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TA support at Indiana University Grad Life
By FiCsUr
Posted Sat Feb 23, 2008 at 10:33:01 AM PDT
Is the stipend offered by american univesities (for TA positions) enough to make studying expense free? (or with minimal cost)

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  I am not sure if I placed my story in the right topic, excuse me for this. Anyway, I am an Eastern-European student, who recently has been admitted to Indiana University's Math PhD program with TA support.

  They offer for TA's a yearly stipend of around 15000$. I am not intending to make a "profit" from Graduate Life, but is this money enough to cover yearly expenses over there?

  In general: is the stipend offered by american univesities (for TA positions) enough to make studying expense free?(or with minimal cost)

  Since I have to make a decision till 15 april, any advice or comment is welcomed.

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TA support at Indiana University | 3 comments (3 topical, 0 hidden)
[new] Reply (none / 0) (#1)
by Jonny77889 on Mon Feb 25, 2008 at 01:19:26 PM PDT

I cannot say about Indiana University specifically since I do not know how much it costs to live there, but I am a TA at the University of Kentucky with about the same stipend, and I have enough money to live on. But that's not too hard for me since I have student health insurance and don't have a car and don't have extra taxes to pay that foreign students would have to pay. And I've learned to save some money in shopping by trying to buy store brands of food instead of regular brands. But whether you will have enough money depends on how much your housing will cost, how much your car costs (if you have one), and how much other stuff you need or want will cost. Other TA's here at the University of Kentucky find a way to live on the money they earn. So my guess is that you should be fine.


[new] TA Support (none / 0) (#2)
by Sean on Tue Feb 26, 2008 at 02:24:59 PM PDT

Like always, the answer to "Is it enough support?" is "It depends" Some areas are naturally more expensive (New York, Washington D.C., Boston, etc.), so that needs to be taken into account. When I was in graduate school at Penn State, the money was enough to pay for my living expenses. However, I received the same offer (financially speaking) at another school in a more expensive area; I am quite sure that offer would not be enough if I wanted to live alone. You can also check into campus housing - this can help keep expenses down.


TA support at Indiana University | 3 comments (3 topical, 0 hidden)
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