What universities have PhD students *apply* for financial aid?

[MadSutherland]

My (top-tier) university's administrators are trying to address "pain points" in graduate student compensation, namely the departments on 9-month stipends and the high costs faced by students with families, by having a financial aid program grad students can *apply* to, performing their poverty on forms administered by the undergrad financial aid bureaucracy.

From my considerable personal experience, and national studies, undergrad financial aid programs exclude/leave behind many people, and are a nightmare to navigate, so I'm arguing strongly against putting the same kind of bureaucracy in charge of whether PhD students can afford their rent. (Rather, I argue, we should make all stipends 12 months and offer a childcare subsidy on par with our peers).

I'm wondering: do any other universities do an "hardship grant"-style financial aid application for their PhD students?

 

[Lewis-H]

The U.S. Department of Education and the Federal government offer financial aid programs that go beyond the needs of undergraduates. ... The Federal TEACH or Teacher Education Assistance for College and Higher Education grant program is open to graduate students pursuing their doctorate in education studies.
 

[gentvenus]

On 3/1/2020 at 1:41 AM, MadSutherland said:

My (top-tier) university's administrators are trying to address "pain points" in graduate student compensation, namely the departments on 9-month stipends and the high costs faced by students with families, by having a financial aid program grad students can *apply* to, performing their poverty on forms administered by the undergrad financial aid bureaucracy.

From my considerable personal experience, and national studies, undergrad financial aid programs exclude/leave behind many people, and are a nightmare to navigate, so I'm arguing strongly against putting the same kind of bureaucracy in charge of whether PhD students can afford their rent. (Rather, I argue, we should make all stipends 12 months and offer a childcare subsidy on par with our peers).

I'm wondering: do any other universities do an "hardship grant"-style financial aid application for their PhD students?

 

I had the impression that most schools have such support schemes. Whether they are sufficient, however, is another question.