Great Program Staff and Faculty Resources
The Graduate Recruitment, Enhancement and Travel (GREAT) Program was proposed by Texas A&M’s Council of Principal Investigators (CPI), Texas A&M’s faculty research leaders, who were seeking a way to elevate graduate and professional education by recruiting more high-achieving students. The GREAT Program launched in fall 2022 and provides funding to supplement external national fellowships (multi-year and dissertation), federal training grants, and federal research grant supplements, as well as reimburses travel expenses for prospective fellows to visit our campus. Staff, faculty, and administration are encouraged to view this two-page summary of the GREAT Program components.
Through the GREAT Program, we better position ourselves to attract high achieving students to Texas A&M graduate and professional programs by offering supplemental funding for national fellows and trainees that is competitive with the nation’s top graduate schools.
Request Forms
The Graduate Recruitment, Enhancement and Travel (GREAT) Program supplemental funding request forms must be submitted by college/department/IDP staff or administrators on behalf of doctoral students awarded an eligible external fellowship. Likewise, the request form must be submitted by the faculty PI/staff/or administrators on behalf of doctoral students funded from eligible training grants or eligible federal research grant supplements.
College/department/IDP staff or administrators do NOT need to submit a request form for NSF GRFP fellows and NSF-CSGRAD4US.
- Active (tenure status) NSF GRFP Fellows -- The Grad School communicates with these fellows and posts the NSF GRFP and GREAT Program supplemental funds.
- Active (reserve status) NSF GRFP Fellows – The Grad School communicates with these fellows and their chairs to confirm faculty/department/program funding commitments and GREAT Program supplemental funding amounts. The employing department will be responsible for posting GREAT Program supplemental funds and requesting reimbursement each semester.
Request forms submitted by doctoral students will not be considered.
Recruitment Travel Awards
The GREAT program provides travel awards to faculty to bring high-achieving prospective doctoral students for TAMU campus visits. Awards are up to $1,000 per prospective student. Prospective doctoral students should be:
- A recipient of a GREAT Program eligible external fellowship; or
- A competitive candidate for a GREAT Program eligible external fellowship or GREAT Program eligible federal training grant; and
- In their final year as a undergraduate or master’s student.
GREAT Prospective Student Travel Request Form