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The Toulouse Dissertation Award annually recognizes individuals who have completed dissertations that represent original work and make an unusually significant contribution to a discipline. The dissertation should be competitive nationally among the top 10% within the field. The competition will recognize up to four individuals per year, assuming the selection committee finds the dissertations of sufficient quality to merit distinction.

The top student in each field will receive a $1,000 award from the Toulouse Graduate School and might have their materials forwarded to the Council of Graduate Schools for the CGS/ProQuest Distinguished Dissertation Award competition.

Fields of Competition

Biological and Life Sciences: Biological Sciences and Environmental Science.

Humanities/Fine Arts: English, Philosophy, History, Music History, and those aspects of the social sciences that employ historical or philosophical approaches.

Mathematics, Physical Sciences and Engineering:  Mathematics, Statistics, Computer Sciences, Engineering, Systems Analysis, Material Sciences, Chemistry, Earth Sciences, Physics, Geology and Astronomy.

Social Sciences:  Anthropology, Art Education, Business, Economics, Education, Information Science, Learning Technologies, Music Education, Theory, Musicology, Political Science, Psychology, Public Administration, and Sociology.

If a dissertation is multi-or interdisciplinary in nature, a significant portion of the work must be comprised by one of these fields.

Award Eligibility

The effective date of the degree awarded, or the completion of doctoral degree requirements and dissertation, must lie in the period of July 1, 2023 to July 31, 2025, inclusive, for each nominee selected. Such degree award or completion is to be confirmed by the institution's graduate dean or other administrative officer responsible for doctoral degree programs. Following successful verification of degree completion, the Toulouse Graduate School may nominate applicants to the Council of Graduate Schools (CGS)/ProQuest Distinguished Dissertation Award competition, if the TGS selection Committee considers the dissertation to represent original work that makes an unusually significant contribution to the disciplines in the fields of competition for that year.  For this reason, application materials must be submitted by the deadline noted below.

Application Deadline

May 1st, 2024 at 11:59 P.M. Central Daylight Time (CDT).

Application Submission

Students must apply for consideration online. Students will need to be admitted into a program and have a registered UNT EUID. Students without an EUID must contact their academic department.

Students must include the following with their submission:

  • An abstract of the nominee’s dissertation (not to exceed 10 double-spaced pages). Appendices containing nontextual material, such as charts or tables, may be included as additional pages.  All pages should be numbered, and each should bear the name of the nominee.

  • Three letters of recommendation, evaluating the significance and quality of the nominee’s dissertation work. One of these letters is to be from the nominee's dissertation supervisor, another from a member of the nominee's dissertation committee, and the third from a person of the nominee's choice.

  • The nominee’s curriculum vitae (not to exceed five pages).

Disclaimer: All materials must be submitted prior to the application deadline. Incomplete applications will not be reviewed.