CCICADA Fellowship Program

CCICADA-Rutgers Fellowship Application

CCICADA offers an annual fellowship to students pursuing graduate studies at Rutgers University. The fellowship is funded with a U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) grant. Fellows receive generous financial support for 2-3 years to pursue research interests applicable to homeland security decision-making and data analysis.

CCICADA fellows may begin at the start of either the spring or fall semester in 2015. Review of applications will begin in December 2014.

We are especially interested in applicants in the fields of computer science, mathematics, operations research, decision sciences, industrial engineering, computer engineering, statistics, and the biological sciences. However, we welcome applicants from other areas of science and engineering relevant to homeland security. Preference will be given to students already engaged in homeland security activities or working with CCICADA faculty.

Graduate fellows are invited to participate in the full range of activities at CCICADA. This gives them exposure to a broad spectrum of interdisciplinary research and education programs. Specific applications of ongoing research include: stadium security, evacuation planning, natural disaster preparedness and response, resource planning and allocation, cybersecurity, information privacy, emergency alerting, social media analysis, nuclear threat detection, care for unaccompanied alien children at the borders, and immigration-application prediction.

The CCICADA graduate fellowship at Rutgers offers the following benefits for up to three years:

  • Full tuition and fees at Rutgers University;
  • $28,800 annual stipend;
  • Rutgers University health insurance;
  • Travel allowance;
  • One-on-one mentoring by CCICADA faculty; and
  • Interactions with the national laboratories and DHS centers of excellence.

To apply, you must:

  • Be a U.S. citizen;
  • Be a full-time Rutgers graduate student in a science/math/engineering discipline at the start of the fellowship, which may begin with either the Spring or Fall semester;
  • Have and maintain a GPA of 3.3 or higher;
  • Agree to do two summer internships at a national laboratory, a DHS University Center, or other relevant homeland security venue during the time of your fellowship (paid for by the fellowship if other funds are not provided);
  • Commit to work at a homeland security venue (such as DHS or a national laboratory) for one year immediately upon completing the fellowship. CCICADA will help students identify suitable positions, which may include post-doctoral fellowships at national laboratories or with DHS university centers. Members of several national laboratories that host post-doctoral programs encouraging scholarly research and publication are advisors to the CCICADA fellowship program.
  • Commit to taking an active interest in the projects and programs at CCICADA.

Fellowship application due date:  Review of the next round of applications will begin on December 5, 2014.  We will continue to accept applications until this page states that applications are “closed.”

Fellowship Application

Please read all instructions carefully before completing and submitting this application.

* = Required field

    Personal Information

    First Name*:

    Last Name*:

    Title:

    Organization:

    Street Address*:

    Address 2:

    City*:

    State*:

    Postal Code*:

    Country (if not USA):

    Primary Phone*:

    Alternate Phone:

    Email address*:

    Re-enter Email Address*:

    US Citizen? Yes
    Dual Citizen? Yes
    If yes, of what country?

    Graduate Program Information

    Graduate Program/Dept:
    I am currently enrolled in this graduate programI am accepted to begin this graduate program in September 2015

    Additional Materials

    In addition to this form, we request the following additional material to complete your application.

    Two Letters of Recommendation

    Please request that two letters of recommendation be sent to Tamra Carpenter (tcar@dimacs.rutgers.edu), with the subject line: “CCICADA Fellowship Recommendation for (insert your name)___________________”.

    If you currently have an advisor in a Rutgers graduate program in which you plan to continue, we prefer that one letter be from them.

    Recommender 1 Name*:
    Recommender 1 Email*:
    Recommender 1 Phone*:

    Recommender 2 Name*:
    Recommender 2 Email*:
    Recommender 2 Phone*:

    Transcripts and Personal Statement

    PLEASE NOTE: Upload your transcripts and personal statement by clicking on “Choose files” below.

    Transcripts: Current graduate students who have completed at least one year in their current program should submit their Rutgers transcript and transcripts from previous institutions. Otherwise, submit transcripts from all previous institutions.

    Personal Statement: Explain why you are interested in research related to homeland security and how you believe it will affect your future career. Be sure to put your name and the words “Personal Statement” at the top of the statement.

    Geographic Restrictions: Do you have any geographic restrictions that might impact potential locations for internships and/or the year of service?

    YesNo

    If yes, please explain:

    (Attach files one at a time. Files must be in Word or PDF format.)

    Transcript:
    Transcript 2:
    Transcript 3:
    Transcript 4:
    Transcript 5:
    Transcript 6:

    Personal Statement: