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§1135 Grants to Academic Departments and Programs of Institutions

Title 20 › CHAPTER 28 — HIGHER EDUCATION RESOURCES AND STUDENT ASSISTANCE › SUBCHAPTER VII — GRADUATE AND POSTSECONDARY IMPROVEMENT PROGRAMS › Part A — Graduate Education Programs › subpart 2 — graduate assistance in areas of national need › § 1135

Last updated Sep 22, 2026|Official source

Summary

The Secretary must give grants to graduate departments, programs, and other academic units at colleges and universities so they can help graduate students in master’s or doctoral programs. The Secretary can also fund joint projects between degree-granting units and eligible nonprofit research organizations that support doctoral work. Those partner organizations must be tax-exempt nonprofits, focus on scientific or cultural research and graduate training, not be private foundations, have qualified teaching or advising staff, and offer research resources not otherwise available. Grants are picked mainly on the quality of the graduate program, with attention to fair geographic spread between public and private schools. Each grant runs for 3 years. Yearly award amounts must be at least $100,000 and no more than $750,000. If a recipient cannot use all its money, the Secretary will reassign the unused funds to others that can. New awards are made only after continuing recipients get their next-year funds; if money is short, required awards are reduced proportionally.

Title 20, §1135

Education, Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)Grant authority

(1)In general

The Secretary shall make grants to academic departments, programs and other academic units of institutions of higher education that provide courses of study leading to a graduate degree, including a master’s or doctoral degree, in order to enable such institutions to provide assistance to graduate students in accordance with this subpart.

(2)Additional grants

The Secretary may also make grants to such departments, programs and other academic units of institutions of higher education granting graduate degrees which submit joint proposals involving nondegree granting institutions which have formal arrangements for the support of doctoral dissertation research with degree-granting institutions. Nondegree granting institutions eligible for awards as part of such joint proposals include any organization which—

(A)is described in section 501(c)(3) of title 26, and is exempt from tax under section 501(a) of such title;

(B)is organized and operated substantially to conduct scientific and cultural research and graduate training programs;

(C)is not a private foundation;

(D)has academic personnel for instruction and counseling who meet the standards of the institution of higher education in which the students are enrolled; and

(E)has necessary research resources not otherwise readily available in such institutions to such students.

(b)Award and duration of grants

(1)Awards

The principal criterion for the award of grants shall be the relative quality of the graduate programs presented in competing applications. Consistent with an allocation of awards based on quality of competing applications, the Secretary shall, in awarding such grants, promote an equitable geographic distribution among eligible public and private institutions of higher education.

(2)Duration and amount

(A)Duration

The Secretary shall award a grant under this subpart for a period of 3 years.

(B)Amount

The Secretary shall award a grant to an academic department, program or unit of an institution of higher education under this subpart for a fiscal year in an amount that is not less than $100,000 and not greater than $750,000.

(3)Reallotment

Whenever the Secretary determines that an academic department, program or unit of an institution of higher education is unable to use all of the amounts available to the department, program or unit under this subpart, the Secretary shall, on such dates during each fiscal year as the Secretary may fix, reallot the amounts not needed to academic departments, programs and units of institutions which can use the grants authorized by this subpart.

(c)Preference to continuing grant recipients

(1)In general

The Secretary shall make new grant awards under this subpart only to the extent that each previous grant recipient under this subpart has received continued funding in accordance with subsection (b)(2)(A).

(2)Ratable reduction

To the extent that appropriations under this subpart are insufficient to comply with paragraph (1), available funds shall be distributed by ratably reducing the amounts required to be awarded under subsection (b)(2)(A).

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

Prior Provisions

Provisions similar to this section were contained in section 1134m of this title, prior to repeal by Pub. L. 105–244. A prior section 1135, Pub. L. 89–329, title X, § 1001, as added Pub. L. 96–374, title X, § 1001(a), Oct. 3, 1980, 94 Stat. 1489; amended Pub. L. 102–325, title X, § 1001,

July 23, 1992, 106 Stat. 778, related to Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education, prior to repeal by Pub. L. 105–244, § 3, title VII, § 702, Oct. 7, 1998, 112 Stat. 1585, 1803, effective Oct. 1, 1998. See section 1138 of this title. Another prior section 1135, Pub. L. 89–329, title X, § 1001, as added Pub. L. 92–318, title I, § 186(a)(1),

June 23, 1972, 86 Stat. 312; amended Pub. L. 93–380, title VIII, § 837, Aug. 21, 1974, 88 Stat. 606; Pub. L. 94–482, title I, § 176(a)(3)–(5), title V, § 501(a)(20), Oct. 12, 1976, 90 Stat. 2165, 2236; Pub. L. 95–180, § 1(c), Nov. 15, 1977, 91 Stat. 1372; Pub. L. 96–49, § 53(a), Aug. 13, 1979, 93 Stat. 354, related to development plans for expansion or improvement of postsecondary education programs in community colleges, prior to repeal by section 1001(a) of Pub. L. 96–374. Another prior section 1135, Pub. L. 89–329, title X, § 1001, as added Pub. L. 90–575, title II, § 271, Oct. 16, 1968, 82 Stat. 1047, contained Congressional statement of purpose respecting improvement of graduate programs, prior to the general amendment of subchapter X of this chapter by Pub. L. 92–318. A prior section 711 of Pub. L. 89–329 was classified to section 1132b of this title, prior to the general amendment of this subchapter by Pub. L. 105–244. Another prior section 711 of Pub. L. 89–329 was classified to section 1132b of this title, prior to the general amendment of part A of this subchapter by Pub. L. 102–325. Another prior section 711 of Pub. L. 89–329 was classified to section 1132b of this title, prior to the general amendment of this subchapter by Pub. L. 99–498.

Amendments

2008—Subsec. (a)(1). Pub. L. 110–315 inserted “, including a master’s or doctoral degree,” after “leading to a graduate degree”.