Graduate Students
Financial Aid for Graduate Students
Graduate financial aid is available in three general categories:
- Merit-based aid such as fellowships, assistantships, and scholarships
- Need-based grants and employment
- Non-need based loans – federal and private.
To apply for assistantships, fellowships, and scholarships, check the appropriate response on the Graduate Admissions Application. The dean’s office or the department of your major will notify you of academic-based awards.
Merit-Based Aid
Assistantships
Assistantships are paid appointments awarded to qualified graduate students requiring part-time teaching, research, or residence hall duties. Assistantship salaries, tuition, and health benefits vary from program to program. See the appropriate catalog for specific information.
Fellowships and Scholarships
Nationally competitive stipends plus tuition are available for most programs in the Graduate School-New Brunswick, the Graduate School-Newark, and the Graduate School of Applied and Professional Psychology. Other graduate programs have more limited support.
Unless the program lists an earlier deadline, incoming graduate students need to submit the graduate application for admission by March 1, prior to the academic year. For specific information, contact the program or dean’s office.
Need-Based Aid
To apply for Federal and New Jersey financial aid programs, file the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) for each school year that you are seeking assistance. The Office of Financial Aid recommends filing the FAFSA by January 15 (NOTE: The date for the 2024-2025 FAFSA is March 15, 2024), unless your program specifies an earlier financial aid or admission application deadline.
What is Need-Based Aid?
Financial need for need-based aid is the difference between the cost of attendance (tuition and fees, books, room and board, transportation, and other education-related expenses) and expected family contribution (EFC, calculated from FAFSA information) for the period of enrollment.
Types of Need-Based Aid for Graduate Students
Alternative Funding Options
Graduate and professional students can also explore private loan options and scholarship opportunities to assist in financing their education. For more information on merit-based assistance, contact your graduate program or dean’s office. Master’s Tuition Scholarships may also be available through your graduate program.
Diversity Awards
The university provides special award opportunities to promote the diversity of university programs. These awards include the Biomedical Research Support Program Fellowships; Bunting-Cobb Fellowships for Women in Math, Science, and Engineering; Diversity Advancement Fellowships; National Consortium for Graduate Degrees for Minorities in Engineering and Science Fellowships, Trustees’ Graduate Fellowships in the Humanities and Social Sciences; and Ralph Johnson Bunche Fellowships for newly admitted students in graduate and professional studies. For more information, call (732) 932-7275 and deans’ offices.
Fellowships & Scholarships
Available from the Graduate School–Newark
Daniels S. Lehrman Fellowship: Outstanding students in the graduate program in psychology are eligible for the Daniel S. Lehrman Fellowship.
Minority Biomedical Research Fellowships: The Minority Biomedical Research Support (MBRS) Program, which is funded by the National Institutes of Health, provides fellowships, including tuition remission, for minority students who plan to have research careers in the biomedical sciences.
Rutgers Excellence Dissertation Fellowship Awards: This fellowship was established to honor Provost Emeritus Norman Samuels, and provides one-time awards to attract outstanding doctoral applicants. Each recipient will be named a Norman Samuels Fellow.