Computational Social Science Scholarships: Complete Guide
Computational social science is one of those fields where the best funding is spread across political science, sociology, economics, public policy, survey research, data science, and methods training. Because of that, the strongest verified matches are not only classic scholarships. This guide includes scholarships, fellowships, dissertation grants, paper prizes, and funded research or training programs that make real sense for students working at the intersection of data, code, and social questions.
I kept this list to 28 instead of forcing 30. That gave me a cleaner, more accurate page with live official links and better-fit opportunities.
January
1) APSA Ralph Bunche Summer Institute
Why It Slaps: This is one of the best early-pipeline opportunities for students who want to move from undergraduate study into serious research in politics, race, governance, and quantitative social science. For computational social science students, the real value is that it is not just money. It is training, mentorship, graduate-school preparation, and exposure to research questions that matter in democracy, representation, and public life. If your version of computational social science leans toward political behavior, public opinion, civic data, or policy analysis, this is a heavyweight opportunity.
Amount: Fully funded summer institute; APSA says it prioritizes full funding, though a per-student dollar amount is not publicly listed.
Deadline: January 25, 2026 for the 2026 cycle.
Apply/info: APSA Ralph Bunche Summer Institute
2) AEA Summer & Scholarship Programs (AEASP)
Why It Slaps: If your computational social science work touches economics, causal inference, policy evaluation, labor, education, or market behavior, AEASP is a monster opportunity. It combines academic prep with real funding support, and it is especially useful for students who want stronger quantitative foundations before graduate school. This is the kind of program that can sharpen your methods profile and also make you more competitive for future research opportunities. For students who like data but want their work tied to social outcomes, this is a very smart fit.
Amount: Eligible participants receive a $3,250 stipend upon successful completion; the program also says scholarship support can cover tuition, fees, books, travel, and living expenses.
Deadline: January 31, 2026.
Apply/info: AEA Summer & Scholarship Programs
3) Alpha Kappa Delta Student Member Research Travel Grant
Why It Slaps: This one is smaller, but it is practical. Computational social science students often need to present posters, papers, or early findings at sociology meetings, and those costs add up fast. If you are doing social network analysis, computational demography, text analysis in sociology, or survey-based quantitative work, this grant can help you get your research in front of people who matter. Small travel support can sometimes create the exact conference moment that leads to grad-school advice, collaborations, or a stronger CV.
Amount: Up to $600 per student; maximum $1,800 per chapter per year.
Deadline: January 31, 2026 for the winter cycle.
Apply/info: AKD Student Member Research Travel Grant
February
4) Harry S. Truman Scholarship
Why It Slaps: This is a top-tier national scholarship for students who want public service impact, and that makes it especially strong for computational social science students interested in policy analytics, governance data, civic technology, program evaluation, or public-sector research. It is not narrowly branded around coding, but the fit is excellent when your research is pointed toward solving real public problems. The scholarship also carries serious prestige, which can help with graduate admissions, fellowship competitions, and internships.
Amount: Up to $30,000 for graduate study.
Deadline: February 3, 2026.
Apply/info: Harry S. Truman Scholarship
5) Russell Sage Foundation Dissertation Research Grants
Why It Slaps: If you are already in a doctoral pipeline and your computational social science work is tied to inequality, mobility, race, work, education, or social institutions, this is one of the best-fit research grants on the board. Russell Sage funds serious social science, and the dissertation program is built for students who need money to actually do the work. That can mean data acquisition, fieldwork, survey expenses, research support, or time to finish a project with real policy relevance. For advanced students, this is the kind of funding that can turn a strong dissertation into a publishable one.
Amount: Up to $15,000.
Deadline: February 3, 2026.
Apply/info: RSF Dissertation Research Grants
6) AAPOR Seymour Sudman Student Paper Competition
Why It Slaps: Computational social science lives on good measurement, and this opportunity sits right in the survey research lane. If your work involves polling, questionnaire design, public opinion, measurement error, sampling, survey experiments, or opinion data analysis, this competition is a natural fit. It is especially good for students who want credibility in empirical social research and need a paper-based award that shows they can do more than just run code. Recognition in the AAPOR ecosystem can carry real weight in survey, policy, and political behavior circles.
