Tuition & Aid

Graduate Scholarships

The Graduate Studies at Central administer two additional scholarship awards. One, the Graduate Academic Awards and the Outstanding Scholar Award program occurs in the fall semester. In the spring semester, the CCSU Foundation through Graduate Studies accepts applications for the second award, the Graduate Student Association Scholarship. Click on either of the two links to obtain information and application forms. The amount of each scholarship will be contingent upon the amount of funding made available by the University Scholarship and Loan Committee each year.

Other scholarships are administered through the Office of Institutional Advancement are available at www.ccsu.edu/scholarships, or you may call the office of Institutional Advancement at 860-832-1748.

The IBP (Institute for Broadening Participation) would like to remind students of upcoming graduate fellowship and undergraduate scholarship deadlines. Many programs have application deadlines in the coming weeks and months!

Students can browse 77 different fellowship and scholarship listings.

Or use our advanced search feature to narrow down your selections by program.

Students can also sign up to receive notifications about programs.

GSA Scholarships

The Graduate Student Assembly provides funding for graduate research projects and educational conferences that enable graduate students to expand on their research, participate in professional development opportunities, and support their program’s graduate community. 

Eligibility & Requirements

  • You must be a matriculated graduate student in good standing (GPA 3.0 or above).
  • You are allowed one scholarship per academic year.
  • You can apply for and receive funding multiple times, but preference will be given first-time applicants.
  • You must submit documentation of your expenses at the time of application (actual or estimated). Submissions without documentation will not be funded.
  • The GSA scholarships are for research or conferences only.
  • If applying for a research scholarship and your research includes either human or animal subjects, you must have prior approval or be in the process, like having a protocol number) from the Institutional Review Board (IRB) or the Institutional Animal Care and Use Council (IACUC) . Additionally, a faculty member/advisor must serve as the Principal Investigator. Any applications that do not have necessary paperwork from either IRB or IACUC cannot be considered.
  • You must be logged into the Central system using your student email in order to complete your application.
  • Applications submitted after the deadline will not be considered. 

Funding maximums: 

Research $500

Conference: $1000

Applying for a Conference/Research Scholarship

Please complete the application in its entirety and attach required documents. Applications that are not fully completed or do not conform to the instructions below will not be reviewed. 

Where an essay is required, please be thorough, concise, and detailed. Please explain how funding will benefit your thesis, your program, your academic development, and the graduate community at Central. You must have your name and student ID number on your document(s).

All documents must be uploaded in .pdf format.

Please be considerate when uploading documents and other materials by giving some sort of identification in the document/material name. (Jones_hotel cost or Jones_Essay, etc.)

Getting Funded and Payment Disbursement

All awards go directly into your Central student account. If you are a student who utilizes direct deposit for your return of excess funds via the Bursar’s Office, your funds will be posted directly to your bank account, otherwise a check will be made out to you and sent to your address on file. Please note: If you owe a balance to the university, the scholarship will apply directly to your outstanding balance. The GSA does not facilitate reimbursement.

PLEASE GIVE UP TO 30 WORKING DAYS TO RECEIVE FUNDING

Please note: the graduate studies office CANNOT facilitate payment on any of the awarded funding.

Apply here:

RESEARCH SCHOLARSHIP SPRING 2025

CONFERENCE SCHOLARSHIP SPRING 2025

DEADLINE FOR APPLYING IS 02/07/2025

Notification of successful awards: 02/21/2025

Questions? Email gradstudies@ccsu.edu

The Graduate Student Assembly provides funding for graduate student societies to expand their community and develop enriching co-curricular involvement opportunities within their degree programs. Funds for Graduate Societies can be used for operations, programs, promotions, food, and other things throughout each semester. 

Eligibility & Requirements 

  • Each society must be actively meeting and have a current president, secretary and faculty advisor.
  • Society president and treasurer must be matriculated students in good standing.
  • Faculty and/or students can apply for funding.
  • Societies can only submit one budget per academic year.
  • Society budgets cannot exceed $1500
  • Please fill out the application completely and be specific as possibly when describing the funding you are seeking. 
  • You must be logged into the Central system using your student email in order to complete your application.

Getting Funded and Payment Disbursement

If funded, the award will be transferred to your society banner account. Societies can work with Central’s Accounts Payable department to create purchase orders for goods and services. Graduate Studies also has a GSA p-card that can be used for certain purchases but we cannot order goods, make reservations, pay vendors directly, or reimburse purchases made by individuals. 

Apply here: GSA Society Budget

Fall 2024 application deadline is 02/07/2025. 

No late applications will be considered. 

Award notifications: 02/21/2025.

Incoming Students

Central awards merit-based scholarships to select newly admitted graduate students as part of the admission process in accordance with the criteria for each of the scholarship programs. No scholarship application is necessary to be considered for an admission-based merit scholarship, but a FAFSA may be required in some cases.

To be eligible for financial aid, a student must be matriculated at Central.

Graduate Academic Awards are presented each fall to one distinguished student in each academic program. Departments may nominate the same student to be considered for the Outstanding Scholar Award. There will be one outstanding scholar from each school in the university. The criteria established by the Graduate Studies Committee are:

Must have completed 12 credit hours in an approved graduate planned program of study.

  1.  
    1. Must be in attendance at least one or more additional semesters following the semester of nomination.
    2. Shall be registered as a full or part-time student in good standing for a minimum of three (3) credits in the spring or fall semester of the academic year of the nomination.
    3. Must be pursuing either a Master's Degree, Sixth Year Program or the Ed.D. in Educational Leadership.
    4. Must demonstrate minimum cumulative grade point average of 3.50 on the graduate transcript.
    5. Must have completed a minimum of nine (9) credits of graduate level courses in an approved planned program of study.
    6. Must have received no more than one B in courses in the approved planned program.

For the Academic Award: Must include signatures from both the advisor and an instructor at Central with whom the nominee has completed a graduate level course.

For the Outstanding Scholar Award: Must be nominated by department or program faculty and include two letters of recommendation from the adviser, instructor, graduate program director, or department chair that address how the nominee demonstrates as many as applicable of the Graduate Tenets.

Please note:

Graduate students are limited to one graduate Academic Award during their course of graduate study at Central.

American Association of University Women (AAUW) International Fellowship

Women graduate students and scholars are encouraged to apply for an American Association of University Women (AAUW) International Fellowship! The deadline for 2017-18 awards is December 1st and quickly approaching.
Who may apply: Women pursuing full-time graduate or postdoctoral study in the United States who are not U.S. citizens or permanent residents.
Funding: $18,000 - $30,000
Deadline: December 1st

Forté Foundation is a non-profit consortium of leading companies and top business schools working together to launch women into fulfilling, significant careers through access to business education, opportunities, and a community of successful women.

More Information on Scholarships