Costs and Funding
Costs
The costs of attending graduate school at a major university can be significant: between $23,000 and $40,000 per year for tuition, living expenses, etc. At UW-Madison, you can find the average expected costs for graduate school by visiting the Office of Student Financial Aid web site.
The Funding Landscape at UW-Madison
Often resources are available to help students through their studies. At UW-Madison, you may be offered graduate assistantships (such as Teaching, Project, or Research Assistantships), fellowships, or traineeships that will help cover some or all of your expenses. Such assistantships or fellowships are especially valuable, as they may provide tuition remission in addition to a monthly stipend and health insurance. You can learn about the funding landscape in your intended program(s) by visiting the your program’s academic profile. This site will tell you what percent of students in the program are supported and what types of support they receive.
Stay Informed about Funding Opportunities
Eligibility for graduate assistantships and fellowships is determined most often at the program or departmental level. During the application process, stay in touch with your program’s Graduate Coordinator to find out about particular funding opportunities for which you may be eligible. Check the program’s web site to find contact information.
On the Graduate School application, you can indicate your interest in being considered for fellowships and assistantships. In general, there are no additional materials you need to submit beyond your application for graduate school. However, if you want to be considered for fellowships, you must submit your graduate school application by your program’s fellowship deadline date.
Graduate Assistantships
University of Wisconsin-Madison funding packages for graduate assistants offer great value. A funding offer that is the equivalent of a 33.3% assistantship (based roughly on a 40 hour work week) will provide a stipend, tuition remission, and comprehensive health insurance. For example: An annual (12 month ) 50% Research Assistantship for 2012-2013 would include the following:
2012-13 50% RA stipend level |
2012-13 Tuition Remission |
Comprehensive health care (single student) |
Total offer value |
|
resident |
$ 20,400 |
$ 13,525 |
$ 6,732 |
$ 40,657 |
non-resident |
$ 20,400 |
$ 25,134 |
$ 6,732 |
$ 52,266 |
Fellowships
Advanced Opportunity Fellowships are designed to support the recruitment and retention of highly-qualified underrepresented students in UW-Madison graduate programs. To check whether you are eligible, please visit http://uwmadisonoffr.wordpress.com/funding-overview/fellowships/advanced-opportunitygraduate-research-scholars-grs-funding/. To find out more about this funding opportunity contact your intended program’s Graduate Research Scholar community.
University Fellowships are competitive awards made to students in the Arts/Humanities and Social Sciences. Students are nominated for these fellowships by their programs.
Other Fellowships may be available at the program/departmental level. Check with your intended program’s Graduate Coordinator for more information about Wisconsin Distinguished Graduate Fellowships (WDGF) and other departmental fellowships.
Fellowship Benefits at UW-Madison
• Stipends ranging from $14,000 to $22,440 (2012-13 funding level)
• Remission of tuition and fees
• Health insurance (individual premium for group plan is roughly $81/month)
Funding Offers
If you are admitted to a program, you may be offered a funding package. When you are comparing funding packages, you should consider the following factors:
-
Is tuition remission included?
-
How much of the health insurance premium is covered?
-
What is the cost of living?
- Are some or all living expenses covered by the stipend