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As others have said, there’s no consensus about pretty much anything in academia. I don’t think it’s nearly as uncommon for MA/MS students to get funded as is commonly stated here, though certainly not as common as it is for the PhD. My master’s was fully funded, and most of my fellow master’s students were fully funded as well. (In fact, accounting for the cost of living, my PhD funding is actually worse!) As with so many things, a lot depends on the university and program in question. </p>
<p>Don’t limit the options to departmental funding. He should be applying to outside fellowships like the NSF and investigating other funding options at the university. Here at UCLA, for example, you can get tuition remission and a stipend through working for things like the undergraduate mentoring program. </p>