used for fees, books, supplies, or equipment required for courses as income for tax purposes. UC Irvine does not provide United States citizen or permanent resident students with an end of the year statement of fellowship income, comparable to the W-2, for reporting employment income.  Students must keep their own record of all their financial documents for tax purposes.
8. All fellowship awardees are strongly encouraged to meet with their fellowship administrator at least once a year throughout their academic program.
9. Fellows are members of both society and the university community, with attendant rights and responsibilities.  Fellows are expected to comply with all laws of the State of California, as well as with university policies and campus regulations, including those pertaining to student conduct.  Failure to do so, as determined by the Graduate Dean and/or the Dean of Students may be cause for cancellation of the fellowship.
10. These terms and conditions are subject to change as a result of action by the administration of the University of California, Irvine and/or UC Regents based on action by the federal and/or state government, including as to funding. The funding commitment stated in any fellowship award letter may be modified, reduced, or rescinded, and is not guaranteed.
11. The UC Irvine Graduate Dean reserves the final right in determining a student’s eligibility for UC Irvine programs. All decisions made by the UC Irvine Graduate Dean are final.
12. Your acceptance of a fellowship authorizes UC Irvine to publish (newsletters, reports & brochures) and disseminate information regarding your accomplishments to other educational institutions.

The University of California, Irvine subscribes to the April 15 Resolution policy established by the Council of Graduate Schools:

Acceptance of an offer of financial support*, such as full tuition support, a fellowship, traineeship or assistantship, completes an agreement that both student and graduate school are expected to honor. In that context, the conditions affecting such offers and their acceptance must be defined carefully and understood by all parties. By signing this Resolution, universities commit to a fair and equitable process that allows prospective students time to receive and consider offers of financial support in the best interest of that student.
Students admitted for the upcoming fall term are under no obligation to accept or decline offers of financial support prior to April 15; earlier deadlines for acceptance of such offers violate the intent of this Resolution. In those instances in which a student accepts an offer before April 15, and subsequently desires to withdraw that acceptance, the student is encouraged to notify the program as soon as possible as a courtesy, but the student is not required to formally decline the offer until at least April 15. If the student withdraws the acceptance after April 15, the student must inform the program in writing that they are withdrawing from or declining the offer of financial support that they previously had accepted. *This Resolution applies to offers of full tuition support, fellowships, traineeships, and assistantships only, not offers of admission.