PhD Financial Aid Information
Cost of Attending Heading link
Graduate Tuition and Fees
The PhD program assesses the University established tuition and fees for full-time study (12 or more credit hours) and part-time study (less than 12 credit hours)
Funding your Education Heading link
Embarking on the journey towards a doctoral degree is obviously a major decision and has associated costs. There are a number of ways to fund your education including the following:
- University-based Fellowships: These are the most competitive and most generous awards that include four years of funding of approximately $30,000 per year plus a tuition waiver. To be eligible for consideration for one of these awards PhD Program applications must be submitted by December 15.
- JACSW-based Research Assistantships (RA): These awards come from the College of Social Work and provide a stipend as well as a tuition waiver. The amount of the stipend depends on the extent of the RA appointment (25% time or 50% time). The RA is assigned to assist a faculty member with his/her research for either 10 or 20 hours per week depending on the size of the appointment (25% = 10 hours; 50% = 20 hours). These students are hired and funded by the College, but then assigned to work with a faculty member.
- Faculty-grant-based Research Assistantships: The terms of these appointment are identical to what is described above but the source of the funding is the faculty member’s research grant and the student is hired and supervised by the faculty member with the grant.
- Teaching Assistantships: These assistantships are available to students who have passed the Qualifying Examinations. Subject to the needs of the MSW program, doctoral students are eligible to be considered to teach in the program. These opportunities are very popular with doctoral students because it enables them to add teaching experience to their academic portfolio–an important asset when on the job market.
- Tuition Waivers: The Graduate College has some full- and part-time tuition waivers for PhD students. These cover most of the cost of tuition (some fees are still the responsibility of the student) and carry no service requirement of the student. These waivers are assigned by the Director of the PhD Program.
- External funding: Some PhD students secure external funding from various foundations and/or organizations. Some students who are working may receive financial support from their employer. These sources vary widely.
More information about funding opportunities for graduate students is available on the UIC Graduate College website.
General information about student financial aid including how to apply for student loans can be found at the UIC Student Financial Aid Office.