Financial Support

Financial assistance for an entering graduate student generally comes in the form of a teaching assistantship. Less frequently, it comes in the form of a research assistantship. After the first or second year, many graduate students are supported by assistantships or special fellowships.

Teaching assistantships, research assistantships, and fellowships generally include tuition waivers or allowances, in addition to a stipend that is usually sufficient to support reasonably comfortable living.

Some departments provide financial assistance for only nine months out of the year (which is to say, during the academic year), while others provide support for a full calendar year. You should be especially attentive to the financial details of the offers extended to you.

Some departments offer first-year research appointments as a way of attracting especially well-qualified graduate students. These appointments are often prestigious, and very enticing. But keep in mind: accepting such an appointment means that you won’t be teaching. Teaching assistantships provide an opportunity for you to work with undergraduate students, to exercise your knowledge and understanding of chemistry, and to associate with experienced teachers and other graduate students who are also in the process of learning to teach. In fact, this experience has proven to be so valuable that it’s often recommended that all graduate students have a period of service as a teaching assistant – even those who hold fellowships.

It is also possible that a graduate program will support you for beginning your research in the summer prior to your official start in graduate school. It’s a great opportunity for you to try out a research group, and to settle into your new department before you officially start your program of study.