The graduate program Sustainable Forest Management is housed within the Forest Engineering, Resources and Managment Department (FERM.) FERM provides a variety of funding opportunities for both incoming and continuing graduate students. Each January, our Area of Concentration (AoC) Fellowship Committee selects students from all areas of concentration for nomination for Departmental Fellowships, College of Forestry (CoF) Fellowships, Laurels Tuition awards, and other financial opportunities.
Graduate Assistantships
Graduate Assistantships are employment-based appointments where students, in exchange for their service, receive a stipend, tuition coverage (called remission), and an institutional contribution toward mandatory fees and a health insurance program only available to graduate assistants. Graduate appointments may hold research (GRA) or teaching (GTA) assignments. Additional GA benefits are listed online here.
A summary of College of Forestry available and archived graduate assistantships can be found on our Graduate Job Listings website. TA positions are offered for a single term, are based on course enrollment, and are typically offered on a reccurring (annual) basis. Archived positions will show opportunities that may be available in future terms/years in an effort to help students "plan ahead" and design a fully- or partially-funded graduate program.
GRA positions are generally at the discretion of the student's major professor, but in some cases, the student's GRA supervisor may be a different faculty member.
It is not uncommon for a student to receive both GRA and TA funding to fully finance their graduate program.
FERM Fellowships and CoF Scholarships
The FERM Department Head makes the final decision for a select number of departmental fellowships for incoming graduate students based on recommendations from the AoC faculty leads, while the College of Forestry (CoF) Scholarship Committee decides on College Scholarship awards based on student nominations submitted by each CoF department. New students should submit their graduate application by December 31 of the preceding year for full consideration. Review the SFM Admissions webpage for additional information.
Incoming graduate students
New students who wish to be considered for funding support should indicate so on their web application. Areas of Concentration (AoC), as well as AoC faculty, may assist the applicant in deciding on a major professor under a specific AoC within the Sustainable Forest Management graduate program. Once an application has been accepted for admission, all incoming graduate students who apply by the primary consideration deadline are evaluated for departmental fellowships, CoF scholarships, and other OSU Graduate School awards. Nominations will be selected by the AoC faculty leads depending on the overall strength of applications. GPA, as well as experience and letters of recommendation, are considered during the award process.
The FERM Department Head will decide how many departmental fellowships are awarded and which incoming applications are submitted to the CoF Scholarship Committee for College scholarship awards. The number of departmental fellowships varies from year to year and is dependent on funding availability. Applicants may receive both a departmental fellowship and a CoF scholarship.
Continuing graduate students
Continuing graduate students in the College of Forestry can apply for scholarships via ScholarDollars. The application for the 2025-26 academic year will be open between November 1, 2024 and March 16, 2025.
Tuition Support and Other OSU Funding Opportunities
A variety of other partial funding opportunities are available to graduate students, including tuition-based awards, scholarships, and other small offers.
Laurels Tuition Scholarships
When available, these awards are administered by the FERM Department on behalf of the Graduate Scholarships unit within the Office of Graduate Education. Laurels awards are tuition remission resources, awarded as full or partial tuition scholarships to pay new students' resident or non-resident graduate tuition charges. These awards do not cover tuition fees and are not accompanied by a stipend.
Selection recipients are chosen by the FERM Department Head and AoC Lead faculty committee. Funding may be awarded for one to three quarters (fall, winter, spring terms), beginning in the fall.
Graduate Student Awards
In addition to the Laurels scholarship, other graduate student funding opportunities are offered throughout the year by the Office of Graduate Education. Occasionally, these awards are allocated to new students, but most frequently, continuing graduate students are more competitive. For questions and eligibility, contact the department graduate coordinator.
College of Forestry Awards
Review the College of Forestry Graduate Programs Funding page for a list of all funding opportunities within the College of Forestry. Popular examples are identified below.
Experiential Learning Funds
The College of Forestry offers graduate (and undergraduate) students experiential learning funds to support participation in domestic programs or activities that advance their education, professional development, and/or leadership experience. This may include conferences, workshops and seminars, or similar activities related to their area of study.
Hardship Grant
The College of Forestry has limited funds available to support graduate (and undergraduate) students who find themselves in an unexpected financial hardship. The College of Forestry hardship grant is intended to support students during these difficult times, where there is a clear need, and the hardship is impacting learning or ability to register and make progress towards degree completion.
Conference Travel and Research Support
The FERM Department also offers opportunities for current graduate students to receive funding for traveling to conferences and/or to support their research programs:
J. Richard Dilworth Graduate Award
Awards from the memorial fund are available to graduate students in FERM and in the Department of Forest Ecosystems and Society (FES), and are given in priority of scholarship, student travel, and teaching grants. See website for more information.
Lee Harris Travel Grant
The Lee Harris Travel Grant Committee offers quarterly grants exclusively to FERM graduate students. If you are attending a conference or plan to in the near future, this is a chance to receive additional funding! For more information, contact the committee Lee-HarrisTravel.Grant@oregonstate.edu.