Students at the University of Illinois are supported in a variety of ways. Having submitted the Application for Admission to the Graduate College, found at www.grad.uiuc.edu/admissions/apply/, you were placed in the candidate pool for consideration for all fellowships administered by the Graduate College along with fellowships and assistantships offered within the department to which you’ve applied, and some types of support are only available for new students. To be considered for continuing student support, contact your department and read the rest of this section.
In order to apply for need-based financial aid, a student must complete and file the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) between January 2 and March 15. Additional information about need-based assistance and application packets containing the FAFSA are available from the Office of Student Financial Aid, 620 East John Street, C, IL 61820, or online at www.osfa.uiuc.edu.
Many graduate students receive appointments as teaching assistants (TAs), research assistants (RAs), graduate assistants (GAs), or pre-professional graduate assistants (PGAs). Individuals with monthly-paid appointments that begin August 16 will receive their first paychecks on September 16 for the full month (August 16-September 15) as long as all necessary electronic and paper forms are completed by the student in a timely manner and processed by Academic Human Resources. Those with first-time appointments are given access to NESSIE New Hire, the interactive Web application where most employment forms are located.
If you are beginning a new appointment, it is important to fill out all required employment forms as soon as possible so as not to delay your first pay check and your dental and vision care coverage. The appointing department will provide you with access to these forms through an online system called NESSIE. When entering information into NESSIE, make sure you complete all sections of NESSIE and hit the 'submit' button at the end of each one. Please contact your appointing department if you have not completed these forms.
If you are an international student, please see the section entitled "International Students and Assistantships" below.
Assistants are appointed to fractions of full-time equivalent work based on a standard 40-hour work week, e.g. a 50% assistantship requires an average of 20 hours of work per week. Assistantship appointments between 25% and 67%, inclusive, for three-quarters of the semester, provide waivers of either the full tuition or the base-rate (in-state) tuition, depending on your program of enrollment (and regardless of residency status). Such appointments also carry waivers of the service, health service, Library/Technology, and AFMFA fees, provide a partial payment of the health insurance fee, and include vision and dental insurance. Be aware that, unless covered by some other source, students are responsible for paying all other student fees. Fees may be paid in full at the start of the term or in installments over the term. The health insurance fee can be waived if you are already covered under a comparable health insurance plan. (See section entitled "Student Health Insurance" for dates and procedures to waive this fee.)
Assistants are expected to be registered students in good standing. The Graduate College does not set a minimum number of hours an assistant is required to be registered, but some departments do set minimum requirements for registration. Assistants who also hold fellowships or scholarships are required to be registered for a minimum of twelve hours to qualify for a tuition waiver. In unusual circumstances, a reduced course load may be requested for scholars or fellows. The Graduate College has the final authority in all such matters. Guidelines for assistantship appointments are posted on the Graduate College Web site at www.grad.uiuc.edu/policies/ga_guidelines.htm. More information about assistantships can also be found in the Graduate College Handbook at www.grad.uiuc.edu/gradhandbook/.
For further information about campus tuition waiver policies, see the Graduate College Web site at www.grad.uiuc.edu/policies/tuitionwaiver.htm. For further information about assistantship policies and procedures, contact your appointing department. If additional information is needed, contact the Office of Academic Human Resources at 244-2400 (appointment processing), 333-6747 (human resources policies), or www.ahr.uiuc.edu. Questions may also be directed to the Graduate College staff at 333-0035 or in person at 204 Coble Hall, 801 S. Wright, C.
The Assistantship Clearinghouse is an online listing of available assistantships and hourly positions for graduate students. To view the postings, go to www.grad.uiuc.edu/clearinghouse/. If you are still looking for funding, we strongly advise that you check this page regularly for updated information.
The Graduate College Fellowship Office (209 Coble Hall, 801 S. Wright, C, 333-0036) provides administrative functions related to graduate student fellowships. For a list of fellowship opportunities as well as other sources of financial aid, visit the Office's Web site at www.grad.uiuc.edu/fellowship/.
Are you an international student with an assistantship offer? If so, it is critical that you complete certain steps prior to beginning work for your assistantship.
If you are in another status (including anything other than F-1 student with a valid I-20 or J-1 student with a valid DS-2019 from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign), you must consult with International Student and Scholar Services (ISSS) as soon as possible.
For questions regarding any of the above, contact ISSS (400 Student Services Building, 610 E. John, C, 333-1303, ISSS@uiuc.edu) can answer questions about any of the above procedures, or visit Information for Incoming Graduate Assistants at www.ips.uiuc.edu/isss/students/index.
Graduate students who are U.S. citizens or permanent residents may apply for federal educational loans for up to $18,500. To apply, you need to submit the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) to a federal processing center. The applications are available from the Office of Student Financial Aid, or you may file online at www.fafsa.ed.gov/. When filing the FAFSA, you must indicate the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Federal School Code # 001775 so that this institution will receive your application information. The federal processing center uses your financial information from the previous tax year to calculate an Expected Family Contribution (EFC). A new FAFSA must be submitted each year. The amount that you may borrow is limited by the Expected Cost of Attendance (as estimated by the Office of Student Financial Aid) minus any source of educational assistance, including Veterans Benefits (GI Bill), tuition and fee waivers, Federal Work Study assistantships, fellowships or scholarship funds.
