Scholarships and financial aid
The annual Wayne State University Scholarship Application period runs from Oct. 1 through March 1. Applicants will be considered for the scholarships listed below, as well as the scholarships available throughout the university, by using just one application.
Departmental scholarships
Albert Feigenson Endowed Memorial Scholarship
Award open to full-time undergraduate and graduate students majoring in music or English, with high scholastic standing and demonstrated financial need.
Christopher T. Leland Endowed Scholarship in Creative Writing
This award is established to recognize scholastic achievement, encourage continued progress and provide assistance to students in financing their education in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. To be eligible, applicants must be a full or part-time graduate or undergraduate students who exhibit achievement in creative writing.
Daniel Keyes Family Endowed Scholarship
The Daniel Keyes Family Endowed Scholarship was established in an effort to encourage future writers and educators. Full-time and part-time undergraduate or graduate students majoring in English or English with a creative writing concentration are eligible as long as they are in good standing and can demonstrate financial need.
Daniel Keyes Family Graduate Scholarships in Creative Writing
This scholarship fund is established to recognize scholastic achievement, encourage continued progress and provide assistance to students in financing their education in the creative writing program in the department of English. Applicants to the M.A. program in creative writing and current M.A. students already enrolled in the program are eligible, but previous recipients are not.
Dennis Turner Memorial Scholarship in Film Studies
Award open to full-time undergraduate and graduate students majoring in Film Studies through the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. Minimum 3.0 GPA.
Doretta Burke Sheill Endowed Memorial Scholarship
Award open to undergraduate and graduate students majoring in English literature who demonstrate high scholastic achievement, character, leadership and financial need.
Dustin Rose Memorial Scholarship
This award recognizes scholastic achievement and encourages continued progress for students in the English B.A. program. Students may be enrolled full-time or part-time at the undergraduate level.
Gilbert R. and Patricia K. Davis Endowed Scholarship for English Majors
Award open to part-time students majoring in English in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, with a GPA of 3.0 or above and a minimum of fifteen credits in residence at Wayne State University. Recipients must be Michigan residents.
Joseph J. and Mary E. Yelda Endowed Scholarship for English
Award open to full-time students who graduated from a metropolitan Detroit area high school, are majoring in English in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences and have a GPA of 3.0 or above. Awarded on the basis of academic merit and financial need.
Judith Siegel Pearson Award (Creative Writing)
In appreciation for her commitment to the study of women's literature, the Judith Siegel Pearson Award is an annual prize for the best creative or scholarly work on a subject concerning women. Judith Siegel Pearson was born in Detroit and educated at Wayne State University, where she received her B.A. (1966) and M.A. (1968), Phi Beta Kappa. She went on to receive her Ph. D. from Washington University (Missouri) and teach at the University of Missouri, St. Louis, where she became one of the first English instructors to include Women's Studies methods in her classes. This is a national award, open to writers outside of the Wayne State community. Each year, it is awarded in a different genre.
Loughead-Eldredge Endowed Scholarships in Creative Writing
Award open to advanced undergraduates and M.A. students in good academic standing who are pursuing a B.A. or M.A. in English with a concentration in creative writing.
Pearl A. Warn Endowed Scholarship in English
Award open to returning full or part-time students majoring in English with high scholastic achievement and demonstrated financial need.
Phillip Lawson Hatch, Jr. Endowed Memorial Writing Competition (Creative Writing)
This award is established to recognize scholastic achievement, encourage continued progress and provide assistance to students in financing their education in the College of Liberal Arts. To be eligible, applicants must be full-time undergraduate or graduate students who are writers working in fiction, poetry and dramatic writing. Applicants must submit a work concerning the ethnic experience.
To apply, visit WSU's writing awards portal on submittable.
Professor Arnold Goldsmith Annual Scholarship
Award open to full or part-time undergraduate and graduate students in English with demonstrated financial need. Minimum 3.0 GPA.
Stephen H. Tudor Memorial Scholarship in Creative Writing
Award open to full-time degree-seeking students majoring in English who have completed at least fifteen credits in residence and demonstrate high achievement in creative writing.
Tompkins Award (Creative Writing)
These awards have been created to encourage creative writing among Wayne State University students. A contestant may enter only one work in one of these categories: drama, verse, fiction or essay. Awards are open to any student in the English department.
To apply, visit WSU's writing awards portal on submittable.
Graduate teaching assistantships and fellowships
The English department offers several awards that provide financial aid for graduate students. All graduate students and applicants are invited to apply by filling out the English Graduate Admissions and Funding Application . All awards are allocated in January/February and begin the following academic year (i.e., August/September).
DeRoy Fellowship
This one-year fellowship offers a generous stipend, pays tuition and fees and provides benefits. The DeRoy Fellowship is intended for new students. Recipients are guaranteed a teaching assistantship at the conclusion of the fellowship as long as they are in good standing and making normal progress toward the degree. All applicants are eligible for consideration; those with an interest in Film and Media Studies are particularly encouraged to apply.
Rumble Fellowships
These one-year fellowships offer a stipend, pay tuition and fees and provide benefits. Both entering and continuing students are eligible to apply. Recipients are guaranteed a teaching assistantship at the conclusion of the fellowship as long as they are in good standing and making normal progress toward the degree.
Teaching assistantships
These continuing awards offer a stipend, pay tuition and fees and provide benefits. Both entering and continuing students are invited to apply. Awards can range from one to six years. The length of the award is determined by the number of years needed to complete the degree as determined by Wayne State University's regulations. Recipients ordinarily teach 3 courses per year. Renewal is contingent upon being in good standing and making normal progress toward the degree.
Other graduate scholarships and writing awards
The department offers a number of special scholarships and awards for registered graduate students. Due dates for submission of materials is during the winter semester and recipients are honored at a ceremony each spring. For more information, please contact the director of graduate studies.
If you are applying simultaneously for admission to the English graduate program and a teaching assistantship or fellowship distributed by the English department, it is not necessary to duplicate materials. Indicate your interest in applying for financial aid in your English Graduate Admissions and Funding Application Form.
In addition to those awards distributed by the English department, applicants are encouraged to apply for any other scholarships and aid for which they qualify. In particular, all applicants for departmental aid should also apply for the Graduate Professional Scholarship available through the Graduate School.