Question about external funding

[prospectivegrad1]

Hey all,

Hope everybody's application cycle is going well so far! I wanted to step aside from the interview frenzy and bring up some questions about external funding in the US/funding in general in the US. I'm Canadian so I'm not particularly knowledgeable about how this stuff works. 

i) As far as I know, my stipend will be paid by my PI; my tuition is paid by the department. True?

ii) If I secure external funding some time during graduate studies (from NIH or other funding agencies), will this money go towards covering the stipend paid by my PI? Will it go towards covering my tuition? Will it increase my stipend, if it's a big grant? 

 

 

[Bioenchilada]

That depends on the school, I think. In my program, the program pays for your tuition and stipend during the first two years. After that, your PI starts paying for your stipend, the university keeps paying for your tuition till you are done.  Getting an NIH grant will usually increase your stipend. 

Who pays what doesn't really matter because it's the university's responsibility to maintain your funding. You should never be in a spot where you have to pay or get a pay decrease.

Edited January 7, 2017 by Bioenchilada

[prospectivegrad1]

4 minutes ago, Bioenchilada said:

That depends on the school, I think. In my program, the program pays for your tuition and stipend during the first two years. After that, your PI starts paying for your stipend. Getting an NIH grant will usually increase your stipend. 

Who pays what doesn't really matter because it's the university's responsibility to maintain your funding. You should never be in a spot where you have to pay or get a pay decrease.

 

Cool! Thanks for the speedy response.

[prospectivegrad1]

6 minutes ago, Bioenchilada said:

That depends on the school, I think. In my program, the program pays for your tuition and stipend during the first two years. After that, your PI starts paying for your stipend. Getting an NIH grant will usually increase your stipend. 

Who pays what doesn't really matter because it's the university's responsibility to maintain your funding. You should never be in a spot where you have to pay or get a pay decrease.

 

Would a grant ever cover my tuition? 

[Bioenchilada]

Some grants will cover a fraction of your tuition (i.e NSF), but there's typically many benefits besides that. 

[jmillar]

23 minutes ago, prospectivegrad1 said:

Hey all,

Hope everybody's application cycle is going well so far! I wanted to step aside from the interview frenzy and bring up some questions about external funding in the US/funding in general in the US. I'm Canadian so I'm not particularly knowledgeable about how this stuff works. 

i) As far as I know, my stipend will be paid by my PI; my tuition is paid by the department. True?

ii) If I secure external funding some time during graduate studies (from NIH or other funding agencies), will this money go towards covering the stipend paid by my PI? Will it go towards covering my tuition? Will it increase my stipend, if it's a big grant? 

 

 

This will depend on the the university, and in some cases the specific department, as well as what kind of fellowship it is (which funding agency), the rules associated with the fellowship, and how much the fellowship is for. For instance, some universities will tack on a little extra as a congratulations to you, since their funding is similar to what you would get through the fellowship. Some universities will help make up the difference in funds if a fellowship is less than a typical RAship and other may only contribute up to a certain percentage. Depending on the granting agency, some will let you double up on stipends, while others do not allow this. Certain grants pay only a portion of your tuition, expecting the university to pay/waive the rest, while for others you are responsible for the rest. It's good to have a talk with your POI and other people at the university to see what specific situation applies to you.

[bornea]

Also, It should be mentioned that funding through the NIH and I think the NSF is only available to US citizens and permanent residents.