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Whether or not one agrees with the Notorious B.I.G.'s statement of "Mo Money Mo Problems", having enough money in grad school is vital to wellness, stress management, and success. Here's some information about how to earn money in grad school, resources for managing the money you earn, and thinking long-term about finances after finishing grad school.
Whether or not one agrees with the Notorious B.I.G.'s statement of "Mo Money Mo Problems", having enough money in grad school is vital to wellness, stress management, and success. Here's some information about how to earn money in grad school, resources for managing the money you earn, and thinking long-term about finances after finishing grad school.
Getting money in grad school
Getting money in grad school
First and foremost, joining a lab that is able to fund you for most of your time as a Ph.D. student will help immensely in both dealing with finances and preventing an unnecessarily long time to graduation. Masters students' time in grad school is much shorter, so this may be less of an issue but tuition still needs to be paid somehow unless you need to temporarily suspend academic work or it's your last quarter. Here are the main ways that students are funded in grad school:
FAFSA: Like undergraduate students, graduate students should fill out a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) application every year. Although there may be very little "free" grant money for graduate students, the time required to fill out an application is worth the payoff since every penny counts. Filling out a FAFSA also gives you the option of getting student loans, should you need any.
Fellowship and training grant applications: Fellowships and training grants are one of the main ways that students fund their education. Filling out applications can be time consuming but it's great practice for writing grant applications in the future regardless of whether or not your applications are award the fellowship/grant. More importantly, applying for fellowships and grants gives you a chance to get them; not applying guarantees you won't get any. If you don't succeed the first time, keep trying! Visit the Fellowships page for a list of fellowships and training grants, and tips & resources for how to apply.
Teacher Assistant positions: Getting a teacher assistant position (TA-ship) may be necessary at some point in your grad school career, typically when there's a gap in lab funding. The bright side is that TA-ships and reader positions of at least 25% time give students a full tuition remission (i.e. your PI doesn't need to pay your tuition for that quarter) and answering your undergrad students' questions on the spot can be great practice for your qualifying exam. Visit the TA-ship page for information on how to apply.
Additional jobs on and off campus: Other jobs on campus are sometimes available via Handshake if you have the extra time and need the extra cash. Be on the look-out for emails from our grad group coordinator for additional opportunities. Don't hesitate to think outside the box as well! Students in the past have found creative ways to make a little extra money, such as writing fiction and selling the novels on Amazon.
Special Financial Assistance for Families
Special Financial Assistance for Families
The Worklife Family Care resources page lists 3 main child care funding options for students:
The Student Parent Child Care Grant, also known as the UC Davis Child Care Funding program, consists of two grants: the Graduate Student Child Care Grant and the Community Based Care Grant. While both are designed to partially defray student families' child care expenses, the Graduate Student Child Care Grant (GSCCG) is available to Graduate and Professional students, whereas the Community Based Care Grant (CBCG) is available to all students identified with financial need. Housed under Human Resource's WorkLife, these grants are processed through the Financial Aid office.
The California Student Aid Commission offers an award of up to $6,000 at webgrants4students.org for students attending a UC who have dependent children under the age of 18 receiving more than half of their support from them.
The Financial Aid Office also offers loans to help student who have dependent children and related child care expenses through an Alternative Budget Request, which increases the student's budget to cover additional family expense. The Alternative Budget Request Form is available online to both undergraduate and graduate students.
More financial assistance for student parents can be found on the full Worklife Financial Assistance Page.
UC Davis employees, faculty, and students may also receive discounts on various services and items.
Managing money in grad school
Managing money in grad school
Now that you've got some hard-earned money, here are some tools to help you make the most of it. Don't forget to keep organized records of your financial records and immediately contact your PI, department's accounting department, and/or UC Path if you notice any errors or irregularities in your paycheck! Similarly, regularly checking your credit score can help you detect identity theft or other issues early before the situation gets worse.
Filing taxes
Filing taxes
Depending on your situation, filing taxes as a grad student can be complicated since the laws may change certain years. UC Davis provides some tax information, tax information for students, and taxation reporting & compliance help. Thankfully there are resources both on and off campus that can help (just remember to file before the deadline to avoid a penalty!):
GSA contracted accountant: As the Graduate Student Association website has mentioned, the GSA has partnered with Meaghan Likes, CPA, to host an annual tax workshop to help graduate students understand their often complicated tax forms. The workshop will be held during Winter Quarter annually. Meaghan also does some one-on-one consulting with students who have particularly complex issues.
Students in VITA, UC Davis: The Students in Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) at UC Davis provide free tax preparation services for low to moderate-income families. For more information, contact them via email or LinkedIn. If they are not available, use the VITA locator provided by the State of California Franchise Tax Board to find the closest VITA program.
IRS tools: The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) also provides many free tools for filing your taxes and answering tax law questions.
International students: The Services for International Students and Scholars (SISS) gives international students an overview of filing taxes and a list of resources for filing taxes.
Managing spending habits
Managing spending habits
The SHCS webpage describes financial wellness and financial stress pretty well. Here are some programs it recommends for managing spending:
Aggie Blue to Gold, Financial Wellness Program - The Aggie Blue to Gold Financial Wellness Program has online resources and student advisors you can meet with to help you improve your financial wellness.
Cash Course - Cash course is a budgeting tool designed for students.
Mint - Mint is a budgeting tool that helps you create and stick to budgets. It is also available as a mobile app.
Here are some tips for budgeting. The UC Davis Human Resources Worklife Student Parent Resources page has additional resources for financial well-being. Although it may be far in the future, but it never hurts to start saving for retirement early if your situation allows it.
As grad students, we juggle a lot from day to day but one day our lives as grad students will end, so don't neglect to use the resources available for career development and finding a job.
As grad students, we juggle a lot from day to day but one day our lives as grad students will end, so don't neglect to use the resources available for career development and finding a job.
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