Graduate Opportunity Program (GOP)

Education, research, and public service undergird graduate education at UCLA and reflect UCLA’s mission and values. The Graduate Opportunity Program recognizes applicants who demonstrate strong academic potential and a sustained commitment to education, research, and public service for the betterment of communities at the local, national, and international levels. Recipients of this award show strong academic preparation and a clear trajectory of contributions to education, research, and public service in their professional or scholarly fields.

Are you a prospective student? Review the eligibility criteria below and consider applying for this award.

Eligibility

Eligibility

  • Applicants must be nominated by their home department
  • U.S. citizens, permanent residents, or undocumented students who qualify for nonresident supplemental tuition exemptions under AB 540
  • PhD, DrPH, DEnv, DMA, MD or DDS degrees, and self-supporting programs are not eligible
Fellows may not work in the first term of the award

Amount

Award Amount

  • One year of funding from the Division of Graduate Education and the department
  • $25,000 award + fees/tuition + non-resident supplemental tuition (if applicable
    • Fall Quarter: $8,333 in financial support + tuition/fees, health insurance, nonresident supplemental tuition (if applicable), provided by the Division of Graduate Education.
    • Winter Quarter: $8,333 in financial support/salary in the form of an award or teaching/research assistantship + tuition/fees, health insurance, nonresident supplemental tuition (if applicable), provided by your department.
    • Spring Quarter: $8,334 in financial support + tuition/fees, health insurance, nonresident supplemental tuition (if applicable), provided by the Division of Graduate Education.
  • If awardee is in a professional degree program, the professional degree supplemental tuition is not provided by this award
Awardees may not work in the first term of the award

Apply

How to Apply

  • The deadline is the same as the deadline for your admissions application. Contact your prospective home department for any exceptions.
  • Review and complete the appropriate sections within the online admissions application, including the Personal Statement.

Accept

New Awardees: Accept Your Award

Welcome new Graduate Opportunity Program (GOP) award recipients! Please follow the steps below to ensure acceptance of your funding.  

Step 1: Complete your Statement of Intent (SIR) to register  

GOP awardees must first accept their admission to UCLA. To initiate your enrollment and access registration information, please create your UCLA Logon ID, then complete the Statement of Intent to Register and Statement of Legal Residence at MyUCLA. 

If you were previously a student at UCLA, you may log on directly to MyUCLA to complete the process. If you never had a UCLA logon, click on Create UCLA Logon/Password under the LOGIN box when you access MyUCLA.  

If you are not enrolling at UCLA, please let us know: SIR Questionnaire  

Step 2: Review and accept your GOP funding offers for the fall term from the Division of Graduate Education  

You will receive an official email from uclascholarships@fas.ucla.edu for each type of funding you have been offered: tuition/fees, financial support award, and non-resident supplementary tuition (NRST) – if applicable. You must take action to accept each component of this award. Be sure to check your spam/junk folder and consider adding uclascholarships@fas.ucla.edu to your address book. 

  • Review the offer email and click on the link that will take you to the award acceptance portal. You will have within 30 days from the date of this email to complete the acceptance process. 
  • Accept the offer in the award acceptance portal. 
  • Complete the “Post Acceptance Questions,” which serve as the terms and conditions for the award. 

You must complete these steps for each source of funding (tuition/fees, financial support award, and NRST – if applicable) to finalize your acceptance. You can expect the offer email within 1-2 weeks after you have completed the SIR process. If you fail to accept the offer within the provided time frame, the offer will be rescinded. 

The Division of Graduate Education Offers will include the awards for the Fall and Spring. Please contact your department for more information on your winter support.

If you need assistance, please contact us via  askgrad@grad.ucla.edu and include “GOP Acceptance” in the subject line of the email. You may also visit our virtual office hours on Tuesdays and Fridays, 9 am – 3 pm, via zoom.