We have a limited number of competitive teaching and research assistantships each fall semester. Opportunities also may exist with faculty members who have research assistantships associated with grants.

The availability of graduate teaching and research assistantships varies from year to year. Faculty often have assistantship funds from grants for specific projects. There are a few department-funded research and teaching assistantships. Consideration for assistantships is given only after the prospective student’s application has been approved by the graduate student recruitment committee.

Some of our department assistantships include:

• Student Health Insurance with Blue Cross Blue Shield of NC (Student Blue (RA or TA Plan)
• U.S. Citizens: In-state tuition; out-of-state tuition for U.S. citizens (out-of-state students are expected to establish NC residency by the end of their first academic year)
• International Students: Out-of-state tuition (international students are expected to complete their graduate studies within the Graduate Student Support Plan timeline)*
• Student assistantship stipend

Students must apply to one of our graduate programs through the NC State Graduate School to be considered for one of our departmental assistantships. We cannot evaluate applicants for assistantships prior to formal application to one of our programs.

*For more information regarding the benefits of the Graduate Student Support Plan (GSSP), please review the GSSP Handbook.

We offer several fellowships and scholarships to qualified students.

• Entomology Teaching Fellowship – Provides opportunities for doctoral students to gain significant teaching experiences.
• NSF-IGERT Ph.D. Fellowship –  For students who have backgrounds in both the natural and social sciences who want to continue interdisciplinary work for their graduate studies.
• William M. Keck Center for Behavioral Biology
• Urban Entomology Graduate Fellowship
• Structural Pest Management Training Facility Assistantship – works at the training facility helping to prepare insect training collections and have the opportunity to participate in training programs.  Contact Dr. Michael Waldvogel to check on availability.
• NCPMA – North Carolina Education Foundation Scholarship –  A $1,500 scholarship from the NC Pest Management Association awarded annually to a graduate student in the indoor urban entomology program.

The Entomology Teaching Fellowship is an opportunity for doctoral students in entomology to gain significant teaching experience. It is a two-semester program accommodating two doctoral candidates per academic cycle. These experiences can be used to complete the requirements for participants in the Preparing The Professoriate Program There are two options for the fellowship based on the course to be taught.

• ENT 201, Insects and People, is a sophomore level science course for non-science majors taught by Dr. Clyde Sorenson. Under this option, during the fall semester, the incumbent will prepare for his/her teaching experience through observation in the classroom, participation in university teaching workshops, and development of pedagogy for the teaching semester. The student will then teach a small (ca. 22-student) section of ENT 201, designated ENT 201Q, for the University First Year Inquiry program, which is limited to freshmen.
• ENT 110, General Entomology, is a core entomology course for the College of Agriculture and Life Science’s Agricultural Institute, which offers associate-level degrees in practical aspects of agriculture and horticulture. Under the ENT 110 option, the candidate will assist and observe the instructor for the course in her/ his first fall semester in the program, and then will instruct the course under the direction of Dr. David Orr the following fall semester. The candidate will be expected to participate in university teaching workshops during the observation/assistance semester. Selection for participation in the program will be competitive, with the selection process initiated during each spring semester; a stipend enhancement will be provided to the successful incumbent during the teaching semester.

For application guidelines and information, contact Dr. Clyde Sorenson.

The David R. Nimocks, Jr. Fellowship was established by Mr. David Nimocks III and supports graduate training in the development and application of the principles of Integrated Pest Management in the structural, human-built environment. Fellows will conduct research on any of the major structural pest complexes or in environmental sciences related to structures and of concern to the pest management industry. The research supported under these Fellowships will be designed to contribute to our body of information on urban pests and to develop strategies for management of urban pest populations and long-range improvements in and sustainability of urban pest management.

Projects may include, among others:

• Alternative pest management strategies, such as Biological Control
• IPM in structures (schools, animal production, etc.)
• Chemical communication
• Regulation of reproduction
• Regulation of food intake, foraging behavior, and optimization of baits
• Population genetics
• Pesticide resistance and its management
• Impact of urbanization on arthropod communities

The fellowships are available on a rotating basis to students with strong academic and/or research credentials.  Potential candidates should:

• Contact faculty in the urban structural entomology program (shown below) to discuss your research interests and the availability of the fellowship.
• Submit an application for admission to the department graduate program.
• Include in your application for admission a letter expressing interest in the Indoor Urban Entomology Fellowship and research topic(s) in this area.
• For application information, contact Dr. Wes Watson, associate department head of the Department of Entomology and Plant Pathology.

Other Urban Entomology inquiries:

• Dr. Coby Schal
• Dr. Aram Mikaelyan
• Dr. Jules Silverman
• Dr. Michael G. Waldvogel

College and University Financial Aid

Students who cannot secure an assistantship through the department can apply for college and university financial aid

• CALS Scholarships
• University Financial Aid Website

Outside Funding

Each year, 2-4 graduate students succeed in obtaining funding for grant proposals that they prepare and submit to agencies including NSF, USDA, NIH, DOD, etc., as part of  the requirement for ENT 510 – Writing Proposals in Agriculture, Biology, and Ecology which is offered each fall semester.  For more information about ENT510, contact Dr. Hannah Burrack.