Amount: Public award page does not list a cash amount for the 2026 cycle.
Deadline: February 28, 2026.
Apply/info: AAPOR Awards
7) Alpha Kappa Delta Student Member Research Travel Grant (Spring Cycle)
Why It Slaps: The spring cycle gives students another shot at travel support if the winter deadline did not line up with their conference season. That is helpful for computational social science students whose papers often hit regional meetings, graduate symposia, or methods conferences later in the academic year. If your goal is to build visibility and start collecting academic signals that matter, this is a sharp little funding tool. It is not glamorous, but it is exactly the kind of practical money students actually use.
Amount: Up to $600 per student; maximum $1,800 per chapter per year.
Deadline: February 28, 2026 for the spring cycle.
Apply/info: AKD Student Member Research Travel Grant
March
8) Alpha Kappa Delta Undergraduate Student Paper Competition
Why It Slaps: This is one of the better undergraduate opportunities if your computational social science work is already producing a real paper. Students doing statistical sociology, social inequality analysis, digital behavior research, computational demography, or other evidence-heavy projects can use this competition to turn coursework or thesis work into a credential. The added travel support makes it more than a line on a résumé. It creates a pathway to present your work and get taken seriously early.
Amount: First place $500 plus up to $1,000 travel; second place $250 plus up to $1,000 travel; third place $100 plus up to $1,000 travel.
Deadline: March 1, 2026.
Apply/info: AKD Undergraduate Student Paper Competition
9) Udall Undergraduate Scholarship
Why It Slaps: At first glance this looks more environmental and tribal-policy focused than computational, but it can be a very smart fit for students using data science to study environmental justice, public lands, climate governance, community health, or Indigenous policy questions. Computational social science is often strongest when it is attached to a meaningful domain, and Udall rewards exactly that kind of mission-driven trajectory. For students who want to combine analysis, public service, and socially important research, this one can hit hard.
Amount: $7,500 scholarship.
Deadline: March 4, 2026.
Apply/info: Udall Undergraduate Scholarship
10) Data Science for Social Good Summer Fellowship
Why It Slaps: This is one of the most on-the-nose fits for computational social science in the entire list. The whole point is to use data science on real public-interest problems, which is basically the dream setup for students who want their modeling, coding, and analysis skills pointed at society instead of just business metrics. It also gives you a portfolio-friendly experience because you are not just studying methods in theory. You are applying them to problems that matter. That kind of signal is gold for grad school and mission-driven employers.
Amount: Paid fellowship; the program says the stipend is designed to cover travel, housing, and living expenses.
Deadline: March 6, 2026 for the 2026 cycle.
Apply/info: Data Science for Social Good Fellowship
11) APSA Centennial Center Research Grants (Spring)
Why It Slaps: This is a strong methods-and-research support option for students and scholars whose computational work sits in politics, elections, institutions, public opinion, governance, or civic behavior. The amount is not huge, but that is exactly why it works. A lot of computational social science projects need relatively modest money for software, data, archives, travel, or a research assistant, not a giant full-ride package. This grant is built for those practical research costs that often decide whether a project gets done well or stalls out.
Amount: Up to $2,500 per grant.
Deadline: March 15 each year.
Apply/info: APSA Centennial Center Research Grants
April
12) Alpha Kappa Delta Graduate Student Paper Competition
Why It Slaps: Graduate students in computational sociology and adjacent social science fields can use this to turn a strong seminar paper, conference paper, or early dissertation chapter into something that gets broader attention. The competition rewards substantive research, and the attached travel money makes it more useful than a simple certificate-style award. If you are trying to build a serious research identity before going on the job market or applying for bigger grants, this is exactly the kind of mid-level recognition that helps.
