The Society for Mining, Metallurgy & Exploration (SME) Foundation is pleased to announce the application period for the Ph.D. Fellowship and Academic Career Development Grants will run December 1, 2016 to January 31, 2017. The program was implemented in 2015 to address the long-term sustainability of U.S. mining engineering, mineral processing and extractive metallurgy academic degree programs, and particularly the declining number of senior faculty members teaching those programs.
“The challenges associated with faculty scarcity extend from the ability of students with industry experience to successfully complete a Ph.D. degree, to newly employed faculty who are facing the difficult process of achieving tenure,” said SME Executive Director David L. Kanagy. “The dwindling number of qualified faculty at U.S. mining schools ultimately affects the number of graduates who will constitute the workforce needed to meet the growing global demand for minerals. SME and the SME Foundation have implemented this program to address and remedy the threat to our future workforce.”
Large industry supporters of the program include Freeport-McMoRan, Caterpillar Global Mining, R.G. Dewey, Kinross Gold, Scott McIntosh Fund, Seeley Mudd Fund, Royal Gold, Robert S. Shoemaker & Family. Numerous smaller contributions have been received by many other supporters. Multiple grants ranging from $60,000 to $100,000 are awarded annually. The directives of the program are:
Career Development Grant—provides assistant or associate professors with the resources necessary to achieve promotion and tenure.
Ph.D. Fellowship Grant—provides financial support to Ph.D. candidates with industry experience and a desire to pursue an academic career with the means of acquiring a doctoral degree.
For more information, visit www.smenet.org/students/grants-scholarships or email to: academicgrants@smenet.org.
