Financial Aid
Full-Support Commitments
The Applied Mathematics and Statistics Department makes a long-term full-support commitment to a limited number of Ph.D. students. These students are considered to have a commitment from the department that they will receive a full tuition waiver and a salary for either four or five years, subject to satisfactory performance in the academic program and in their duties. Fully supported students who have no previous graduate study receive a five- year commitment, while those with previous graduate study receive a four-year commitment. The department must limit such full-support commitments to a number it is confidant can be supported for their entire graduate program. Typically, approximately twenty Ph.D. students have full-support commitments.
The most common type of duties for a fully supported student is as a Teaching Assistant, providing teaching and grading services for departmental courses. Teaching Assistants are expected to serve up to 20 hours per week for 15 weeks per semester. All TAs with the full-support commitment receive the same level of funding, regardless of financial need or varying duties.
A few fully supported students serve as Research Assistants for individual faculty members who have research grants or contracts. The selection of RAs is made by the faculty member providing the funds, subject to approval by the department Chair. Students with full-support commitments who are funded as RAs, or partially as RAs, serve up to 20 hours per week for 15 weeks per semester, and receive the same level of funding as TAs, regardless of financial need or varying duties.
Outstanding eligible candidates may be nominated by the Department for certain diversity-encouraging Fellowships awarded competitively by the Engineering School. These also carry a full-support commitment contingent on satisfactory performance.
The department offers an Abel Wolman Fellowship, which provides a waiver of all tuition and a stipend comparable to the TA salary, with no duties required. The funds are provided by the Engineering School, and are restricted to first-year graduate students. The department considers each Wolman Fellow to have a full-support commitment, and provides him/her with a TA or RA after the Fellowship year, subject to satisfactory performance in the academic program and in duties.
The department offers a variable number of Rufus Isaacs Fellowships, which provide full tuition waivers and a salary/stipend combination which exceeds the standard TA salary, and possibly a smaller teaching load than the standard TA. The funds that supplement the TA salary are provided by an endowment fund dedicated to the department for this purpose. Isaacs Fellows are also considered to have a full-support commitment, subject to satisfactory performance in the academic program and duties.
Partial Support
There are several means of providing partial support that are available to the department. Waivers of up to 80% of tuition for Ph.D. students, and 40% tuition for Master's students, may be awarded to students who the department considers sufficiently qualified. These tuition awards are provided by the Engineering School, and are limited to five years in duration for Ph.D. students and two years for Master’s students. Occasionally a graduate Ph.D. student is awarded a full tuition waiver, with the 20% supplement to the Engineering School waiver being provided from departmental funds in return for teaching, grading, or office duties.
The department sometimes hires graduate students as temporary TAs or office assistants, with the level of salary dependent on the duties required and qualifications of the student. Temporary TA salaries are generally lower than the standard TA salary for similar duties (since the standard TA salary is viewed as primarily financial aid rather than payment for duties).
Partial-support Research Assistants are funded from individual faculty member's research grants and contracts. The selection of RAs is made by the faculty member providing the funds, subject to approval by the department Chair. Partial-support RA salaries are generally lower than the standard TA salary, and may depend on the duties required and the qualifications of the student.
Decision Process
All financial aid decisions are made by the department Chair, based upon recommendations from the Graduate Admissions committee, which typically consists of four department faculty. Nearly all committee recommendations are approved by the Chair.
The principal criteria for financial aid are academic credentials, language and communication skills, and teaching performance and experience. Financial need is generally not considered, except in the awarding of tuition waivers. For incoming students, the academic credentials evaluation is based on grades, recommendation letters, mathematical background, GRE scores, and TOEFL scores. For continuing students, progress in the academic program (grades, requirements satisfied, and research progress) is considered also.
Each Spring, the committee considers all current graduate students who are not fully supported for possible full-support commitment and partial-support offers, comparing their qualifications with those of new applicants. Excellent mathematical and communications skills are required for upgrading a student to full support, since the student must be capable of performing a wide range of teaching duties.
Obligations of Fully Supported Students
Ph.D. students supported fully by the department must be full-time students, and are expected to complete at least three courses per semester during their first two years, and at least two courses per term thereafter (unless there are insufficient appropriate offerings), except in the final semester before graduation.
Fully supported Ph.D. students are provided with sufficient salary to support their living expenses and allow them to devote full-time effort to their studies. Since TA, RA, and Fellowship funds are intended for this purpose, and not simply as pay for duties, it is to be understood that these students should not be employed outside the department during the academic year. Such employment may deny possible means of support to other unfunded graduate students in the department. The department reserves the right to rescind its full support commitment to a student found to be in violation of the above stipulations.
All students supported as TAs are expected to make appropriate efforts to improve their language and communication skills, which may require participating in training and improvement courses offered by the university.