Stipends, Fellowships and Research Assistantships

GSSW offers scholarship, stipend, and research assistantship opportunities to help supplement the cost of your education. This page covers application information, course requirements and more.

woman working with children

Child Welfare Scholarship

The Colorado Child Welfare Scholars Consortium (CCWSC) is part of a statewide effort to invest in the education of selected students to attract qualified social work professionals dedicated to the provision of equitable and inclusive services within public child welfare in Colorado. Students who are awarded Child Welfare Scholarships agree to commit themselves to public-sector employment. They will be required to complete a specified term of “payback” employment in a Colorado county or tribal department of human/social services in a child welfare position serving Title IV-E eligible children and their families in exchange for receiving the Child Welfare Scholarship. View the full program description.

  • Scholarship amount: $12,000 – $14,000
  • Field education requirement: Foundation or Concentration internship in a Colorado public child welfare (county) agency
  • Eligibility: Denver Campus, MSW@Denver, Four Corners and Western Colorado MSW students with a Colorado residence
  • Post-Graduation Requirements: For every year the scholarship is received, following graduation, awardees are required to work one year serving child welfare populations in a Colorado department of social/human services or with a tribal nation within Colorado.
  • Application process: Next application cycle will begin in Winter quarter- January.
  • Pathway Preference: Child Welfare
  • Contact: Christa Doty 

Child Welfare Scholarship Team

 
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Christa Doty

Christa Doty

Senior Program Associate

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Research Assistantships

Although research interests are diverse, GSSW faculty members, students and research partners share something in common: a focus on advancing social justice. GSSW lives this mission every day through research and scholarship that spans social work practice, policy and system reform. With a research assistantship, you can be part of this vital work. If you are interested in pursuing a research assistantship, view our active research project page to identify a project that fits your interest. From there, reach out to the affiliated faculty member directly for position availability.

All paid DU Research Assistant positions are posted on the DU job board, PCO.

If you would like assistance connecting with research opportunities, applying for research assistant positions and/or reaching out to faculty, please contact your Career Development Advisor for assistance (gssw.careers@du.edu).

CLIMB@DU Scholarship

Deadline: November 8, 2026

The University of Denver Graduate School of Social Work is pleased to offer a limited number of scholarships to eligible Masters of Social Work (MSW) students who demonstrate financial need and are pursuing a social work career providing behavioral health care in primary care behavioral healthcare settings, serving medically underserved communities (MUCs), rural or Tribal communities or a Health Professional Shortage Area (HPSA) designated area,

Funded by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), CLIMB@DU scholarships will cover half of awarded students’ tuition, up to $40,000 as well as the costs of required textbooks and tutoring support up to five (5) hours. In addition, the scholarship will cover the cost of university health insurance for eligible students.  

We encourage you to apply for this special recognition and merit award if you meet the following criteria.

  • Eligibility Criteria
    Applicants will receive full consideration for the CLIMB@ DU scholarship if they meet and check each individual criterion listed below.  
     
    • Must reside in Colorado or the Four Corners Region [1].
    • Must be economically disadvantaged based on FASFA data and must have a current financial need.
    • Must currently be or will be [2] a GSSW concentration year or advanced standing student completing my concentration year internship in a setting that integrates behavioral health into primary care, is a MUC and/or is in a rural or Tribal community or in a designated HPSA designated area in Colorado or the Four Corners region [3] .
    • Must intend to pursue a career in clinical social work providing behavioral healthcare services in primary care, medically underserved, and/or rural or Tribal communities or in a designated HPSA designated area.
    • Must plan to work in Colorado or the Four Corners Region after completion of your MSW Program.
    • Must agree to provide DU-GSSW with post-graduate information upon request.
    • Must be enrolled as a full-time student and registered for at least 8 credits each quarter while receiving the scholarship.

    [1] Students residing in the Four Corners Region must live within a reasonable driving distance of GSSW’s MSW program in Durango, CO.
    [2] During the grant period scholarship to be awarded.
    [3] https://data.hrsa.gov/topics/health-workforce/shortage-areas/

     
    *** Only if all the criteria above are met should you proceed with the remainder of the application.
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