Graduate students in Biology are supported by a variety of mechanisms
including teaching assistantships, research assistantships, training grants,
and external (e.g. NSF) and internal (University) fellowships.
Beginning in the fall semester of 2005, first-year doctoral students will
receive a stipend of $15,000 per year and will be expected to serve as
teaching assistants in a single semester-length course. After the first year,
teaching assistants will be expected to serve in two semester-length courses
in order to receive the full basic stipend (currently $15,000 for second-year
students and $16,000 for those who have passed their qualifying examination).
TAs are expected to devote no more than 20 hours per week to instructional
duties. The TA stipend can be supplemented from other sources up to a total
of $23,000 per year (as of 2005). However, the cost of living in Salt Lake
City is relatively low, and most students find that they can live comfortably
on the basic stipend. (Cost-of-living comparisons among cities can be made at
www.bestplaces.net/html/cost_of_living.html.)
Many students are also supported for at least a few years from their advisor's
research grants. Research Assistantships currently pay $15-23,000 per year.
There are several campus-wide NIH graduate training grants, including ones in
Genetics, Developmental Biology, Biological Chemistry, Cancer, Microbial
Pathogenesis, and Hematology. These provide stipend support (currently
$20,772 per year) and opportunities to participate in a variety of
interdepartmental, discipline-specific activities including journal clubs,
seminar series, and yearly retreats. Eligibility requirements differ among
the training programs; some (for example, Genetics and Developmental Biology)
invite students who have passed their qualifying exams to submit competitive
applications for positions as they become open.
The University offers a limited number of Graduate Research Fellowships,
Competitive University Teaching Assistantships, and other University fellowships.
Information can be found on the financial aid page
maintained by the Graduate School. A list of federal (NSF, NIH, EPA, etc.) and
private (HHMI, etc.) national graduate fellowship programs can also be
found at that site.
WEST (Water, Environment, Science, Teaching) Fellowships will soon be available
to students who would like to contribute to primary and secondary school science
education while doing their graduate research. WEST Fellowships will pay $30,000
for one year. A link to the WEST program web site will be added when it comes on
line.
Students enrolled in master's degree (M.S.) programs are not automatically
eligible for support, although certain forms of support may be offered on a
case-by-case basis.
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