The Randall L. and Deborah F. Tobias Center for Innovation in International Development issues calls for Research Assistance Fellows Program each fall and spring. Faculty may apply for funding to employ a research assistant for up to 10 hours per week for 15 weeks. RAs should work primarily during the semester for which they receive funding, with the ability to finish hours in the following semester or summer. This program provides IU Bloomington students with opportunities to engage in collaborative research with faculty. Preference will be given to undergraduate students, students enrolled in HLS-granted BA/MA programs, and early-stage graduate students across campus (Masters student and/or graduate students who have not yet earned candidacy status), in that order.
Call for Applications: Tobias Center Research Assistance Fellows Program
Program Details
- Program usually during the second week of classes in the fall and spring semester.
- RAs may be undergraduate students enrolled in any degree throughout the IU Bloomington campus, students enrolled in an HLS-granted BA/MA program, or early-stage graduate students enrolled in IU Bloomington degrees.
- RAs receive $15/hour for up to 10 hours of research support for 15 weeks.
- Research teams share their progress at a Fellows Program colloquium in the December after their award was funded.
Faculty Requirements
- Provide research assistant with 5-10 hours of work per week on research project related to international development
- Set weekly goals/deliverables for your RA;
- Meet face-to-face at least bi-weekly and maintain communication with your RA.
- Work with Tobias Center personnel on paperwork related to payment of RA.
- Acknowledge Tobias Center support in any related published work.
- Grantees are expected to report back to Tobias Center on use of funds by the end of the semester following the use of funds (for spring semester, by the end of fall semester and vice versa; for summer, by the end of fall semester). In general, this takes the form of participation in a Tobias research colloquium, though alternate arrangements can be made. The Tobias Center may also request a short, non-technical write-up and/ or photographs of Tobias-supported research for public consumption on our website, annual report, or social media channels.
Application Procedures
August and December applications are accepted for RA activities to be conducted in the following semester. For Spring 2023, applications will be accepted through February 6th. Applications must include:
- A research proposal of no more than 1,000 words (shorter is preferred), briefly describing the project’s content, scholarly significance, and contribution to the Tobias Center’s mission.
- A short (< one page) description of the research tasks the investigator anticipates hiring the RA to complete, along with a plan for providing the RA with relevant training to complete these tasks.
- The faculty member’s C.V.
- IF POSSIBLE (Faculty are encouraged to apply even if they haven’t yet identified an RA) A statement of interest (no longer than one page, single-spaced) from the undergraduate student the faculty would like to hire, along with the student’s resume.
Applications should be submitted through this link.
Award Criteria
The Tobias Center will decide awards based on the relevance of the research to the Tobias Center’s mission and the pedagogical value of the RA’s proposed research tasks. Applications will be reviewed by a committee composed of Members of the Tobias Center Steering Committee.
Hamilton Lugar School of Global and International Studies