Ph.D. Program: Cost and Funding

Tuition and Fees (2023-24, estimated)

  • In-state students: $7,559 per semester
  • Out-of-state students: $16,125 per semester

More information about tuition and fees is available from the Office of the University Cashier.

Funding

We strive to make our program as affordable as possible for all of our students through several generous fellowship packages. Most of our students enjoy three, four and sometimes even five years of funding depending on the nature and scope of their research.

School-based Fellowships and Scholarships

We offer a variety of full funding packages to applicants at the time of admission. Eligible applicants are automatically considered for this funding based on their applications for program admission. There is no additional application.

Roy H. Park Fellowships

Funded by the Triad Foundation of Ithaca, New York, the school annually awards Park Fellowships to five new doctoral students who are U.S. citizens. Each Park doctoral fellowship covers:

  • Tuition and fees for three years
  • Health insurance
  • $22,000 annual stipend for three years
  • Support for research and travel to conferences 

Each Park fellow works as a graduate assistant 15 hours per week for each semester while receiving funding. Each fellow serves as a research assistant for four semesters and as an instructor of record for two semesters. This balance allows students to develop both their research record and the teaching experience necessary to be competitive on the job market.

Orville Gray and Lucille M. Cobbs Memorial Scholarship

The Cobbs Scholarship supports an outstanding international student in the Ph.D. program. It covers:

  • Tuition and fees for three years
  • Health insurance
  • $22,000 annual stipend for three years
  • Support for research and travel to conferences 

Faculty and Center Grants

Grants secured by UNC Hussman faculty and research centers support students with three- and four-year fellowships and assistantships. These students complete a work assisgnment assisting with faculty research and receive the following benefits:

  • Tuition and fees for three or four years
  • Health insurance
  • Monthly stipend comparable to stipend rate for Park Fellowships and Cobbs Scholarship
  • Support for research and travel to conferences 

Other School-Based Funding

Fourth-year Funding

While our Park and Cole funding packages cover three years of study, fourth-year funding is also available. Some students elect to stay a fourth year to compete more effectively for research-intensive positions at Research 1 universities or to pursue more ambitious dissertations.

School Awards

The school also administers a number of other competitive awards each spring to enrolled doctoral students, including the Margaret Blanchard Dissertation Support Awards, Eli A. and Minnie S. Rubinstein Research Awards, William Francis Clingman Jr. Ethics Awards and Tom Wicker Award.

Additional Funding from The Graduate School

Early each January, we nominate top applicants, regardless of their citizenship, for highly competitive fellowships and assistantships that are available from The Graduate School. Eligible applicants are automatically considered for these nominations based on their applications for program admission. There is no additional application.

The Graduate School also accepts applications from returning students to fund an additional year of dissertation work, summer research, confernce travel or unexpected academic expenses.

Financial Aid Office

Students can apply for federal loans through the Office of Scholarships and Student Aid.