Amount: First place $500 plus up to $1,000 travel; second place $250 plus up to $1,000 travel; third place $100 plus up to $1,000 travel.
Deadline: April 15, 2026.
Apply/info: AKD Graduate Student Paper Competition
13) Columbia Data Science Institute Scholars Program
Why It Slaps: This is not a classic scholarship, but it is a paid research opportunity that fits computational social science beautifully if you are eligible. Students work on mentored projects, which is exactly the kind of applied experience that helps bridge the gap between coursework and real research. For students interested in policy, public-interest AI, digital society, health data, or human behavior modeling, this kind of project-based paid work can be more valuable than a small scholarship check. It builds skills, evidence, and credibility at the same time.
Amount: Paid; compensation varies by project rather than using one fixed award amount.
Deadline: Fall 2026 student application window ran April 27 to May 10, 2026.
Apply/info: Columbia DSI Scholars Program
May
14) Udall Native American Graduate Fellowship
Why It Slaps: For students doing computational social science connected to Indigenous governance, environmental policy, public administration, data justice, or tribal community outcomes, this is one of the sharpest mission-aligned awards out there. The fellowship is small in number but strong in value, and it supports graduate-level development in a space where policy and evidence matter deeply. If your research is quantitative but rooted in tribal or Native policy questions, this is the kind of opportunity that feels truly built for your lane.
Amount: Up to three fellowships of $25,000 each.
Deadline: May 1, 2026.
Apply/info: Udall Native American Graduate Fellowship
15) Pi Sigma Alpha Howard Penniman Scholarships for Graduate Study
Why It Slaps: This is a very clean fit for computational social science students who come through political science and want help funding graduate study. If your work leans into elections, public opinion, comparative politics, political economy, institutions, or policy analytics, this scholarship can support the next step without requiring you to pretend your research is something else. It is also one of the more straightforward awards on the list, which is nice. Clear purpose, clear amount, clear timeline.
Amount: $2,000 each; up to five scholarships.
Deadline: May 1, 2026.
Apply/info: Howard Penniman Scholarships
16) Pi Sigma Alpha Nancy McManus Washington Internship Scholarship
Why It Slaps: Computational social science is not only about academic research. It is also about using data and analysis inside real institutions. That is why this internship scholarship is worth keeping on the page. For students who want DC policy exposure, government analytics, legislative data work, or research-adjacent public service experience, this can help cover the move from classroom theory into the practical world. It is especially useful for students whose long-term goal includes civic tech, policy analysis, or public-sector data roles.
Amount: $2,000 each; five scholarships.
Deadline: May 1, 2026.
Apply/info: Nancy McManus Washington Internship Scholarship
17) APSA Diversity and Inclusion Advancing Research Grants for Early Career Scholars
Why It Slaps: This is one of the better targeted grants for researchers whose work studies underserved communities and underrepresented groups using political science methods. Computational social science often shines when it can combine data, measurement, and social relevance. This grant rewards exactly that kind of work. If your research uses text data, survey data, administrative data, or quantitative methods to study inequity, representation, or political inclusion, this is a high-value, high-fit option.
Amount: $2,000 to $2,500.
Deadline: May 3, 2026.
Apply/info: APSA Advancing Research Grants – Early Career Scholars
18) APSA Summer Centennial Center Research Grants
Why It Slaps: This is a practical research-money award for political scientists who need support for data collection, fieldwork, archives, conference or workshop work, or other concrete research costs. Computational social science students often underestimate how helpful a modest grant can be when it pays for the exact thing slowing a project down. If your research pipeline needs software, travel, datasets, or collaborative support, this is worth serious attention. The best part is that it lines up with real research tasks rather than vague professional development language.
Amount: Research grants up to $2,500; conference and workshop support up to $10,000.
Deadline: May 15 each year.
