Questions about loans, scholarships, and stipends.

[WayOutWestMom]

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6. I’m not 100% sure where I’m going to end up for my graduate program at this point due to family and how we can roll with things down the road. I do want to head to the best school possible though. I have read that in my field of physics, many graduate programs will cover not only tuition, but living expenses as well (mainly because you don’t have the option of having time to do much of anything but school at that point). I am curious, how often is it that the schools offer these types of stipends in my field and is it typical for them to cover both tuition and living expenses?

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<p>Most graduate physics program fund their grad students by offering either teaching or research assistantships. These offer a tuition remission plus a living expenses stipend. (Stipends are running in the $20,000-$25,000 range at many schools right now.) You are expected to work in return for the stipend–either by TAing/teaching undergrads or by working as a research asst for a research group. Or a combination of both. </p>

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7. Are stipends competitive like scholarships or are they the norm if you are accepted to that college?

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<p>Admission to top grad programs is extremely competitive. But generally if you are accepted, you will likely be funded. Occasionally, a program will accept you, but not fund you. If that happens you have a choice to go there and pay your own way (typically by taking out student loans) while hoping to get picked up for funding by a research group after you’ve proven yourself , or going elsewhere/not at all. Not getting funded is more likely to happen if you’re taken off a waitlist or are accepted later in the admission cycle.</p>

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8. Are there cetain types of colleges that tend to offer stipends more often than others? I’m interested in trying to go to some of the top schools for physics, so how are they (on average) in regards to offering this type of financial assistance?

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<p>Grad physics programs all fund their students–from the top programs down thru very mediocre programs.</p>