| Sources | A "scholarship" is awarded to pay tuition or school related expenses and is based on merit: academic success, a history of service, athletic abilities, being a member of a minority... (the last one is controversial for some...). A scholarship can be applied for, or it might just be awarded by some other nomination process.
A "stipend" is more like a fixed salary, often paid in one or a few lump sums, that can accompany a scholarship or fellowship, etc. A "stipend" can be compensation for being a teaching assistant or research assistant, or it might just be in addition to some scholarship and require no sort of labor on your part. Stipends cannot be applied for... they automatically come with something else.
A "grant" is merely a sum of money awarded for some specific purpose, e.g. to conduct a research project, to write a book, to design educational materials, etc. Typically, all funds have a specified and pre-approved purpose such as purchasing necessary materials and equipment. The grant is not intended to pay your personal expenses. But some portion of the grant may be set aside to compensate those working on the project, as people, of course, have to get paid for their labor! But that would have been approved in an application process. These grants are always applied for and have very elaborate and often complex application requirements... very tedious!
[But a "grant" can also take on another meaning in a different context: A "grant" can also be a "need-based" scholarship intended for tuition or related expenses, as opposed to a "merit-based" scholarship. Need-base merely means that you and your parents cannot afford to pay tuition and/or related expenses. For some reason, these are called "grants". There is a federal application to apply for such grants. If you meet the rquirements, you are automatically awarded grants by your university and the government.]
A "fellowship" means that you awarded some combination of a stipend, a grant or scholarship for a set amount of time and entails that you are a member of some elite group. Some PhD students, for example, receive prestigious "dissertation fellowships" to complete their dissertations. You would receive a scholarship for all tuition and a stipend to pay your cost of living. Likewise, a professor might receive a "faculty release fellowship" to complete a book or article, and would likewise receive some stipend to pay for living costs. The basic idea is that due to the promise of you research, you are supported financially for a set amount of time so that you can work exclusively on that project. Sometimes you are required to conduct your research at a particular institution (archive, library, lab) and sometimes you are even required to live in a house with the other "fellows"... a "research community". Almost always, you have obligations such as giving updates and presenting the research you completed during the time frame. Fellowships are applied for.
One thing you forgot, that is actually part of Fullbright and in American academia in general, are the "Assistantships": like a fellowship in that you are awarded a scholarship and a stipend, but you have to perform some duty, such as assisting a professor in the classroom or with a research project, teaching a class yourself, conducting your own research, editing or assitisting in editing a journal, etc. Assistants are graduate student (and a some universities undergraduate) employees. Assistantships are not applied for directly (except programs like Fullbright); typically you applye to enter a MA or PhD program, and if you are accepted in the program, you are eligible for an assistantship, but this does not guarantee you will get one, because they are always limited. |
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