Financial Aid is awarded to student in 2 different forms.
- Assistantships
- Fellowships (or Scholarships)
Lets looks in detail about different types Assistantships and Fellowships available and how they are awarded.
Assistantships
Ph.D. and Master’s students are awarded assistantships, which fall into four general categories:
- Teaching Assistant (TA)
- Research Assistant (RA)
- Graduate Assistant (GA)
- Graduate Research Assistant (GRA)
These awards are typically administered by fields and departments.
To get assistantships, generally students will work as teaching assistant or take part in research.
Students with assistantships typically receive the following benefits
- Monthly Pay
- Tuition Fee Waiver (or Instate Fees)
- Health Insurance Coverage
Teaching Assistants (TA)
A teaching assistant is an academic appointment in support of the teaching of a course. Teaching assistants may assist in the teaching a section of a course, lead discussions, and/or lead laboratory sections.
For International Students High TOEFL Scores of TSE (or equivalent) scores is required to get apply for TA’s.
Graduate Research Assistantships (GRAs):
A GRA is an academic appointment focused on thesis or other degree-related research of a type that is required from all candidates for the degree. The research project for a GRA directly supports the student’s thesis or dissertation.
Because a student devotes considerable time to thesis or dissertation research, the time devoted to the graduate research assistantship is expected to be significant.
Research assistantships(RAs):
An RA is an academic appointment for research that is not directly thesis-related, 15 to 20 hours per week, averaging no more than 15 hours per week. For example, a RA appointment might include data analysis on a faculty research project not directly related to the student’s dissertation topic. As with other assistantships, there is no separate application. Students are appointed by departments, fields, or individual faculty.
Graduate Assistantships (GAs):
A GA also can be related to doing work in other departments not related to thesis or projects for your course work.
Example – Data analysis on a faculty research project not directly related to the student’s dissertation topic.
Working in Computer Labs of other departments.
Fellowships
Fellowships are generally merit-based awards intended to support a student in a full-time course of study.
This includes stipend and Tuition Waiver.
Students are not required to work like TA’s and GA’s in this case.
Students are not required to pay back the money.
Fellowships and Scholarships sometimes refers the same, but there could be fine distinctions between them.
Comparing this to student loan, where it has to to paid back with interest, with fellowships there are no obligation for students to pay back the money.
Fellowships vs Scholarships
Scholarships – Financial Aid given for Bachelors Degree students
Fellowships – Financial Aid given to Post Bachelors degree students.
Questions About Financial Aid?
Do you have any questions about Financial Aid? Post them in the comments below.
hello,
I am in b.tech final year now and am from electronics and communication department.I want to pursue my MS in US.My cgpa is 8.75.May i know the procedure to apply for scholarship and if not scholarship i would like to apply for loan.Can u please let me know how to apply for loan or scholarship and am yet to take GRE n TOEFL.Am plannning for next spring intake.
waiting to hear from you!
thank you!
hello,
I am in b.tech final year now and am from electronics and communication department.I want to pursue my MS in US.My cgpa is 8.75.May i know the procedure to apply for scholarship and if not scholarship i would like to apply for loan.Can u please let me know how to apply for loan or scholarship and am yet to take GRE n TOEFL.Am plannning for next spring intake.
waiting to hear from you!
hello hsb,
my b.tech stream is aeronautical and im currently in final year. Im planning to do my ms in usa in the aerospace field.My b.tech aggregate is 65% till third yr 2nd sem.I want tho know the opportunities to get a fellowship in my field .Please kindly tell me the details.
hai hsb..
I am studying b.tech 3rd year,mechanical.I am interested to study MS in germany. and i want to knw some information regarding it..
1.I heard that the cost of living in germany is high…… is it true…..
2.abt hw much % in b.tech wil be getting free education in germany
I am looking forward to hear from you.
Thanks,
With regards,
Hi HSB,
I heard also about 1-time payment scholarships i.e. paid only at the beginning of an academic year and includes an in-state tuition for graduate students.Kindly expatiate on this please.
