Negotiation- is it possible to get a better funding package?

[international]

o.k, I have offers from 2 top programs- one state and one privet. In the state uni I was offered a very prestigious 5-years fellowship of around 19k; in the privet one I was offered 5 years of 26k (at least).

The problem is that I don

[socialpsych]

If you are in contact with any of the current grad students at State U, you might ask them for advice. They will probably be able to tell you whether anyone has been able to negotiate successfully or whether the package is fairly standard and therefore there is not much you can do.

[t_ruth]

you are just being greedy

If the state school's fellowship is a set amount, I'm guessing it is unlikely you can negotiate for more. If you want more, apply for outside funding

[international]

you are just being greedy

If the state school's fellowship is a set amount, I'm guessing it is unlikely you can negotiate for more. If you want more, apply for outside funding

i hope not... i'm just trying not to go bankrupt during grad school :-)

the state U fellowship is for 9-month stipend, and since i'm an international student i can't work outside the U. i was thinking more in the direction of summer grants or something.

[DEClarke85]

This may not help you, but one of my friends last year sat on his acceptance letters with funding for a little while.

By mid-March the schools contacted him, asking where all he had been accepted and what his offers for funding were. Before long, he had two schools calling him once a week and raising their offers a little. Then starting April 10th, they were calling several times a day. Eventually, Purdue won because Texas Tech was unable to go any higher.

It was exciting/awesome seeing figure get thrown at him.

Good luck!

[socialpsych]

Yeah, that's why you should ask. I have heard of people getting more funding after trying to negotiate, but at some programs I'm pretty sure it doesn't work that way. The grad students will probably know what's up.

[t_ruth]

This may not help you, but one of my friends last year sat on his acceptance letters with funding for a little while.

By mid-March the schools contacted him, asking where all he had been accepted and what his offers for funding were. Before long, he had two schools calling him once a week and raising their offers a little. Then starting April 10th, they were calling several times a day. Eventually, Purdue won because Texas Tech was unable to go any higher.

It was exciting/awesome seeing figure get thrown at him.

Good luck!

shit that's awesome!

I still don't get the impression this happens w/named fellowships though...

[engguy]

I agree with the previous poster -- waiting, while it might be the hardest part, is also your best bet at this point and your strongest negotiating tool. I doubt there will be "bidding wars" of the kinds in years past, due to the state of the economy, but there still might be some movement. Especially at a state school, the hands of the DGS might be tied until it gets closer to decision date -- april 15.

Good luck.

[rising_star]

Honestly, the state school probably can't go any higher than that. And, having never made $19K in one year while a grad student, I second the idea that you're possibly being greedy. Look at the cost of living in each place. Are they comparable? Is the state school in Gainesville while the private is in NYC? The 19K fellowship is likely their top-dollar offer and, given the state funding situation, they probably don't have the money to offer you something better, even if they wanted to.

[coqui21]

You definitely have room to try negotiating. This is true even with fellowships. Most fellowships have a 'minimum stipend' amount that schools offer, but the departments can increase funding when they really want a student (and if you were offered a fellowship, they probably really want you). I was able to secure an additional $3,000 for year 1 and $1500 for years 2-4 of my fellowship at a state school.

[miratrix]

I'm not going to say you're being greedy, if you can get more money great...but if you live anywhere that's NOT New York City, you will not go bankrupt on 19K a year. You will be fine.

[Andorin]

Is 19kUSD really a normal stipend? Holy cow.

[plisar]

Anything is better than the 10.5K some places offer.

[miratrix]

I understand that people who make decent salaries aren't used to living really frugally, but you know, it can be done. I'm making significantly less than a lot of grad students working right now, and I live in the second most expensive city in the US, so hearing people talk about larger amounts of money being insufficient to live on makes me defensive. If you have no dependents, no huge loan payments, and don't live in New York, you may be technically under the poverty line with some stipends, but you'll probably have health insurance, you'll have job security, and you're not going to starve or go without shelter and clothing or actually SUFFER IN ANY WAY as a result. Of course more money would be nice, but supporting yourself on it is not going to be an issue.

[DEClarke85]

I just hope my Ph.D. program will fund me better than my MA. My MA has been great, but I only get about $9,100 before taxes from my stipends a year. The stipend pays our every 1st and 15th from September 1 to May 15. This would actually be extremely livable in the area that my school is in, except that Texas state law doesn't allow schools to waive tuition or offer tuition cuts, so we have to pay full tuition and fees.

[miratrix]

Yikes, is that the rule for all Texas grad schools? One of my top choices is there....

[dagger]

I am almost positive that I am going to send a letter to schools where I've been accepted to ask for more/any funding. I'm still debating it. However, there is nothing to lose.

I don't see the harm in a letter that essentially states how I truly want to attend their school, but due to my own personal finances I will be unable to do so unless they are able to help reduce my financial burden.

I have no expectations to receiving funding packages as a result, but I don't see the harm at all for asking. I'm not going to demand funding and try to leverage them against another school, but just simply state my own financial situation as a barrier to attending a school that I truly want to go to.

[plisar]

Yikes, is that the rule for all Texas grad schools? One of my top choices is there....

Yes, but the department can PAY your tuition for you. This is different than a waiver, and I'm all but certain that Texas does this for candidates they want to fund.

[DEClarke85]

Yes, but the department can PAY your tuition for you. This is different than a waiver, and I'm all but certain that Texas does this for candidates they want to fund.

I hear that TTU's English deapertment will pay around 1/2 (or less) of your tuition. I have no idea what UT-Austin or TAMU may cover, but if your top choice is a school in the Texas State University (TSU) System (i.e. UNT, SHSU [the flagship school], TSU-San Marcos, SFA, etc), then do not expect much, if any, payment of tuition. The same may apply to schools in the UT and A&M systems that are not the main campus (I.e. UT-Dallas, TX A&M Commerce, etc).

Good luck!

[engguy]

Yikes, is that the rule for all Texas grad schools? One of my top choices is there....

UT will pay your tuition. They will probably list it as part of your "package," artificially inflating your deal, though you will never see that money. This is actually pretty standard. Just make sure to ask the DGS about it.