Graduate Assistantships

The School of Economic Sciences has several graduate research/teaching assistantships available for fall semester. We are inviting applications from self-motivated students to pursue a Ph.D. degree in our department. The graduate assistants are expected to work half-time assisting School of Economics’ faulty in teaching or in research. There is a wide range of fields to accommodate the student’s research interests.

The stipend is competitive and the assistantship includes a tuition waiver and health insurance. The colleague-like relationship between faculty and graduate students in our department helps to explore the students’ academic talent.

Please see Financial Assistance for details of application.

Contact

Financial Assistance

Assistantships are offered on a competitive basis to applicants who show the most promise for excellence in graduate work and for contributing to the research or teaching programs that provide the funds for their assistantships. Previous academic performance, level of competence in economics and research techniques, and the evaluation of references are all taken into account. The rate of support and the fees paid by graduate students are set at the university level and are subject to frequent change.

WSU offers both research and teaching assistantships. Half-time research and teaching assistants may register for up to 14 hours of graded classes. Research assistants are assigned to work on one of the School’s current research projects, and teaching assistants help in one or more of the classes taught by the School.

At this point, common assistantships (with a 20-hour per week work obligation) pay an estimated monthly stipend of $1,949. The stipend is provided for the nine-month academic year. Health insurance and most tuition costs are provided to you in addition to the stipend, resulting in a total award value of up to $46,396 depending on residency status. Also, students in good academic standing typically receive one additional month of pay for teaching and/or research assistance during the summer.

Therefore, Ph.D. students with a 9-month assistantship plus one-month of summer pay receive a total stipend estimated at $19,490 per year. Please note that we plan to increase monthly stipends starting every year, conditional on funding availability.

Application for Financial Assistance

Prospective students may apply to the School for financial assistance at any time, but it is advised that applications be made as early as possible. In general, a complete application file (including GRE scores) should be submitted to the Graduate School no later than January 10. To apply for an assistantship, check the appropriate box on the application form.

Other Assistance

A number of opportunities are available to graduate students to support graduate study. These include scholarships, special grants through the Graduate School, research and teaching work paid on an hourly basis, and summer jobs related to specific projects.