Apply/info: APSA Summer Centennial Center Research Grants
June
19) APSA Doctoral Dissertation Research Improvement Grants (DDRIG)
Why It Slaps: This is a major fit for advanced computational social science researchers in political science. The award size is meaningful, and the program is designed to improve dissertation research rather than just sprinkle a little money on top. If your dissertation uses computational methods, large-scale data, experiments, archival datasets, or fieldwork tied to politics and governance, this can be a game-changer. It is the kind of funding that lets you level up the quality of the project instead of simply surviving the process.
Amount: $10,000 to $20,000; APSA says it intends to award roughly twenty to twenty-five grants yearly.
Deadline: June 1, 2026 for the 2026 cycle.
Apply/info: APSA Doctoral Dissertation Research Improvement Grants
20) APSA Fund for Latino Scholarship
Why It Slaps: This is a strong targeted opportunity for students and scholars working on Latina/o politics, representation, public opinion, participation, institutions, or related political questions. For computational social science students, it is especially useful because even a modest award can unlock research travel, conference attendance, or a targeted project expense. It also rewards substance. This is not random general-aid money. It is tied to research and professional growth in an important area of political science.
Amount: Most travel and research grants are $500; in exceptional cases, grants can go up to $1,000.
Deadline: June 15 each year.
Apply/info: APSA Fund for Latino Scholarship
October
21) NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program (GRFP)
Why It Slaps: GRFP is one of the biggest long-game funding wins for students headed into research-heavy graduate study. Computational social science applicants sometimes skip it because they assume it is only for hard science or engineering. That is a mistake. Social sciences are part of the competition, and students with strong quantitative training, compelling research questions, and a clear graduate trajectory can absolutely be in the mix. This is not just money. It is prestige, flexibility, and a huge signal to departments and future funders.
Amount: $37,000 annual stipend plus $16,000 cost-of-education allowance for each year of support.
Deadline: Deadlines vary by field, generally mid-to-late October.
Apply/info: NSF GRFP
22) Fulbright U.S. Student Program
Why It Slaps: Fulbright is a standout option for computational social science students whose work benefits from international data, field research, comparative politics, migration, education policy, public health, or cross-national social analysis. It is especially powerful if your work needs a global angle or on-the-ground research context. The awards vary a lot by country and project, but the brand carries major academic value. For students thinking beyond domestic datasets and wanting a truly international research story, this can be huge.
Amount: Award amount varies by country and grant type.
Deadline: October 6, 2026 at 5:00 p.m. Eastern for the 2027–2028 competition.
Apply/info: Fulbright U.S. Student Program
December
23) Horowitz Foundation for Social Policy Grants
Why It Slaps: This is one of the cleanest, best-fit grants for social science research on the whole list. If your work tackles social policy, inequality, education, labor, health, race, or institutions with strong empirical methods, this belongs on your shortlist. It is especially attractive for computational social science students because it funds dissertation-style research that actually needs resources. The foundation is squarely in the social-policy lane, so you do not have to twist your project into a different identity to be taken seriously.
Amount: $10,000 total; typically $7,500 up front and $2,500 after project completion.
Deadline: December 1 each year.
Apply/info: Horowitz Foundation Grants
Seasonal or cycle-based opportunities worth tracking
24) APSA Diversity Fellowship Program
Why It Slaps: This is a strong pathway award for students moving toward or through political science PhD study, especially when their research centers race, ethnicity, gender, disability, LGBTQ politics, Indigenous politics, or related issues. That makes it very relevant for computational social science students whose work uses quantitative or computational methods to study power, inequality, and political behavior. The program has both a fall cycle for future doctoral applicants and a spring cycle for early-stage PhD students. It is a smart one to track every year, even if the current cycle is closed when you land on the page.
Amount: Fall cycle awards $5,000 over two years; spring cycle is a one-time $2,000 award.
Deadline: Seasonal; the official 2026–2027 spring and fall cycles are shown as closed on the official pages.
