Washington Univ. Graduate Funding

Graduate Student Funding in Anthropology

In addition to the research interests of the faculty, an important variable that must be considered in choosing a graduate program is financial assistance. The Department of Anthropology at Washington University has an outstanding record of supporting its graduate students. The University admits students into the program with the intention of providing adequate continuing support through their graduate career.

All incoming doctoral students are normally supported by University fellowships, which include coverage of full tuition plus a monthly stipend. The stipend for 2008-9 is $19,020. As St. Louis is not an expensive city in which to live, this provides a very good standard of living, including the rental of excellent housing near campus. Several other fellowships with generous stipends are available to outstanding new students at Washington University, including outstanding women (through the Mr. & Mrs. Spencer T. Olin Fellowship for Women in Graduate Study) and minority candidates (through the Chancellor's Graduate Fellowship Program). The Graduate School of Arts & Sciences has more information on these special fellowships under "Financial Information" on its Web site, www.artsci.wustl.edu/GSAS.

Second- and third-year support is usually in the form of teaching assistantships (also $19,020 for 2008-09) in conjunction with tuition scholarships. Most students obtain support for their own dissertation fieldwork through national granting agencies such as the National Science Foundation, Fulbright, National Geographic Society, and the Wenner-Gren Foundation. Training students how to write competitive grant proposals is an important part of the department's graduate program, and students in the program have an outstanding record of winning outside funding (see this list of recent grants). Upon completing their fieldwork, students are usually supported through the University's dissertation fellowship, which provides a nine-month stipend while the dissertation is being written.

Additional departmental funds are earmarked for other graduate student activities. First- and second-year students may apply for summer research funds to conduct the preliminary fieldwork that is often crucial to setting up dissertation projects. Among the students who won summer research funds recently were some traveling to the Czech Republic, Haiti, France, India, and South Africa. Travel funds are also available for students to help cover the costs of attending national conferences where they present research papers. Overall, the Department of Anthropology is committed to providing comfortable support so that productive students can progress through the program in timely fashion without the distraction of having to hold outside jobs.

Washington University in St. Louis encourages and gives full consideration to all applicants for admission, financial aid, and employment. The University does not discriminate in access to, or treatment or employment in, its programs and activities on the basis of race, color, age religion, sex, sexual orientation, national origin, veteran status, or disability. Present Department of Defense policy governing ROTC and AFROTC programs discriminates on the basis of sexual orientation; such discrimination is inconsistent with Washington University policy. Inquiries about compliance should be addressed to the Executive Director of Human Resources, Washington University in St. Louis, Campus Box 1184, One Brookings Drive, St. Louis, MO 63130-4899, (314) 935-5990.

Further information is available on external funding for graduate students.