|
Established 2006 |
Financial Aid for Grad School
While most students are aware that there are
billions of dollars in financial aid available for undergraduate study, many are
surprised to find out just how much assistance is available for those who want
to pursue advanced degrees. Graduate scholarships, often called fellowships,
usually come from the government or public interest groups, such as
foundations. They are highly selective, but very generous, often covering all
the costs of earning your postgraduate degree, including tuition and living
expenses. There are hundreds and hundreds of these fellowships available. Fellowships
are usually awarded for studies in a particular discipline, or a range of
disciplines, such as public policy, law, music, architecture, etc.
Scholarships, grants, and work/study programs are all examples of financial aid that never needs to be repaid, and there are tens of billions of dollars in each of these formats available to students every year.
Many grad schools offer tuition reductions for
students with excellent undergraduate academic achievements. These vary greatly
in both availability dollar amount from school to school, so you will want to
make your inquiries early in your grad school selection process if this is a
factor in your decision.
One of the best and most popular ways to pay for
grad school is to secure a position as a teaching assistant at the university
where you are studying. There are tens of thousands of these positions
available every year. Teaching assistants are just what the name implies-they
do a lot of the basic work for professors, such as teaching some classes,
grading papers, etc.
In many entry level courses, TAs do the bulk of
the teaching, freeing up professors to devote themselves to the more advanced
classes. The position is paid, and usually comes with reduced, and sometimes
free, tuition.
Research assistant positions are similar to TAs,
but, as the name implies, instead of assisting in the classroom RAs do their
work in laboratories and libraries on research and experimentation projects.
Research assistant positions are similar to TAs,
but, as the name implies, instead of assisting in the classroom RAs do their
work in laboratories and libraries on research and experimentation projects.
Everyone planning for college, regardless of need
or achievement, should check with your employer, and your parent's employers,
about grants and scholarships for employees and their children. Almost every
business of any size has some sort of program to assist their employees and
their families with college scholarships.
Here are some places to follow up on financial aid
for grad school:
American Association of University Women www.aauw.org
Rhodes Scholarship www.rhodesscholar.org
Fullbright Grants and Teaching Assistantships
www.iie.org