Thank you.
Abi
hello friends,
My cgpa is 7.45(till3rd year of B.Tech),now i’m in 4th year.My gre score is 327,aw 3,and toefl score is 104,i want to know whether i can get admission in any college with scholarship or finanacial aid?whether i should apply for top 1 to 50,or 50 to 100 colleges? please guide me if you know any information. thank you,
hello friends,
I forgot to mention my stream i.e electrical engineering.Thank you,
what is the score he/she should score in G.R.E and TOEFL to get fellowship(full fee waiver)
hello HSB..
I got admission for M.S. IN KINESIOLOGY course from SOUTHERN ILLINOIS UNIVERSITY,CARBONDALE,USA for FALL 2012. Can you please give me a review of this university…
navya
I am just applying for Master of project management in George Washington university , I really like to join to this program since I have 8 years Project Manager experiences in Telecom and PMP certificate , I am on admission process but the tuition is high , is any body study in GWU while he / she can advise me to getting fellowship or scholarship there
Thanks
Fahimeh
Hi…..HSB please guide me …. My major is Architecture…I want to continue my education in USA…I do not know what should i do. I need to find a university that help me for payment, and etc.
Thanks
Dear DONNA,
I am coing 3rd year B.Tech BIOTECHNOLOGY in a govt institution in Tamil Nadu. I am yet to finish one more year in my UG. Till now i have’nt gone any training programs, internships etc etc. But i m so eager in doing my masters degree in US. I really need your advice. My queries are as follows:
1.) I wish to do MS in Biomedical engineering. Can you suggest me some of the reputed institutions offering MS in Biomedical engineering?
2.) I will be taking GRE test by 2013 during Jan-May period. Is that so mandatory to take TOEFL test also?
3.) To improve my eligibility level / surely to get placed , do i really need to attend any industrial training programs? If so can you suggest some institutions offering training programs in India?
4.) If i get my GRE scores with me by 2013, wen should i apply for the US university admissions?
5.) Is MS and PhD programs one and the same in US? If not which will be the best option to choose?
I am looking forward to hear from you.
Thanks,
With regards,
Kowsalya.
Dear Ravy,
I would suggest you go for at least some training this summer. Ask your professors, industry contacts, senors, alumni, etc. Tamil Nadu is a research hub. You are bound to get good research opportunities if you try. If you can’t, den don’t worry as you are sure to do a research project in your final engineering year. Foreign colleges usually ask for some research experience.
MS and PhD are both considered graduate degrees in USA, Canada, Singapore, etc and can be done after 4-year undergraduate degree. PhD obviously gives you much better opportunities in both industry and academia, but it requires 5-6 years and hence asks for serious commitment. MS is mainly a terminal degree requiring 2-3 yrs and taken by those interested in going for an industrial career and those who cannot give the full commitment to PhD. MS also has non-thesis track. Most colleges in bio field prefer PhD applicants over MS ones and also give them secure funding which is more difficult for MS students.
Some good reputed institutes offering MS and/or PhD in biomedical engineering are Harvard, MIT, Univ of California, Univ of Texas(Austin/Dallas/MD Anderson research center), Univ of Wisconsin, Univ of Illinois, Purdue Univ, Texas A&M Univ, Univ of Virginia, Univ of Cincinnati, SUNY Buffalo,Stony Brook, etc.
It would be better to give GRE before Nov-Dec’12 as most of the colleges have application deadlines before Dec’12-Feb’13 for Fall’13 session. You must apply before the deadlines with your scores if you wish for any funding. And, yeah, man..TOEFL is necessary.
Hope you found my reply useful.Happy to help..:P
yup:-) Thank you so much… The information was really helpful to me. Thanx a lot again..
i want to pursue masters in us in computer science engineering how can i get fellowship (high gre score or high bachelor degree cgpa is required) ?
