From academic scholarships to internship programs and research support, the Herbert College of Agriculture provides students with a variety of funding opportunities to enhance their academic experience and promote their professional growth.
Freshmen Scholarships
For incoming freshmen, to be considered for competitive scholarships, you must submit your admissions application by the November 2 early action deadline. To qualify for institutional scholarships, you must apply by December 15. Your application information will be forwarded to the college. Awards are typically made in mid to late spring.
Continuing Scholarships
For incoming sophomores, juniors, and seniors, to be considered for general university and the Herbert College of Agriculture scholarships, you must complete the Continuing Student Undergraduate Scholarship Application by March 1. This application opens in January each year.
For questions, please contact Cassie Johnson.
The purpose of the Herbert Scholars Program is to support the education and training of future scientists and business professionals in agriculture and related disciplines through experiential learning outside of the classroom. These experiences will consist of, but are not be limited to, internships, service learning opportunities, and applied laboratory experiences. The intent of the program is to defray expenses for students completing out-of-town/state or international experiences, which necessitate travel costs or need to pay rent in an additional location other than Knoxville. Students are selected through a competitive process conducted by the Herbert College of Agriculture, receiving awards ranging from $1,000 to $7,000.
Eligibility
Eligible students will be majoring in a degree program of the Herbert College of Agriculture. Students who have not previously been recognized as a Herbert Scholar will have priority. The experience must be paid, take place outside the Knoxville area, and last at least 10 weeks. Students can not use this funding for tuition, and must return for at least one semester following the conclusion of the experience to serve as a Herbert Scholars spokesperson.
Deadline
Applications are reviewed by the Herbert Scholars committee once the application deadline has been surpassed (e.g. March 1). If a student has not officially secured their internship by the deadline, the committee recommends noting it within the application. The funds will be distributed on the condition of securing the internship. Should the committee decide to extend the deadline, another round of review will take place.
Application Process
The Herbert Scholars application becomes available toward the start of the spring semester. Students will be notified via email, social media, and the Herbert Highlights newsletter. Those who miss the deadline may apply for the Gibbs Scholars Program.
*Less funding is available through the Gibbs Scholars Program. It is therefore ideal to first apply for the Herbert Scholars Program.
Successful Candidates
Students should answer all questions within the application thoroughly. If a student’s application misses critical information, this could jeopardize receiving the scholarship.
For questions, please contact Maci Heffelfinger.
The Jerry Gibbs Student Enhancement fund provides unique experiential learning opportunities for undergraduate students in the Herbert College of Agriculture. Experiences may include internships, service learning opportunities, applied laboratory experiences, and professional educational opportunities in order to facilitate the education and training of future scientists and business professionals engaged in agriculture and its related disciplines.
Eligibility
Eligible students will be majoring in a degree program of the Herbert College of Agriculture. Students who have not previously been recognized as a Gibbs Scholar will have priority. Paid experiences will be considered over unpaid. Students can not use this funding for tuition.
Deadline
Applications are accepted and reviewed on a rolling basis once the application officially launches. The program is first come first serve, meaning funding will be awarded to students until the endowment is depleted for the year.
Application Process
The Gibbs Scholars application becomes available shortly following the Herbert Scholars Program. The Gibbs Scholars Program is ideal for students who missed the opportunity to apply for Herbert Scholars.
Successful Candidates
Students should answer all questions within the application thoroughly. Requests with cost-sharing from other on- or off-campus sources will receive priority.
For questions, please contact Maci Heffelfinger.
The Peter Howard Wine and Ag Tourism Scholarship Program offers opportunities to University of Tennessee, Knoxville students (preferably Herbert College of Agriculture students) interested in pursuing studies in wine, viticulture, and agricultural tourism.
Through this program, undergraduate students receive financial support to pursue industry internships in the areas of grape production, winemaking and marketing, agricultural farm recreational activities such as bed and breakfast, and general farm recreation for profit.
Who is this scholarship for?
UT Knoxville students who intern in the wine, viticulture, and agricultural tourism industries are eligible. Preference is given to students enrolled in the Herbert College of Agriculture.
How to Locate an Internship
Prior to applying for the scholarship, students must first locate a paid internship in the wine, viticulture, and agricultural tourism industry. Internships in Tennessee are preferable, but out-of-state and international internships are also supported. For assistance, students can contact Dr. DeLong, the Center for Career Development & Academic Exploration, or Herbert’s employer engagement and career development coordinator.
Steps for Accessing this Scholarship:
- Locate a paid internship opportunity in the wine, viticulture, and agricultural tourism industry.
- Contact Dr. DeLong to coordinate an action plan and develop an educational component of the internship.
- Secure employment at respective company.
- Confirm eligibility for scholarship with Dr. DeLong.
How the Scholarship Works
The scholarship amount is tied to the action plan developed with Dr. DeLong. Scholarships average $3,000 – $5,000. They are awarded in the semester in which the internships are completed, with the exception of summer internships, which will be awarded in the following fall semester. Special arrangements to pay for travel and lodging are allowed if the student’s internship is out of state or out of the continental United States.
Can you get credit for this?
