The purpose of the fellowship is to encourage and recognize excellence among graduate students in the department. Nominees must be enrolled in a Ph.D. program in the Department of Animal Sciences and be advised by a full-time faculty member in the department. Nominees must have an M.S. or have completed at least two years of full-time graduate study. They must have a GPA of at least 3.5/4.0 for all graded graduate courses.

The Baker Fellowship in Animal Sciences annually recognizes an outstanding doctoral student in the Department of Animal Sciences at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. The awardee will be announced and recognized at an appropriate departmental function. A permanent plaque will be inscribed with each awardee's name and displayed prominently.

Required application materials to be submitted electronically to ansc-gradprog@illinois.edu:

This fellowship is made possible by a $150,000 endowment established in 2001 by David and Norraine Baker, the annual income from which is matched by the University to provide the fellowship support. Additions to the endowment may be made to enhance the award. David H. Baker was a graduate student in the department from 1961 to 1965, was a faculty member of the department from 1967 until 1999, and remained active in research well beyond his official retirement. He was a world-renowned comparative nutritionist who was elected to the National Academy of Sciences in 2005. His primary contributions include:

  1. Development of the ideal protein concept for formulating swine and poultry diets
  2. Determination of bioavailability values for amino acids and amino acid isomers, analogs and precursors
  3. Establishment of bioavailability values for minerals and vitamins in foods and feeds
  4. Demonstration of the role of arginine in urea-cycle function in swine, poultry, cats and dogs
  5. Discovery that taurine is inefficiently synthesized from cysteine in cats and that a dietary deficiency of taurine leads to retinal degeneration and ultimate blindness
  6. Evaluation of transsulfuration efficiency and the role of methionine, cysteine, homocysteine, glutathione, taurine and inorganic sulfate in chicks, rats, and pigs, and
  7. Demonstration of practical means to ameliorate arsenic, copper, lead, iodine, and cadmium toxicity.

Purpose of Fellowship

The purpose of this fellowship is to encourage and recognize excellence among graduate students in the Department of Animal Sciences.

Fellowship Stipend

The stipend will consist of the income from the endowment plus the university match. In addition, it is expected that the faculty advisor will supplement the award to the current level of the College JBT graduate fellowship. If the annual income from the endowment with the university match exceeds this level, an additional cash award may be given. The fellowship exempts the awardee from tuition and service fees. The fellowship will be awarded for one year.

Materials to be Submitted

  1. Letter of nomination from the nominee's advisor, specifying the student's role in any publications and grants, the significance of the research, and any contributions to teaching and service.
  2. An up-to-date curriculum vitae for the nominee, including peer-reviewed publications, abstracts, other publications, awards, and research grants.
  3. Copies of course transcripts for all undergraduate and graduate courses, as well as UIUC grade point average and GRE scores.
  4. Reprints of all papers and abstracts authored by the nominee.
  5. Any other material requested by the Selection Committee.

Deadline for Receiving Nominations

Materials must be submitted to ansc-gradprog@illinois.edu as email attachments by February 1 of each year. The fellowship will be awarded for one year beginning on August 16 of the same year. Applications received after the deadline will not be considered.

Selection of Awardee

The selection committee will consist of three members of the faculty of the Department of Animal Sciences appointed by the Department Head in consultation with the Departmental Faculty Advisory Committee. The committee will be appointed after the nominations have been received so that no nominator is appointed. The committee chair will be designated by the Head. The committee will select the awardee based primarily on research excellence, with emphasis on originality, creativity and significance; in addition, excellence in teaching and service may be taken into account. If the committee determines that no suitable recipient has been nominated in a particular year, no award will be made. The awardee will be announced at an appropriate departmental function. The selection committee will also make suggestions to the head for improving the selection process for subsequent awards.

The stipend (approximately $14,500) consists of the income from the endowment plus a match from the Office of the Provost. In addition, it is expected that the faculty advisor will supplement the award to the current level of a College of ACES JBT fellowship or Animal Sciences rate, whichever is greater. The fellowship exempts the recipient from tuition and service fees.