In the Department of AAHD, all graduate students are fully funded
What do we mean by fully funded?
Graduate students at MSU receive two types of funding: assistantships and fellowships. An assistantship is employment, either related to teaching or research, while a fellowship does not involve work. Assistantships offer tuition waivers and health insurance: students are automatically enrolled in a health insurance plan with the premium paid by the university. Enrolled students may insure eligible spouse and/or dependent children residing with the insured. For information on Graduate Assistantships and health benefits visit our HR website dedicated to graduate students: hr.msu.edu/employment/graduate-assistants or contact the Director of Graduate Studies.
Whatever your form of support, the MFA program provides full tuition waivers that cover ten credits per semester and sixty credits total over three years.
What to expect each year:
Incoming and First Year Graduate Students
- FOR THE YEAR: first semester graduate students receive an assistantship for teaching, and will assist and observe faculty mentors in the classroom. Most can expect to be instructors of record beginning in their second semester
- FOR THE SUMMER: competition for funding for research from the Graduate School
- FOR TRAVEL: competition for conference and research travel from the College of Arts & Letters and/or the Graduate School; read more here
Second Year Graduate Students
- FOR THE YEAR: most graduate students can expect to be instructors of record for both semesters
- FOR THE SUMMER: competition for funding for research from the Graduate School or for Summer College Research Abroad Monies (SCRAM)
- FOR TRAVEL: competition for conference and research travel from the College of Arts & Letters and/or the Graduate School
Third Year Graduate Students
- FOR THE YEAR: many students compete for a Dissertation Completion Fellowship to replace one semester of teaching assistantship. Otherwise, students can expect to be instructors of record for both semesters
- FOR TRAVEL: competition for conference and research travel from the College of Arts & Letters and/or the Graduate School
While funding for the year is guaranteed, students do apply for summer support, as well as smaller grants and awards throughout the program. Students compete in any year for the Varg-Sullivan Award for outstanding national/international exhibitions or publications and, in their second year, for the AAHD Selma & Stanley Hollander Fellowship, which assists students in the final year of study.
For more information about fellowships and award opportunities please visit the graduate school’s website and the College of Arts & Letter’s website.