There are two types of federal loans. The Federal Direct Subsidized Loan provides up to $8,500 (based on need) without interest while you are enrolled in an accredited college at least halftime. If you are not enrolled or if you are enrolled for less than half time for six consecutive months, you begin to repay your loans and the interest begins to be assessed. The interest rate varies, but is capped at 8.25%. Changes occur July 1 of every year. Currently the interest rate is much lower.
Like the Federal Direct Subsidized Loan, the Federal Direct Unsubsidized Loan requires no payment on principal while enrolled at least half-time at an accredited institution and allows for a six-month grace period of non-enrollment or less than half-time enrollment. Repayment begins when you have been registered for less than half time for more than six consecutive months. The variable interest rate changes every July 1, but will not exceed 8.25%. Currently the interest rate is much lower. The interest on unsubsidized loans, however, does begin accruing from the time the loan funds are disbursed. You cannot exceed $18,500 per year (Fall, Spring and Summer) through the combined Direct Subsidized Loan and the Direct Unsubsidized Loan. (You may be limited to less than $18,500 if your Expected Cost is less than $18,500 and/or your other resources restrict your loan eligibility to a lower amount.)
The 2007-2008 FAFSA bases its calculations on your 2006 income. If you are awarded less than $8,500 in Direct Subsidized Loan and if your 2007 income will be less than your 2006 income, you can request a Special Circumstances Information form from the Office of Student Financial Aid, and your Expected Family Contribution may be recalculated. The Office of Student Financial Aid is located in the Student Services Arcade Building, 620 E. John, C, 333-0100. For more information, including useful links, visit www.osfa.uiuc.edu.
In addition to major educational loans, the University makes special funds available for use in emergencies. Graduate students with financial problems should go to the Office of Student Financial Aid (OSFA). Staff members in that office can determine eligibility for short-term loans.
A limited number of SEAL (Student Equal Access to Learning) grants are available from the Graduate College for emergency financial aid to meet acute unanticipated needs of registered full-time students who are candidates for graduate degrees. In order to be considered for an emergency grant, students must first have applied for a short-term loan from OSFA. These grants vary from $35 to $300; applications are available in the Graduate College.
International students may also qualify for emergency funding from International Student and Scholar Services (ISSS), 400 Turner Student Services Building, 610 East John, C.
As of January 1, 2003, some students holding graduate assistantships (GAs) or pre-professional assistantships (PGAs) may be required to pay taxes on tuition and fee waivers that exceed a value of $5,250. However, not all GAs and PGAs will be required to pay taxes on their tuition waivers. Each semester GAs and PGAs whose tuition and fee waivers to date are valued at more than $5,250 will receive a notice that includes a "Declaration of Tax Exempt Status for Graduate Student Assistants' Tuition and Service Fee Waivers." The notice and form will come from the Office of the Assistant Vice President for Business and Finance. It is very important that all GAs and PGAs who receive the form complete it and return it to University Payroll at 118 MAB, (campus mail code 54), 809 S. Marshfield Ave., Chicago, IL 60612. Taxes will be withheld for students who are required to fill out this form and do not do so.
If you hold a GA or PGA appointment, you will not have to pay tax on your waiver if:
If you have a GA or PGA appointment that requires that you fill out the form, please fill out the declaration form very carefully. In doing so, it is important to review the explanatory notes about the scope of teaching and research responsibilities that pertain to the taxability issue for these appointments and about what is meant by qualifying for a new trade or business.
If you are unsure about whether your GA or PGA appointment is considered tax exempt, please contact the Payroll Office. GAs and PGAs whose tuition and fee waiver exceeds $5,250 should receive the form in the mail. If you do not receive the form, and believe that you should have, you should contact the Payroll Office. Responsibility for completing this form lies with the student holding the appointment, and not with the University. Failure by any GA or PGA to complete and return the form will result in taxes being withheld.
Please note that all questions concerning tax and income should be directed to the Payroll Service Center at (866) 476-3586 or (217) 265-6363.
In December 2002, eligible graduate assistants at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign chose the Graduate Employees' Organization (GEO/IFT/AFT/AFL-CIO) as their representative in contract negotiations. The GEO is now officially recognized as the exclusive bargaining unit for all graduate assistants (GAs) and most teaching assistants (TAs). Those graduate students who hold appointments as a research assistants (RAs) or as pre-professional graduate assistants (PGAs), and teaching assistants who are teaching for the first time in one of the following units, which have required teaching for degree completion since before 1996, the year the GEO first petitioned for an election, are not represented in the bargaining unit: Animal Biology, Biochemistry, Cell and Structural Biology, Chemistry, Germanic Languages and Literatures, Microbiology, Plant Biology, and Psychology.
For more information about the GEO, contact the organization at 1001 S. Wright, C, 344-8283, geo@shout.net, or visit the Web at www.shout.net/~geo/. To see the Agreement by and between the Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois and the Graduate Employees' Organization see the GEO Agreement with the University of Illinois (PDF).
Many organizations and foundations offer grants to support research in specialized fields. More information can be obtained from the Illinois Researcher Information Service (IRIS), Room 128, Observatory, 901 South Mathews Avenue, U, IL 61801, (217) 333-0284, or www.library.uiuc.edu/iris/; and departmental offices. IRIS compiles information on research grants; staff members will assist researchers in their search for funding. Some schools and colleges publish additional materials concerning research grants and contracts.
Veterans who believe they may be eligible for educational benefits should contact Veteran’s Educational Services, found at www.osfa.uiuc.edu/veterans/vet_index.htm in the Office of Student Financial Aid. Application for benefits should be made annually.