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Financial Support

General Information

Students must be admitted formally to a graduate degree program to be eligible for a graduate assistantship. All first-year students are offered funding and funding is available through 5 years for all students making good progress in the program. Assistantships are awarded based on actual or potential teaching ability, research and technology skills, or other special expertise. Graduate teaching and research assistants typically have their in-state and out-of-state tuition costs waived, but still pay for fees. To retain an assistantship, graduate assistants must be in good standing in the program, maintain a 3.0 grade point average, and enroll in 9 credits during the fall and spring terms, and 6 credits in the summer.

For additional funding options, students may contact the Financial Aid office and the Graduate School. Cost of living is fairly low in Gainesville and there are many ways to reduce your expenses (see FAQs)

Assistantships

Teaching assistantships. Teaching assistants (TAs) assist faculty instructors with teaching, grading, and developing course materials. A teaching assistantship is the typical assignment for an incoming first-year student.

Research Assistantships. Research assistants (RAs) work closely with faculty on their research programs. Depending on the nature of the research, RAs may prepare for and administer experiments; recruit participants; learn laboratory skills; care for animals; organize, code and analyze data; and lead or participate in meetings of the laboratory staff.

Other Funding Awards

Graduate School Funding Award (GSFA). This is one of the most prestigious awards offered to incoming graduate students in our department. Administered through the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, the stipend is $25,000 for a 12 month appointment plus tuition waiver in each of 4 years. The GSFA carries with it two years of research assistantship with your faculty mentor and two years of service as a teaching assistantProspective graduate students may be invited (including a summer assistantship).

McKnight Foundation Doctoral Fellowships. McKnight fellowships are available to newly entering African-American or Hispanic students who are U.S. citizens (application deadline January 15). The McKnight Fellowship is over $12,000 per year in addition to the assistantship stipend for 3-4 years. Information is available at the Graduate School website and from the Florida Education Fund at (813) 272-2772. http://www.graduateschool.ufl.edu/prospective-students/funding/fellowships/mcknight-doctoral-fellowship/

Grinter Awards are sponsored by the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences and are available to newly entering graduate students. For highly qualified students, these awards provide additional funding of $2,000-$2,500 a year, over and above the assistantship stipend, for three years

The Jacquelin Goldman Summer Fellowships in Developmental Psychology. Recurring Summer Fellowship. At least 1 award will be made annually to the incoming student with the greatest research potential in Developmental Psychology. Depending on satisfactory progress, the award may be renewed for a maximum of 5 summers. This Fellowship will be awarded by the Developmental Area during the regular admissions process. No additional application is required.

The Florida Board of Education (BOE) summer fellowship program provides the opportunity for newly admitted ethnic minority and first generation graduate students to begin their research and graduate studies in the summer before they enter graduate school full time. Students who enroll in this program must enroll as full-time students the following academic year and are eligible for other fellowships.

Other Information

Office of Graduate Diversity Initiatives Prospective graduate students may be invited for a full two day-visit on campus through the auspices of the campus visitation program of the Office of Graduate Diversity Initiatives. This visitation program provides an excellent opportunity for underrepresented students to learn more about the University of Florida and to get to know faculty in the psychology department. Eligible students include first-generation college students (parents and siblings have not completed any college degrees) and ethnic minorities (African-Americans, Hispanic-Americans, Native Alaskans – Aleuts and Eskimos, Native Americans and Native Pacific Islanders). Qualified applicants are encouraged to participate in this program in the fall before they apply to our graduate program.