Students have the option of receiving credit hours for their internship if they enroll in an approved internship course. For example, students can enroll in AREC 492 (Off-Campus Internship) so long as they complete the requirements of this course.
For questions, please contact Karen DeLong at kdelong39@utk.edu.
The FCMA Enrichment Program provides funding to make travel, competition, and club activity more accessible for students to enrich the college experience as well as to increase interaction between the credit and financial services industry and students.
How to Apply
Email Dr. Karen DeLong the following information:
- Name of the student, club, or group making the request
- The specifics of the request (i.e. how you propose to use the funds)
- The approximate dollar amount of the request
- Guarantees that all other possible funding sources have been exhausted (e.g. a Travel Funding Request Form has already been submitted if applicable)
- Preference is given to requests for events that are most closely aligned with the mission of this program, which includes “increasing the interaction between the credit and financial services industry and students”
Financial considerations play a key role in the decision to study abroad. The Herbert College of Agriculture, the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, and external organizations offer study abroad scholarships for a wide range of student needs. Explore your options and see how doable studying abroad can be!
For questions, please contact study abroad coordinator Kyra Barrier.
Herbert Experiential Research Opportunities (HERO)
The HERO Program supports Herbert undergraduate students pursuing experiential research opportunities. Funding is awarded on a semester-by-semester basis. Faculty mentors must submit the HERO application for their undergraduate researcher to receive an hourly stipend and supported travel and/or equipment costs.
Requirements:
- The student must be enrolled in a Herbert College of Agriculture major and remain in good academic standing.
- The student must provide a deliverable from their research (e.g. presentation at a conference, manuscript for publication, extension fact sheet, final technical report, honors thesis, etc.).
- The faculty mentor and lab will provide instruction and training in appropriate research theory and methods, analysis, technical writing, outreach, and presentation skills.
- One award per faculty mentor per calendar year is permitted.
- The HERO application must be submitted by the specified deadline.
Decisions will be made shortly after the application deadline, and funds will be disbursed as soon as the student is on payroll.
For questions about the program and the current HERO cycle, please contact Adam Willcox.
The Herbert College of Agriculture and AgResearch each provide $5,000 fellowships to assist with recruiting high-quality PhD students. AgResearch awards are provided throughout the year—interested faculty should contact Dr. Xin or Dr. Rials.
The Herbert College of Agriculture will award at least seven fellowships for new PhD students matriculating in the College at the start of fall semester, 2025. The actual amount may be more if we receive less than seven qualifying nominations. The award will be provided annually up to four years to the recipients assuming satisfactory degree progress. Student recipients will receive half of the funding at the beginning of fall semester, 2025; the second half will be awarded at the beginning of spring semester, 2026. Satisfactory progress will be determined by departmental annual reviews of the students.
Conditions:
- Nomination due dates: January 15 and March 1, 2025
- New PhD student beginning Fall semester 2025
- Must be on 0.5 FTE graduate assistantship
- Not available to students receiving an AgResearch Fellowship
Process
Department heads, or their designee (e.g., graduate coordinator), nominate prospective graduate students by submitting the nomination form and a letter of nomination as a single PDF by either January 15 and March 1, 2025. We anticipate awarding roughly half the awards in January and the other half in March. Nominations submitted through the graduate coordinator can be placed on the shared Google drive site: HCA FY26 Grad Fellows.
Nominations received after March 1 may be accepted if awards remain unclaimed.
Departments may submit for multiple nominees. The Dean’s Office, working with other assistant/associate deans of Herbert-AgResearch-Extension, will make selections. If awards remain after that time, or a selected student does not accept the award, the College will either consider other nominees or raise the amount of the award.
Departments should use the following language when communicating to potential students about the Herbert College of Agriculture Graduate Fellowship Award: “You are offered a part-time assistantship, and we’ve nominated you for a Herbert College of Agriculture Graduate Fellowship award of an additional $XXX/yr. Decisions on the Herbert College of Agriculture Graduate Fellowship Award will be announced by early February/mid-March.” A template letter will be provided by the College.
Departments may indicate that a student may accept an assistantship offer at any time but are not required to do so prior to April 15.
Award Criteria:
*Note: GRE scores are no longer part of the criteria
- Quality of Masters or Bachelors degree institution
- GPA
- Previous awards
- Presentations
- Publications
- Teaching and/or research experience
- Patents
- Grants
- Other creative works (e.g. mass media products, designs, etc.)
- One additional letter beyond the nominator’s letter may be submitted (1-page limit each)
If you have any questions, please reach out to John Stier at jstier1@utk.edu.
The Herbert College of Agriculture supports professional development for students in several ways, including travel. Travel support is provided for clubs/organizations, judging/competitions, leadership/professional development, conferences, and other ventures. In many cases, matching funds are desired. Student travel requests should show a requested match from another source(s). Submit the Travel Request Form to be considered.
Graduate students in need of travel support should seek assistance from the Graduate Student Senate.
For questions, please contact Jay Cooley.
Deadlines to Remember:
- November 1 – Early Action Deadline (for competitive scholarships)
- December 15 – Regular Admissions Deadline (for institutional scholarships)
- March 1 – Continuing Scholarship Deadline
- March 1 – Herbert Scholars Deadline
