Tinker Field Research Grants Guidelines

The Tinker Field Research Grant supports master's, doctoral, and professional school students
conducting preliminary fieldwork in Latin America or Iberia, providing them with the
opportunity to establish professional and academic contacts, assess research sites, and refine their
projects. M.A. candidates may research masters theses or Masters Projects; Ph.D. students may
carry out preliminary research for dissertations. This award is not intended for dissertation
research. Financial support covers international airfare and very modest in-country transportation
expenses.
While in the field, grantees submit blog entries to the CLACS blog, noting advances in their
research projects and networking with interested colleagues. Upon return from the field, students
participate in Brown Bag workshops to share the results of their research.
*Summer awards contingent upon funding from Tinker Foundation

Eligibility
1. Recipients may be masters or doctoral students.
2. Grants are to assist graduate students conducting field research in countries or regions
where they have little or no prior research experience. Foreign nationals with little or no
previous field research experience in their own countries may use the grant for research
within their own countries.
3. Tinker funding is available only for Spanish and Portuguese-speaking countries of Latin
America and the Caribbean (excluding Puerto Rico), as well as Spain and Portugal.
Students working on Puerto Rico, Belize, Indigenous languages, Latinos in the U.S., or
Anglophone or Francophone Caribbean are unfortunately not eligible for Tinker grants.
Students working in those areas may still submit an application and the committee will
consider funding exceptional proposals from other funds, if available.

Restrictions
This grant does not support the following:
1. Long-term field research on dissertations.
2. Money is not available for internships, only independent research projects will be funded.
Grant money cannot be used for conference or course registration, or for intensive
language workshops or field schools.
3. Grants awarded to international students might be subject to federal taxes. For more
information on tax treatment of non-tuition grants for non-resident aliens, view IRS
document "Forms and Publications: Withholding on Specific Income," which can be
found on the Tinker Research Grant webpage on the CLACS website.

Evaluation
1. Scholarly excellence. Student must be in high academic standing, and possess necessary
technical skills to carry out the project (eg. language and research skills)
1. Viability of research, including a suitable research site, affiliation with appropriate
institutional contacts, academic depth and relevance of the problem to be explored, sound
research methods.


Reporting and Other Requirements
1. All awardees will provide contact information (email, phone, fax) for the duration of their
time in the field. This can be submitted prior to travel, or within one week of arriving in
the field.
2. Awardees will submit a one page report of their work by the following September 1.
This report should include title, research question addressed, data gathered, significance
to Latin American and Iberian studies, and future research plans. Additionally, all
expended funds within the budget will need to be accounted for and documented with
appropriate receipts and submitted by this date. Failure to submit this report two weeks
after return to the U.S. may cause encumbrance and delay of the payment of fall stipends.
3. Awardees will provide a final report of 5-10 pages based on the research experience by
October 1.
4. While in the field, all awardees will submit blog entries consisting of a 250 word
narrative and a photo to CLACS every other week for the duration of their project to be
included on the CLACS blog.
5. Awardees will participate in a public presentation of their research project in October or
November of the same year of their grants in order to share experiences and improve
future research efforts.

Application Checklist
The following materials are required in order for your application to be considered:
1. Completed Application Cover Sheet (available for download from the Tinker Grants
webpage on the CLACS website).
2. A brief but carefully drafted research proposal of approximately five pages, describing
the work to be undertaken, proposed methodology, technical competence of student and
academic and professional significance of the project, as well as the duration and
itinerary of the project. It must include the names of one or more research centers with
which you may affiliate while conducting field work.
3. Concise CV.
4. Two letters of recommendation, one of which is from a sponsoring member of the faculty
who agrees to supervise your research.
5. A copy of your graduate transcripts. (It does not have to be a sealed transcript, but it
should be up-to-date.)
6. A budget. Awards will be limited to the costs of round-trip air fare (lowest priced option
on a US carrier) and in-country travel expenses. Direct travel and related research
expenses (e.g. per diem, film, supplies, food, lodging, copies) are allowed under this
grant, but non-travel expenses are limited to 25% of the total award per applicant.
**Therefore, your total proposed budget cannot exceed the amount represented by total
travel costs plus 25% of that amount.**
7. If applicable, please note that adequate provisions have been made for protecting the
privacy and safety of human subjects involved in the research. Formal clearance from the
Institutional Review Board (IRB) is essential to receive funding once a grant is awarded.
If working with non-humans, the application proposal must demonstrate compliance with
animal protection rules and regulations.


To Apply
Please send all application materials to:
Amalia Cordova, Assistant Director
NYU/CLACS, 53 Washington Square South
#4W, New York, NY 10012
Please note: A mandatory meeting is held for all grantees sometime in the spring. This meeting is
mandatory for all awardees; failure to attend jeopardizes the grantee's award. At this meeting
awardees will discuss each project briefly, provide tips for overseas travel and relations with hostcountry institutions, and discuss reporting requirements and fellowship obligations.