Financial Assistance
At the present time, all doctoral students in finance receive financial support from the Department, the College, and/or various external organizations. Our goal is to provide every student admitted to the program with a graduate assistantship. The assistantship is usually at a half-time level requiring the student to work as a teaching and/or research assistant for twenty hours a week. Renewal of financial assistance is contingent on the student making satisfactory progress in the program and on funding availability. Assistantships include a nine-credit hour tuition waiver for each of the Fall and Spring semesters, a four-credit hour tuition waiver for the summer session, a waiver for the out-of-state portion of tuition for non-Michigan residents, and health insurance. The waiver does not include registration fees or other fees. The typical assistantship currently pays $14,000-$15,000 for duties assigned during the academic year. Depending on funding and our teaching needs, we are typically able to offer most students an additional $4,500 assistantship over the summer for teaching. To be eligible for a teaching assignment all international students must past an oral English test (the SPEAK test) administered here at Michigan State. Since all admitted students typically receive funding, international students do not need to include the "Statement of Financial Proof" form with their application. Further details on the terms of assistantships will be provided to all students who are offered admission.