Twelve-month Fellowships cost US $20,000. Shorter terms are prorated. Hence, a six-month Fellowship would cost US $10,000. Approximately 80% of the funds go directly to the Fellow's salary and program activities. Visa and travel fees are additional.

A Matching Grant Program is available

In 1998, WFI received a matching grant from the Harry A. Merlo Foundation to provide partial scholarships to the Fellowship Program. The grant will pay 50% of the Fellowship cost if a matching 50% can be obtained either through sponsorship from another organization, or through self-funding from the Fellow . WFI only accepts Fellows who are fully funded, and applicants must be able to identify the source of their funding as either from a third party sponsor or from the Fellow. A detailed list of costs can be downloaded here.

Although we offer a matching grant to the WFI Fellowship, this Fellowship is not primarily a monetary award, but rather an actual program with group activities. Therefore you cannot be based outside of WFI, although short-term trips (<2 weeks) scattered throughout the program are allowed depending upon other scheduled events. Fellows must be based in Oregon at our offices and everyone is expected to participate fully in the program, including site visits, field trips, special excursions, meetings etc., on top of conducting their independent research project. The matching grant cannot be applied to scholarships to university programs or funding for work conducted in other countries or based outside of WFI.

Salary and Benefits
Fellows receive a monthly salary of $1,000 USD after taxes, health insurance, and a public transportation pass. The salary is generally sufficient to cover apartment rent (shared), utilities, phone, and food on an average budget. Please note that individual lifestyle differences will result in higher or lower costs.

Sponsoring Organizations
The WFI Fellowship Program has enjoyed sponsorships from a variety of organizations, including corporations, government agencies, research institutions, industry associations, and universities. Sponsoring organizations do not need to be forestry-related.

Here are a few examples of how sponsors can participate in the program:

1. Sponsors may send a current employee to participate as a Fellow.
2. A local university, non-profit, or research agency can send someone to participate as a Fellow in the sponsor's name. The sponsor or WFI can conduct the search for an appropriate Fellow.
3. A sponsor may create a proposal for research in order to gather certain information or data. An independent search for an appropriate Fellow can be made to match qualifications needed for the research.