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PhD Financial Assistance

Financial Assistance Opportunities for PhD Students
George Mason University and the School of Public Policy are committed to assisting students by providing opportunities for financial support. Assistance for PhD students includes the following:

Graduate Research Assistantships
The School of Public Policy offers Graduate Research Assistantships (GRAs) for full-time PhD students. GRAs provide tuition remission for three courses and an annual stipend. In exchange for this, students are asked to complete 20 hours per week of research with an SPP faculty member. To be considered for a GRA, please indicate this on the application. Contact spp@gmu.edu for more information.

Federal Aid
To apply for need-based federal assistance, students are required to fill out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) form. To receive priority consideration for these funds, FAFSA forms should be received by the federal processor on or before March 1. For other questions regarding need-based federal assistance, please visit the Office of Student Financial Aid.

Mason’s Office of Graduate Fellowships
The Mason Office of Graduate Fellowships offers information on external fellowships and funding opportunities for graduate students (e.g., national and regional competitive awards that come from outside the university, for example, from government agencies, private organizations, or philanthropic trusts).

Reflecting Mason's diversity, the School of Public Policy's student body comes from numerous countries including Argentina, Azerbaijan, China, India, Iraq, Japan, Mongolia, South Korea, Sudan, Sweden, Thailand, and Venezuela.

Students are taught by a world-renowned faculty who are leading researchers in their field as well as top-notch practitioners in the world of public policy.

Each year, the Graduate Admissions Office recruits students from a wide geographic pool, traveling to at least 15 different states and multiple countries to attract the best and brightest applicants.

SPP students experience a first-class education at a very competitive cost.