What's a good amount for funding?

[snuz]

My dept. at Simon Fraser only recommends students for funding; there is no application process. So my advisor is recommending me for 18k for the first two years with an additional 21k for the first four years. This is an exorbitant amount of money for funding, isn't it? I feel like I'm missing the small print or something.

[0002684179]

Not exorbitant at all. This money will allow you to concentrate on your studies and not starve to death.

 

It could be that your advisor believes they won't get the full amount so asks for more than is needed.

Edited February 24, 2017 by 0002684179
Forgot stuff.

[TakeruK]

Remember that in Canada, we have to pay tuition from our funding packages. So this is an averaged total funding package of $30k per year ($120k total over 4 years). After you pay about $5k-$6 in tuition and fees, that only leaves $24k or so for everything else. This is a very typical funding package.

If this funding is in addition to a tuition waiver, then that's nice! $30k a year is a very good amount of funding. More generous than the minimums but certainly not exorbitant.

Also are you a Canadian resident (i.e. would you have to pay international tuition costs and fees?) If so, do you get extra funding for that or will you also have to pay international student fees out of this funding? If it's the latter, then I would actually be worried that it wouldn't be enough funding, actually. 

For Vancouver, I think a good amount of funding is about $25,000 per year after paying all tuition and fees. You can certainly live on less than that, but if you are asking what a "good" amount is, I would say at least $25k take-home pay.

[snuz]

This feedback is helpful. Tuition is only $1700 a semester, but I think it does come out of my funding. I'm pretty sure I don't have to pay international fees, but I'm going to double check on that right now.

Appreciate the help.

Update: Tuition is actually nearly $1800 a semester, but after four years it's reduced to $900. I love Canada.

Edited February 25, 2017 by snuz

[TakeruK]

Okay so that's $5400 per year on tuition (and maybe a little bit for fees?). The west coast schools have much lower tuition than the ones out east (I paid $7000 ish per year for my MSc school in Ontario). In any case, you will be at around the $25k mark for take-home pay so that's great!