Financial Aid Explanation

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Dave
Posts: 5
Joined: Tue Jul 22, 2008 9:19 am

Financial Aid Explanation

Post by Dave » Tue Aug 12, 2008 4:00 am

Hi, so I'm a little bit confused about how everything works financially in the US of A. If I apply, and am offered a TA'ship does this mean they will cancel my fees? Is it the norm to pay fees, or is it the norm to have them waived? How do you go about getting them waived as an international student? Where can I find a good list of scholarships for international students?

I'm pretty worried, is it normal to have to pay in the tens of thousands per year? and put that all into debt?

Many Thanks

Dave

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dlenmn
Posts: 578
Joined: Mon Dec 03, 2007 10:19 pm

Re: Financial Aid Explanation

Post by dlenmn » Tue Aug 12, 2008 10:51 am

In general, if you're going for a PhD and are offered a TA'ship, then the school will waive tuition (it doesn't matter if you're an international student or not), but everyone may have to pay some smaller fees. This is probably not true absolutely everywhere, but it's the case everywhere I looked in to. If you look carefully, they'll probably say it somewhere (two examples).

anthonyk
Posts: 30
Joined: Mon Aug 06, 2007 6:03 pm

Re: Financial Aid Explanation

Post by anthonyk » Tue Aug 12, 2008 9:04 pm

The school I'm attending covers fees but it was a weird situation. I get my stipend and then an additional check at the beginning of the semester to cover the fees. It didn't say it in my letter either. It was told to me over the phone when I asked about it.

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twistor
Posts: 1529
Joined: Thu Apr 13, 2006 2:47 pm

Re: Financial Aid Explanation

Post by twistor » Wed Aug 13, 2008 11:18 am

It depends on the school. In physics it is unusual to rack up school related debt while in graduate school. Most schools offer some kind of tuition waver+stipend, although as an international student YMMV.



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