Migrations Program
Gunisha Kaur
Medical Director, Weill Cornell Center for Human Rights
Gunisha Kaur is an anesthesiologist specializing in global health and human rights, particularly among displaced populations. She serves as medical director of the Weill Cornell Center for Human Rights and as director of the Anesthesiology Global Health Initiative.
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Rachel Beatty Riedl
Former Director, Einaudi Center
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Wendy Wolford
Vice Provost for International Affairs
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Migration Studies Minor
In the Einaudi Center’s migration studies minor, you explore the factors that influence migrants’ decisions to migrate and drive their departure, arrival, and integration into new societies. The minor is open to all Cornell undergraduates and includes courses from across the university.
About the Minor
The migration studies minor is a university-wide, interdisciplinary undergraduate minor focused on the historical and contemporary contexts and factors that drive international migration and shape migrant experiences around the globe.
You’ll have the opportunity to investigate the complex global issue of migration from multiple perspectives and disciplinary lenses and participate in migration-themed events and opportunities at the Einaudi Center and across campus.
Class Spotlight: Refugee Pathways & Resettlement Policy
Course Requirements
You must complete five courses (15 credits minimum) and attend at least five migration-related campus events. An introductory course introduces you to international migration and provides an interdisciplinary foundation for understanding migration flows and migrant experiences. Your other courses will be electives of your choosing from across the university. All courses for the minor must be taken for a letter grade and completed with a letter grade of C or higher.
See the Registrar's full description of requirements and courses that qualify for the minor.
Required Introductory Course
ILRLR 2810/LSP 2810/SOC 2810—Migrations: Histories, Controversies, and Perspectives
Four Elective Courses
- Three courses must be taken at the advanced (3000–4000) level.
- Courses must be taken in at least two different departments.
- At least one course must include substantial focus on migration outside the United States.
Migration-Related Events
You must attend at least five migration-themed events on campus to complete the minor. Please report your attendance during the semester in which the event takes place. You must complete all email fields to receive attendance credit.
Office Hours
To meet with the migration studies minor administrative coordinator, please stop by 163 Uris Hall during the following hours:
- Monday and Tuesday, 10:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.
How to Apply
Please submit a declaration of intent form (below) to enroll in the migration studies minor.
You may complete the form as early as your sophomore year, but you must declare your intent to participate by the end of your sixth semester in order to qualify. There is no GPA requirement for admission to the minor, but you must be in good academic standing.
Contact the administrative coordinator if you have further questions.
Additional Information
Fulbright U.S. Student Program
Details
The Fulbright U.S. Student Program sends U.S. citizens to more than 160 countries to study, research, and teach English abroad.
With a unique focus on mutual understanding between people of different backgrounds and cultures, the program offers the freedom to curate your experience as you engage with your host community.
The Einaudi Center provides counseling, essay feedback, and application support to help your Fulbright application succeed, even if you are preparing your application at a distance as a study abroad student or recent graduate. Our Fulbright advisor offers guidance throughout the year and hosts info sessions about Fulbright opportunities each semester.
Fulbright Facts
Cornell University is a Fulbright Top Producing Institution. One in four Cornell applicants wins an award. The national average is only one in six. This is how Cornell has sent over 600 students across the globe as part of the Fulbright U.S. Student Program since the 1940s.
Fulbrighters from Cornell have traveled to more than one hundred countries, studying topics ranging from court efficiency in Zambia to gender-based inequalities in India. Many have taught English abroad and attended international graduate programs in other languages.
Application Opens
March 31, 2026
Deadline
August 17, 2026 at 8 a.m. (ET)
Eligibility
United States citizens in any field of study are eligible. In addition, you must fulfill one of the following criteria:
- You will graduate with a bachelor’s degree from Cornell before September of the award year.
- You are currently a Cornell graduate student.
- You are a young professional who graduated from Cornell within the past five years.
Day in the Life: U.S. Student Program
How to Apply
Cornell applicants must apply through the Cornell Fulbright Program, managed by the Einaudi Center. Reach out to our Fulbright advisor to get started. We provide counseling, essay reviews, and application support to all applicants, including study abroad students and alumni, for every type of application.
Meet Cornell's Fulbrighters
Eighteen Cornellians received awards in 2025–26. They will conduct research, study, and teach English in Canada, France, Honduras, India, Jamaica, the Netherlands, Norway, and Taiwan.
Additional Information
Funding Type
- Program
Role
- Student
Program
International Research Travel Grants
Details
Do you need to travel internationally for your graduate research or fieldwork?
The Einaudi Center sponsors international travel for individual Cornell graduate students. If you’re traveling between the United States and a host country for activities directly related to your dissertation or thesis research, Einaudi can help you get there.
Applications Open
Monday, November 17, 2025
Amount
Up to $3,000 to cover international airfare for activities directly related to your dissertation or thesis research.
