If you are just beginning your funding search, here are answers to some basic questions:
How do students pay for graduate school?
Most students pay for graduate school through a combination of the following ten avenues.
- Private loans
- Federal student loans
- Tax incentives
- Savings
- Work
- Employee benefits (see information on the UA's educational benefits)
- Tuition waivers
- Teaching or research assistantships
- Fellowships from the university (internal funding)
- Fellowships from outside the university (external funding)
How do I find information about these resources?
Your department is your primary source of information about funding. Be sure to first take your questions to your Graduate Coordinator, the Director of Graduate Studies in your department, and your advisor. Working for the UA as a Graduate Assistant or as an employee is often a good way to fund a graduate education. Find more information about working at the UA through UA Talent.
Be sure to be in contact with the Office of Scholarships and Financial Aid for cost planning, information on loans, and more.
For more information on finding funding, see our article on the topic, our collection of resources, and our podcast episode on funding.
How do international students find funding?
Funding for international students can be a challenge. We have a helpful article with tips for international students.
Immigrants Rising maintains a list of opportunities for undergraduate and graduate students that don’t require proof of US citizenship or legal permanent residency.
Where can I find more information on fellowships for graduate school?
For basic information on fellowships, please refer to our article, Fellowships 101A.
Our resources for finding funding gathers best strategies for searching for funding.
We also have a monthly GradFunding advice column on applying to fellowships. You can sign up to receive the GradFunding newsletter via email.