I have teaching experience for engineering.Will I get T.A. during my M.S.
hey…..
can anyone tell me, on which basis scholarships are given ????
Hi…..HSB please guide me …. My major is Architecture…I want to continue my education in USA…I do not know what should i do. I need to find a university that help me for payment, and etc.
how to get fellowship. On which criteria do they give ?
HSB please guide me on this one…I have recently received an admit for PhD Pharmaceutics program for Fall 2012 session with full scholarship .. do i need to show anything else apart from my scholarship letters as a source of support/ financial documentation during Visa Interview, will that convince the VI ?…your prompt help will be much appreciated!! thank you in advance.
Keep your source of income as a backup and show it to VO only if he asks for it. Hope this helps and best of luck!
P.S. : What universities have you applied to? and you received scholarship from what university?
– Vignesh M
Firstly, thanks a lot for your prompt reply Vignesh..really appreciate it… secondly, by ‘source of income’ you meant scholarship offer letters right cuz it’s very hard, if not impossible, to show $38k (estimated expenses for one year) x 5/6 years (estimated duration of PhD) in liquid or even as attainable funds as a matter of fact for someone from a middle class indian family like mine.
I have received the admit from university of north dakota.
no priyanka backup source of income means not the scholarship letters,its your own source of money.its better to keep that because you won’t face problem if vo asks for backup.its not a big deal to show the liquid cash,you just enquire at ur place there will be consultants who ‘ll show your backup source for some money……..
Hi Priyanka,
First of all, congratulation for getting into Phd and too with financial help. North Dakota is good univeristy and i wish you will have bright future. Priyanka, as you know that there are few students from pharma background here on HbS and i would be thankful if you can mention here what was your GRE n TOEFL score n academic background which will help me to get an idea of if I shall apply to north dakota ? I have applied to 8 universities for PhD in Pharmaceutics program and have received 4 rejection so far. I aplied at Texas austin, northeastern, southern california and rohde island (rejection ) and waiting for decision from st john , miss kansas, west virginia and mississippi. my GRe was 312 wid 148 in verbal n 3 in analytical writting. n TOEFL was 105. your reply will help a lot. Thank you.
You seem to have good scores. Did the colleges giv any reason for rejection. What are your collg grades? Hope you get admit from all the remaining colleges..:)
Hi
I was wondering possible ways of meeting one’s expenses who doesn’t receive any kind of the financial aids mentioned in the post. In fact, I was admitted to ISU without financial aids. I don’t want to miss the chance but I don’t have the money!
Dear HSB,
I am a regular follower of your blog and I really appreciate the effort put in by you and other contributors to update us aspiring dreamers of US education about everything necessary. This is the first time I’m asking for some information and I hope you would be able to help me in this regard.
I am presently studying 6th semester (my final semester exams are going on) B.E. Biotechnology in Birla Institute of Technology, Mesra. I’m going to apply to PhD programs in US universities for Fall, 2013 and have already decided upon some programs. I’ll be appearing for GRE and TOEFL in the following August or September(I’m hoping I’ll get good scores like 320+ and 100+ resp.). I have done several research projects starting from my 3rd sem and am still involved in department projects. I have also presented a paper in a national seminar. I was an I.A.S. (Indian Academy of Sciences) summer research trainee after 4th sem and published a 50-page thesis on my research. I’m likely to get several good recos. I’m going for an industrial internship this summer. I’m also actively involved and hold important posts in several clubs and societies(both technical and creative) in my college. However, I have a CGPA(absolute) of 7.51(75.1%) till 5th sem (it will improve) while 7 cgpa(70%) is considered 1st class distinction in our college. I have a high aptitude for laboratory and internet research. My queries are as follows:
1) Is my CGPA low as per US standards when it is considered high in my college (obv I can’t convert it into 4.0 cgpa scale)?
2) Most of the Indian students in the colleges I have researched are IITians. BIT, Mesra is also among one of the top engineering universities in India and some of our college alumni are in Stanford, etc. Do you think I have any chance at all of getting into a university in the top 50?
