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Graduate Studies in History

Department Financial Aid

Carnegie Mellon is a private university with tuition rates comparable to those of other such institutions ($32,200 for 2008-2009). We recognize, however, that after financing four years of undergraduate education, most graduate students cannot pay tuition for another several years. The Department of History has resources to support graduate students through combinations of full and partial tuition waivers, fellowships, teaching assistantships, and research assistantships. We try to manage the admissions process in such a way that all Ph.D. students making satisfactory progress will be supported for at least four years.

The History Department offers four-year financial aid packages for incoming graduate students, including full tuition remission plus a yearly stipend of $17,000 and health insurance. Most commonly, entering Ph.D. students will receive such awards on the basis of merit and need. After the first year of study, students receiving financial aid are generally expected to work in teaching or research assistantships. Students also receive a semester free of teaching obligations following defense of their dissertation prospectus to facilitate research. All financial awards are conditional on satisfactory progress in the program. First- and second-year students are rigorously evaluated each semester, and continuing students are monitored regularly as to their satisfactory progress. Students whose dissertation research continues beyond the fifth year remain eligible for financial support, although the department cannot guarantee it.

To apply for financial aid complete the PDF form Graduate Financial Aid Application, or obtain a hard copy of the application from Enrollment Services, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh PA 15213-3890, 412-268-8186.

Additional sources of Financial Aid and Grants

Graduate students have been quite successful in recent years in competitions for outside dissertation and research funding, winning grants from (among others) the Woodrow Wilson Foundation, the American Association of University Women, the Guggenheim Foundation, National Science Foundation, the Smithsonian Institution, the Spencer Foundation, and the Council for International Exchange of Scholars (Fulbright Grants). Students have also received competitive grants from many libraries, archives, historical societies, and government and non-government sources. In addition to departmental awards, the university offers stipends for students from under-represented minority groups.

Additional Information about Financial Assistance can be found at Enrollment Services.

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