Funding

Types of financial support

Funding refers to financial support for your education that comes from your department, university, or external source (such as the NSF, NIH, your home country's government, etc.).  Positions like Teaching and Research Assistantships (TA and RA) fall under this category.  You generally don't need to pay the money back, although an award may come with certain requirements for work, research, or publishing while you are receiving the support. 

Financial Aid refers to financial assistance that comes from the US government, usually in the form of student loans that need to be repaid.  Financial aid is generally based on state/federal programs and completion of the FAFSA or WAFSA; thus, most financial aid is limited to US citizens and permanent residents.

• Office of Student Financial Aid 

  • Financial aid awards from FAFSA or WAFSA, administering and adjusting award
    
    

Emergency aid assists students experiencing unexpected financial hardships that may disrupt their education or prevent them from getting their degree.  Aid may come in a variety of forms, including grants, loans, or campus/community resources.  

• Emergency aid resources at UW Seattle 

• Any Hungry Husky 

  • Campus food pantry (emergency appointments available)

  • Food security grants

  • Off-campus food banks, support services, and resources

Funding opportunities

Within the Department

The availability of TA and grader positions depends primarily on what courses are being offered and how many positions remain after PhD students with funding commitments are assigned.  These positions are posted on the AA website as they become available, typically a few weeks before the start of each quarter. 

RA positions are generally offered by faculty, based on the availability of funds and the kind of support they need in their research projects.  Most commonly, students are offered positions after they have been working with the faculty on some research or a project for a few quarters.  

Graduate students may be hired within academic departments as TAs or RAs, graders, or student assistants.  Any student is eligible, and international students in these positions are not required to enroll in CPT credits to work and get paid. The Student Employment & Research website provides more information about student employment types and expectations.

Within other UW departments

AA students have been hired in other departments in the past and we do not restrict our students from being funded by faculty outside of the AA Department.  Physics, ME, and ESS occasionally recruit our students for TA or grader positions, and these opportunities are sent on the aa-grads listserv as we receive them.  Students are encouraged to search for employment across a wide set of engineering and related departments; however, be aware that departments will prioritize their own students for paid positions.

Additional funding resources

• GFIS - Graduate Funding Information Service

  • GFIS is a great place to start looking for funding and preparing for funding applications.  They post a wide variety of funding opportunities, from one-time awards to long-term fellowships, with the entire UW grad student population as their audience.

  • Start with the funding resources guide and keep an eye on the blog for new opportunities that you may qualify for.  Consider attending a funding workshop or drop-in hours.

• The Graduate School administers several funding opportunities, many of which are available for international or master's-level students.

• Other places at UW to look for funding

  • Including conference travel grants through GSFEI or GPSS