Apply/info: APSA Diversity Fellowship Program
25) ICPSR Clifford C. Clogg Scholarship
Why It Slaps: This is a killer methods-training fit for computational social science students in sociology and related fields. ICPSR is one of the best-known places for quantitative methods training, and this scholarship specifically supports participation in that ecosystem. If your project needs better statistics, data analysis, or methodological depth, a fee-waiver-style scholarship like this can be more useful than a generic small cash award. It buys access to skill-building that can change the quality of your research for years.
Amount: Covers the registration fee for a single General Session of the ICPSR Summer Program.
Deadline: 2026 application deadline has passed; ICPSR says to check back in December 2026 for 2027 scholarship information.
Apply/info: ICPSR Clifford C. Clogg Scholarship
26) ICPSR Henry “Hank” Heitowit Scholarship
Why It Slaps: This is another strong ICPSR option for students who want advanced quantitative training and already know that methods work matters to their future. Computational social science students often win by stacking skills over time, and ICPSR can be a major part of that. Returning to high-level methods training with scholarship support is a smart move if your research is getting more technical and you want to go beyond the basics. It is a very practical investment in your toolkit.
Amount: Covers the registration fee for a single General Session of the ICPSR Summer Program.
Deadline: 2026 application deadline has passed; ICPSR says to check back in December 2026 for 2027 scholarship information.
Apply/info: ICPSR Henry “Hank” Heitowit Scholarship
27) ICPSR Owen Scholarship for Research on the International Assessment of Student Achievement
Why It Slaps: This one is especially interesting for students whose computational social science work touches education, comparative education policy, international testing, or cross-national student outcomes. The scholarship is narrow, but that is exactly why it can be valuable. Narrow awards usually mean less generic competition and stronger alignment for the right student. If your work uses education datasets to answer social questions at scale, this is a great specialized option to know about.
Amount: Covers the registration fee for a single workshop.
Deadline: 2026 application deadline has passed; ICPSR says to check back in December 2026 for 2027 scholarship information.
Apply/info: ICPSR Owen Scholarship
28) ICPSR Sara Miller McCune Scholarship
Why It Slaps: This is a great fit for students doing empirical or methodological social science who want more than vague encouragement and actually need high-quality training access. For computational social science students, that matters a lot because your edge often comes from method depth, not just topic choice. If you want stronger quantitative chops in a respected training environment, this scholarship is the kind of quiet opportunity that can pay off big. It is not flashy, but it is very real.
Amount: Supports attendance in the ICPSR Summer Program; the scholarship page indicates registration-fee support rather than a fixed cash award.
Deadline: 2026 application deadline has passed; ICPSR says to check back in December 2026 for 2027 scholarship information.
Apply/info: ICPSR Sara Miller McCune Scholarship
FAQs
Are there many scholarships specifically called “computational social science scholarships”?
Not really. The field is too interdisciplinary for that. The best matches are usually hidden inside political science, sociology, economics, public policy, survey research, data science, and methods-training programs.
Should undergraduates apply, or is this mostly for grad students?
Both. Undergraduates have solid options here, especially paper competitions, summer institutes, and nationally competitive scholarships like Truman and Udall. Graduate students and PhD candidates have the deepest pool because dissertation grants, advanced fellowships, and methods funding open up later.
Do paper competitions really matter?
Yes. For computational social science students, a paper award can do three things at once: show research quality, prove you can communicate findings, and give you a visible line on your CV. That matters a lot when you apply for grad school, internships, labs, or bigger funding.
What types of students fit this page best?
Students whose work combines data or computation with real social questions. That includes political behavior, public opinion, social inequality, education policy, digital behavior, survey methods, computational sociology, policy analytics, civic tech, and related areas.
Are fee-waiver training scholarships worth applying for?
Absolutely. A methods-training award from a place like ICPSR can improve your actual research ability, which can be more valuable than a small unrestricted cash scholarship. Better methods can lead to better papers, better recommendations, and better future funding.
What should students search for besides the exact phrase “computational social science”?
Try combinations like these: political science scholarships, sociology research grants, public policy fellowships, survey research awards, data science for social good fellowships, dissertation research grants, and quantitative methods summer programs.