Grad Students Study World with Einaudi Travel Grants
Read about how Einaudi travel grants supported research travel for Alonso Alegre-Bravo (LACS: Guatemala) and Jessie Taieun Yoon (EAP: Hong Kong, Taiwan, and South Korea). Last year 100 graduate students found support for their fieldwork at Einaudi!
Eligibility
All applicants must be enrolled in an approved course of study at Cornell University leading to a master's or PhD degree. Graduate students or students enrolled in Cornell’s professional schools are eligible, with the following exceptions:
- Students graduating in May 2026
- Students who have not used 2025 awards
You may only receive two Einaudi travel grants during your time at Cornell. Groups are not eligible to apply, as grants are awarded on an individual basis.
Travel must occur between May 1, 2026 and August 31, 2027.
Requirements
- Awards are based on the proposal submitted at the time of application. You may change your travel dates within the travel date parameters, but you cannot change your proposal.
- To receive the award and travel approval, you are required to participate in a short online international travel predeparture orientation.
- You must submit photos of your boarding passes as proof of travel within 30 days of the end of your funded travel. (We will not accept tickets or travel itineraries.)
Travel Requirements
- Travel must take place between May 1, 2026, and August 31, 2027, and cannot be funded retroactively. The minimum stay abroad is 14 days.
- Travel must originate and end in the United States. You must depart and return to a major international airport.
- Cornell travelers are required to comply with the Fly America Act. Please choose American Airlines when possible.
- Awardees must register their Einaudi-supported travel in the Cornell Travel Registry no earlier than eight weeks and no later than four weeks prior to travel. You must follow all university travel policies and have ITART approval if you travel to an elevated risk destination.
International Travel Guidance
Travel to Elevated Risk Destinations
Travel to level 4 countries must be approved by the International Travel Advisory and Response Team (ITART). Graduate and professional students do not need to petition for travel to level 1, 2, or 3 level countries. Approval may be withdrawn if there is a change in the risk level of your destination or if you violate any contingencies of approval given. In such instances, you will be required to refund the award.
For International Students
Be aware that U.S. federal travel restrictions are evolving and could impact some international citizens' ability to reenter the country. We encourage all international students to check International Services' Current Travel Advisory frequently for new guidance. If you have problems or concerns about reentering the United States after your research, consult this webpage for urgent advice or reach out to an International Services advisor.
Questions?
Email the Einaudi Center at travelgrants@einaudi.cornell.edu.
Additional Information
Funding Type
- Travel Grant
Role
- Student
Program
Einaudi Dissertation Proposal Development Program
Details
Develop your dissertation on global issues with a toolkit of resources. Over the course of the year, you’ll participate in seminars, workshops, and mentoring sessions and receive up to $5,000 for summer research.
DPD supports 12 PhD students annually. Applicants’ research projects must focus on global issues, but the proposed research setting may be international or domestic.
Funding for Summer 2025
This DPD cycle will begin immediately, with seminars during the spring 2025 semester and funding for research in summer 2025. In addition to six weeks of summer research, the program includes these community-building and mentoring events:
- Seminars: Up to three sessions on topics including proposal writing, research methods, and interdisciplinary international studies.
- Spring workshop: Three-day workshop in May to help you refine your proposal and plan your summer pre-dissertation research.
- Fall workshop: Three-day workshop in September to support you as you finalize your dissertation proposal.
Applicants must commit to attending the entire spring and fall workshops and agree to conduct at least six weeks of summer research away from Cornell between the workshops.
Amount
Up to $5,000 for summer research. The award can cover the following research expenses:
- International travel (economy airfare, visa fees)
- Local travel
- Accommodation and living expenses
- Research expenses (permits, translation costs, internet, archive access, etc.)
We encourage you to apply for other Cornell grants and external grants to complement your DPD funding. You must apply for the Graduate School's research travel grants; you are not eligible to apply for Einaudi's travel grants.
Please note that you may only bill for a research expense once. If an expense is already covered by your DPD award or Graduate School travel grant, you may not use other Cornell or external grants to pay the same expense.
Eligibility
- Students who are currently enrolled full-time in PhD programs at Cornell University are eligible.
- Both U.S. citizens and noncitizens are eligible.
- Progress within graduate program:
- Applicants must have completed at least two full years of graduate study (MA and/or PhD) by the end of the spring workshop. First-year graduate students who have completed master’s degrees and fourth-year students who have not yet undertaken dissertation research may be eligible.
- Applicants must be on track to obtain approval of their dissertation proposals after the fall workshop but before the end of the upcoming academic year.
- Students who have already submitted dissertation research proposals to their departments for approval or to funding agencies for dissertation research support are not eligible to apply.
Questions?
Please email our academic programming staff if you have questions about the program.
Additional Information
Funding Type
- Fellowship
Role
- Student