“Funding” is a term used to describe university employment or support to cover some or all of your costs of graduate education. It varies in kind, amount, and level of guarantee depending on your degree level and/or named option in SoHE.
All incoming Human Ecology PhD students receive a 4- or 5-year funding guarantee when they are offered admission to the program, funded at least at the 50% rate (see here for more information about funding percentages). All incoming MFA students receive a 3-year funding guarantee with their admission offer. Human Ecology MS students are not guaranteed funding, but many secure Teaching Assistantships with the School of Human Ecology if they are interested.
Types of Funding
Graduate Assistantships (Research / Teaching / Project)
- Paid positions in which the University hires a graduate student to assist with research (RA), teaching (TA), or project (PA) activities
- A faculty mentor must serve as Principal Investigator on the grant under which funds are awarded
- Appointments of 33.3% FTE or higher include a full tuition waiver
- See the Grad School’s Graduate Assistantships page for more information
Fellowships
- Awards that support a student’s education (they are not an employment relationship with the University)
- A faculty mentor may or may not need to serve as Principal Investigator on the grant under which funds are awarded
- Award amount and expectations for the student can vary greatly, depending on the funder and the terms of the award
- Often provide a lump sum stipend for the student and additional funds for fringe benefits, tuition, and research-related expenses
- See the Grad School’s Fellowships page for more information
Dissertation awards
- Awards that support research expenses during the dissertation stage of a student’s graduate education
- Typically medium-sized awards ($3,000-$12,000) to offset costs for doing dissertation research (i.e., supplies, data collection, transcription, data analysis, travel, publication, etc.)
Scholarships
- Awards made to students based on merit or need
- Often smaller amounts (i.e., $500-$3500)
- Few, if any, requirements in how funds are used
Policies & Finding Funding
Graduate School Funding Policies
The Graduate School maintains the following policies related to graduate student funding/employment:
Finding Funding
To help you find resources to pay for costs related to graduate education, the Graduate School provides a comprehensive overview of the funding process on campus as well as descriptions of the types of funding available, sources of funding, minimum stipend rates and benefits, and links to applicable human resources policies (e.g. GAPP) at:
Responsibilities, Rights, Communication, and Evaluation Plan
The following worksheets have been developed to assist supervisors and teaching assistants (TA) and project assistants (PA) in creating a plan for TA/PA responsibilities, supervisor-TA/PA communication, and evaluation of the TA/PA’s performance.
Tax Information for International Students
Most international students are required to have a Glacier account before they receive funds through UW Madison payroll. You may also receive any additional funds (such as scholarships) through payroll as an international student.
For more information on Glacier accounts, Tax Filing Resources, Foreign National Payroll Help, how to obtain a Social Security Number, and more, please see the International Payroll and Tax Filing Resources page of the UW-Madison Human Resources website