The Graduate School
Graduate
Dean: Mark Riley; Senior Associate Dean: Brian Barton; Associate Deans: Debra Fadool, Adrienne Stephenson; Assistant Dean: Ashley Jarvis
The University's first graduate degree was a Master of Science (MS) degree in psychology that was awarded to Barbara Elizabeth James in 1903. Boris Gutbezahl, a student in the Department of Chemistry, was awarded the University's first Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) degree in 1952. The mission of the Graduate School is to advance the quality and integrity of graduate education. The Dean of the Graduate School is responsible for the broad oversight of all graduate programs. Florida State University offers an extensive range of graduate and professional programs through the fifteen colleges. Graduate education at FSU includes 112 master's degrees, 11 specialist and advanced master's degrees, and 70 doctoral degrees. Professional degrees are also offered in Law, Nursing, and Medicine. In addition, a variety of opportunities are available for students interested in advanced degrees, including interdisciplinary degree programs, joint graduate pathways, dual degrees, and combined bachelor's/master's degree pathways. Florida State University also offers several online academic degree programs and graduate certificate programs. Details about these programs can be found in the appropriate department chapter of this Graduate Bulletin, and online at The Graduate School Website at https://gradschool.fsu.edu.
According to the Chronicle of Higher Education, FSU is among the nation's top-producing institutions of US Fulbright Scholars and Students. Record numbers of total undergraduate and graduate students received Fulbright awards in 2022-2023(9), 2020-2021(9) and 2019-2020(10). Moreover, FSU graduate students have consistently received over $3 million in nationally competitive fellowships and awards since 2016, setting a record during the 2021-2022 academic year with over $5.2 million in external fellowships and awards.
Offices, Centers, and Special Programs
The Office of Graduate Fellowships and Awards, a unit of The Graduate School, assists current graduate students in identifying and applying for external fellowships, grants, and awards. The office provides professional development support to introduce opportunities to explore external fellowships and awards, teach strategies for creating competitive award applications, and discuss relevant campus policies and procedures related to fellowship funding. Additionally, students may seek one-on-one guidance from OGFA while identifying and applying for various award mechanisms. For more information, call (850) 645-0850, e-mail ogfa-info@fsu.edu or visit the Website at https://ogfa.fsu.edu.
The Frederick L. Jenks Center for Intensive English Studies (CIES) provides intensive instruction in the English language to non-English speakers. Its primary target audience is international scholars who are preparing to pursue degree work in American colleges and universities. In addition, CIES evaluates the English-speaking proficiency of FSU's international Teaching Assistants (TAs) through its administration and scoring of the SPEAK test. Along with this assessment, the Center provides credit-bearing classes for those prospective international TAs who need further development of their speaking proficiency in English. CIES also offers a seven-week Certificate in Teaching English as a Foreign Language for FSU students or any in the community who wish to go abroad to teach English. For further information, call (850) 644-4797 or visit the Website at https://cies.fsu.edu.
The Fellows Society is an interdisciplinary scholarly community consisting of graduate students who hold competitive national fellowships and awards, and University-wide fellowships administered by The Graduate School. The mission of the Fellows Society is to have Fellows participate in interdisciplinary professional development opportunities, including the annual spring Fellows Forum, the Induction and Networking Session, monthly research sharing luncheon series, and other special events. These initiatives are designed to expand the intellectual horizons of its members through interdisciplinary engagement, leadership development, and community service. For more information, visit https://fellowssociety.fsu.edu.
Fellowships, Assistantships, and Awards
The Graduate School administers several internal University-wide fellowship and award programs to support or recognize the achievements of new and returning graduate students. In addition, many graduate students receive financial support (stipend and tuition waivers) as Teaching Assistants, Research Assistants, or Graduate Assistants. Interested students should contact The Graduate School, departments, and administrative units directly for more details and information.
Each Spring, FSU graduate students are recognized for their outstanding contributions in teaching, research and creative endeavors, and leadership at the Celebration of Graduate Student Excellence. Awards include the University's Outstanding Teaching Assistant Awards, Graduate Student Research and Creativity Awards, Graduate School Student Leadership Award, FAMU Feeder Fellowship, McKnight Doctoral Fellowship, McNair Scholars Fellowship, Legacy Fellowship, Leslie N. Wilson Delores Auzenne Assistantship, and external nationally competitive fellowships and awards.
Details of these programs, with updated deadlines and due dates, are provided each year on the Graduate School Website at https://gradschool.fsu.edu.
Professional Development
Professional development, improving and increasing one's skill sets, is important at every stage of graduate education and beyond. For example, improving one's oral and written communication skills and developing an understanding of ethical behavior in research and creative endeavors are types of professional development. At FSU, numerous professional development opportunities are offered by academic departments/programs, the Career Center, and the Graduate School.
The Preparing Future Faculty (PFF) Graduate Certificate Program The Preparing Future Faculty (PFF) Graduate Certificate program assists Florida State's doctoral students (and others headed toward academic careers) prepare for future faculty work. Through participation in coursework, workshops/seminars, trainings, and mentoring, PFF Fellows increase their awareness of expectations for faculty performance and of resources available to aid in scholarly careers, and build their readiness to address research, teaching, and related demands of faculty life. Goals include enhancing the placement of FSU students in university positions and supporting the finest scholarly accomplishments of FSU's graduates in their future careers. The PFF Graduate Certificate Program is an academic certificate program that is offered by The Graduate School and requires 12 graduate credit hours. The program has five components: Research Preparation, Teaching Preparation, Career Development, Mentoring, and Portfolio Development.
To earn the PFF Graduate Certificate, doctoral students must complete a minimum of twelve graduate hours in the areas of Teaching Preparation, Research Preparation, and Career Development. Events are either discipline-specific or campus wide. All FSU doctoral students are eligible to participate. Candidates who meet specified requirements, often involving participation over a two-year period, are awarded a completion certificate, but PFF events are open to all graduate students regardless of whether they intend to earn a graduate certificate.
FSU's PFF Graduate Certificate program coordinates with the national Preparing Future Faculty initiative of the Council of Graduate Schools and the Association of American Colleges and Universities, involving 45 doctoral degree-granting institutions and more than 300 partner institutions.
To learn more about FSU's PFF program, check with your academic department/unit and visit https://gradschool.fsu.edu/academics-research/preparing-future-faculty-pff.
The Office of Graduate Fellowships and Awards (OGFA) serves as an integral part of the professional development of graduate students. Through participation in individual and group meetings, workshops, departmental presentations, and ongoing mentoring and advising, graduate students engage in applying for competitive external fellowships and awards as a holistic process that includes but is not limited to the development of writing and communication skills in support of early career development and academic portfolio building. The Office of Graduate Fellowships and Awards offers virtual and face-to-face interactions throughout the academic year during the fall, spring, and summer semesters. Several OGFA workshops qualify for PFF credit. The director of the OGFA also serves as the university liaison for the McKnight Doctoral Fellowship Program. The McKnight Doctoral Fellowship is designed to address the underrepresentation of African American and Hispanic faculty at colleges and universities in the state of Florida by increasing the pool of faculty with PhD degrees to teach, conduct research, and serve in administrative roles at the university level. To learn more about the Office of Graduate Fellowships and Awards, visit https://ogfa.fsu.edu, call (850) 645-0850, or email ogfa-info@fsu.edu.