The University of Illinois Chicago is honored to be the Bridge to the Doctorate program site for the Illinois Louis Stokes Alliances for Minority Participation. Bridge to the Doctorate seeks to increase the number of underserved and underrepresented students who obtain a PhD in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) fields.

Our work is inherently collaborative. Faculty and staff from across UIC—in particular, the Colleges of Medicine, Engineering, Liberal Arts and Sciences, and Pharmacy; the School of Public Health; and the Graduate College—contribute to this important endeavor. Together, they provide students with the academic preparation, mentoring, research experiences, and professional development opportunities they need to succeed in high-level STEM careers in academia and industry.

The Bridge to the Doctorate program at UIC also benefits from its connection to colleagues at other Louis Stokes Alliances for Minority Participation colleges and universities around the country. These relationships inspire students, help them to develop their creativity, and encourage them to pursue their interests and ambitions.

We look forward to meeting the next generation of applicants to the Bridge to the Doctorate program at UIC, and we are grateful to all of our on-campus and off-campus partners for the work they do to help our students succeed.

• $32,000 stipend for the first two years of doctoral study
• Full tuition and fee support
• Travel assistance for participation in regional and national research conferences
• Participation in local skills workshops
• Professional development and networking
• Bridge to the Doctorate Summer Institute

*Master’s Completed: Includes students who did not continue toward earning the PhD
**Fellows no longer enrolled: Reasons for departure from UIC include: leave of absence (2), personal/family obligations (1), lack of academic progress after first year (1), lack of academic progress after the conclusion of Bridge to the Doctorate funding (1).
***Total of two additional fellows preparing for completion of doctoral thesis defense by end of the 2017-18 academic year.

Note: the 2015-17 cohort was reduced by two due to a change in status for two fellows who are now enrolled at other institutions.

To learn more about UIC’s Graduate Diversity Programs, please visit these links:

• National Science Foundation (NSF)
• Illinois Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation (IL-LSAMP)
• Graduate Education in the Medical Sciences (GEMS)
• Medical Scientist Training Program (MSTP)
• UIC College of Engineering
• UIC Graduate College
• UIC College of Liberal Arts and Sciences
• UIC Office of Diversity