3)I’m going to apply mainly to biology or biomedical engineering PhD programs, but I’m also considering applying to chemical engineering programs in some colleges(as I have had a major component of chem engg subjects in my UG course and the schools do accept bio majors). Its mainly the specific research areas and the professors that interest me. Do you think I should proceed with this plan?
4)The colleges I’m planning to apply to are: Harvard(not sure if I’ll apply but its my dream univ); Univ of Wisconsin, Madison(another dream univ); Univ of Illinois,Urbana-Champaign; Univ of Virginia, Charlottesville; Univ of Texas, Austin; Texas A& M Univ, NUS(Singapore). Do you think I have a shot at any of these?
5)Do you think the univs will consider me for PhD since I’ll be yet to graduate when applying?
I know I should contact a professor instead of bothering you. But I needed some assurance before I proceed. I’ll be awaiting your reply.
Thanking you in advance,
Sincerely,
Donna.
I would like to give you a piece of advice. University of Wisconsin, Madison usually places a lot of importance on work experience while considering applications. If you haven’t worked for at least an year, it would be difficult to land a PhD offer there, btw, it is one of the best research schools in US for ChemE. So, it would be very difficult to break through anyway. Texas A&M U, NUS are very reputed research schools and suit your profile, they should be mod/ambi for you. Though, there is no such thing as a mod/safe option when we talk about PhD. UIUC and UT Austin are again right up there at the top engineering research schools in US.
About me, I am a fellow apper for fall 2012 session. I have applied for PhD Chemical Engineering focusing on research related to Process Systems Engineering. I had applied to UWisc, UT Austin, TAMU from your list. I haven’t received TAMU’s result yet but have been rejected by the other two. I have a PhD admit from UMASS, Amherst, an MS admit from Rutgers University, NJ.
It would be helpful if you expatiated on your research interest a little so that students with similar research interests could share their experiences and opinions.
hello friends,
my details are gre 1290 verbal 560 quant 740, 2.0
prod engg from mu with aggregate of 62 per , want to pursue ms in scm, project mngt or industrial engg.
Whether the score is good enough? Worried about quant and writing score, would be able to get financial aid or not
Are Assistantships only awarded to students prior to the start of the term?
I mean after a considerable amount of homework if I pursue professors to provide me assistantships after the term begins, will it be possible for him to award one?
In places like USC, where there is very little chance of an assistantship, and international students are not eligible for financial aid, what other choices does an MS candidate have, besides an off campus job?
None and you are not allowed to work off campus. On campus jobs are allowed and are very competitive. You need to have adequate amount of money to support your study.
Thanks man, though I’ve heard of a lot of my acquaintances working in diners and as cashiers in restaurants. Would these jobs also be classified as on campus? Aren’t you allowed to work for 20 hours a week off campus?
Can any one tell me whether awarding fellowship is completely decided on college by grading GRE and TOEFEL score, or the professor under whom you are working is also involved in this. I heard of some cases where professors paying good amount to the students working under them on monthly basis from their project fund. Does anybody know what percentage of students in each semester will be funded by fellowships?
About 30% get financial aid.
Academic profile includes GRE, TOEFL and you accomplishments (not just courses and grades).
hiiiiiii…………………m the student of betech final year n i want to do ms from U.S , so please tell me about scholarship n how to get them
U done with GRE and TOEFL …. If u dint took them then first take them ….:)
I would like to apply in PhD in the field of educational administration.I have done M.Sc(Biochem.) MEd (Education).
Is this qualification sufficient to get in the field of Education. So far I didnt find anything on HSB regarding the field of Education..
Please help .I would like to give MAT test instead of GRE because in social sciences ,US universities accept MAT test in lieu of GRE.
Please do advice as soon as possible.
Thanks
Are these assistanships available for Spring season especially for Engg graduates in case of doing a MS program in US?