Funding

The PhD program offers financial support to students as outlined in the offer letters sent to students on acceptance into the program. Unlike the financial support for MA students, which comes from Program endowments, support for PhD students comes from the Graduate Division in the form of block grants to the program and Graduate Student Researcher (GSR) positions and stipends that are provided by the Social Science Division.

Additional financial support is obtained from a combination of fellowships and Teaching Assistantships (TAships) that students procure in other departments. Students apply as well to special fellowships offered by UCLA, such as the Cota-Robles Fellowship and other endowed funds. The final year of thesis completion is usually funded through a (competitive) Dissertation Year Fellowship from the Graduate Division. Additional funding for continuing students is available through UCLA as well as through extramural organizations.

Students are strongly encouraged to apply for outside funding, such as, the National Science Foundation Graduate Research Funding or the Jacob K. Javits Fellowship from the US Department of Education, prior to admission or within the first year of graduate school. Additional information on financial support can be found in the PhD Program Student Handbook.