The Eugene Cota-Robles Fellowship (for doctoral students only) and the Graduate Opportunity Fellowship Program (GOFP, for terminal or professional master's only) are UCLA diversity fellowships. Applicants for these awards will be assessed based on their Diversity Statement (brief statement up to 8,000 characters, including spaces and punctuation) that describes aspects of the students' personal background, accomplishments or achievements that will allow reviewers to evaluate their contributions to the University’' diversity mission.

The following is an excerpt from the "Guidelines for the Graduate Admissions Process & Codification of Policies Governing Admission," (PDF-140KB) published by the UCLA Graduate Council and revised in June 2009. Cota-Robles and GOFP applications will be assessed based on these guidelines.

University policy states that an applicant's race or gender may not be considered in selection for student or faculty appointments. However, to attract excellent graduate students who will contribute to the University's diversity imperative, departments may give special consideration to the following factors in selecting graduate students for admission (and financial support):

A. Applicants who have engaged in service efforts or programs to increase participation in science, education, humanities, fine arts, or social sciences by groups historically underrepresented in higher education; for example:

1. Participation as undergraduates in academic preparation, outreach, tutoring or other programs designed to remove barriers facing women, minorities, veterans, people with disabilities and other individuals who are members of groups historically excluded from higher education;
2. Participation in programs designed to address diversity and equity in higher education such as the Society of Women in Physical Sciences, SACNAS or other equivalent programs in all disciplines;
3. Demonstrated record of mentoring other students from groups underrepresented in their field or historically underrepresented in higher education.

B. Applicants who have the potential to contribute to their graduate program through their understanding of the barriers facing women, domestic minorities, students with disabilities, and other members of groups underrepresented in higher education careers, as evidenced by life experiences and educational background; for example:

1. Attendance at a minority-serving institution;
2. Experience with issues facing students with disabilities;
3. Ability to articulate the barriers facing women in science and engineering;

C. Applicants who display drive and motivation to persist and succeed in their careers in spite of barriers in higher education that disproportionately disadvantage them;

D. Applicants with the potential to bring to their research the creative critical discourse that comes from their non-traditional educational background or their understanding of the experiences of individuals from groups underrepresented in higher education;

E. Applicants who, in addition to their primary field of interest, have the potential to make research contributions to understanding the barriers facing women and domestic minorities in science and other academic disciplines; for example:

1. Studying patterns of participation and advancement of women and minorities in fields where they are underrepresented;
2. Studying socio-cultural issues confronting underrepresented students in college preparation curricula;
3. Evaluating programs, curricula and teaching strategies designed to enhance participation of underrepresented students in higher education;
4. Applicants who have the communication skills and cross-cultural abilities to maximize effective collaboration with a diverse cross-section of the academic community.

F. Applicants who have research interests in subjects that will contribute to diversity and equal opportunity in higher education; for example:

1. Research that addresses issues such as race, gender, diversity and inclusion;
2. Research that addresses health disparities, educational access and achievement, political engagement, economic justice, social mobility, civil and human rights;
3. Research that addresses questions of interest to communities historically excluded by or underserved by higher education;
4. Artistic expression and cultural production that reflects culturally diverse communities or voices not well-represented in the arts and humanities.