Funding for 4 years only

[J456]

Got a funded offer from UC Davis saying I have been offered funding for four years only probably because I am currently getting my master's degree. Any idea whether this is a tight call to complete a PhD program, as I will still have to start from scratch at the new program, and a PhD in US (in any field) is a longer drawn out process.

[Stat Assistant Professor]

I would talk with the Chair of the graduate admissions committee asking how likely it is for you to get funding after your fourth year. It might be the case that you are very, very likely to get funding for a fifth year, even if not offered it upfront. When I got a fellowship for my graduate program, the length of this fellowship was also only four years. But the Graduate coordinator told me that they would fund me through TA in my fifth (or even sixth) year if it took me longer than four years to finish. I can't imagine that Statistics courses would be short on demand for TA's -- especially the big intro class that thousands of students on campus have to take.

Edited February 27, 2020 by Stat PhD Now Postdoc

[cyberwulf]

4 years is fairly standard for someone with a Masters in the same field. And if you're almost but not quite done in your fifth year and making good progress, then most programs will happily find something for you even if they didn't "guarantee" it up front.