BME PHD STUDENT HANDBOOK

Financial Matters

Students receiving support

Beginning in 2003, the Biomedical Engineering Program and the laboratories support where the stidents do a rotation for the first two years. After that, support comes from the laboratory in which the student is working. The Program considers support in the third and later years to be a non-negotiable responsibility of faculty mentors and informs them of that responsibility when the student commits to a particular thesis project and mentor. (For students entering the program prior to 2003, the program support period is for five years.)

Nature of support

In addition to a full tuition grant, the Program pays students a stipend, the level of which is determined annually by the School of Medicine. In addition, the Program pays for the individual medical insurance required by the University. When possible, the Program pays matriculation fees and microscope rental fees. Of course, students who have received individual competitive awards for stipends greater than the Medical School standard will receive the full amount awarded to them.

Ph.D. and M.D.-Ph.D. students will be supported by the Program through the end of the month in which they defend their thesis. Once a student has defended his/her thesis, that student's advisor may choose to support the student after the end of the month in which the defense takes place.

M.D.-Ph.D. students cannot be supported by the Program for the time they will be returning to Medicial School. M.D.-Ph.D. students must let the M.D.-Ph.D. Program Office and the BME Ph.D. Program Office know when they are going to be returning to Medical School. M.D.-Ph.D. students who are supported by the MSTP will be eligible for the reminder of the MSTP support they are due, at the NIH level of support. The M.D.-Ph.D. student's advisor may choose to supplement the MSTP stipend (from non-Federal funds) to bring the stipend up to the standard graduate student stipend level.

Students are strongly advised to attend professional meetings in their areas of concentration, and limited funds are available to support this travel (See section on Student Travel).

The Program is specifically not responsible for research expenses (including computer time) and the costs of dissertation preparation. These expenses must be covered by students' research advisors.

Sources of funds

Funds for the Ph.D. Program in Biomedical Engineering come from a variety of sources, including

Competitive fellowship awards to individual students.

Department of Biomedical Engineering funds

Training grants from the National Institutes of Health (NIH)

Teaching assistantships from the Whiting School of Engineering

Stipends and tuitions from the Dean of the School of Medicine

Foundations and industrial grants

Students' obligations

Because the Program receives teaching assistantships from the Whiting School of Engineering and because the faculty believes that teaching experience is generally beneficial in graduate education, all students are obligated to do a limited amount of teaching (see the section on Teaching Requirement). Teaching assistantships are rotated among a subset of the students, but they are not necessarily paid to students during the year (or years) in which they are teaching.

Advantages of seeking independent funding

Although, as described above, the Program is committed to providing as much funding as possible for its students, there are good reasons why students should attempt to obtain their own support.

First, being awarded a competitive fellowship is a real honor, one which will follow you as you apply for postdoctoral positions, permanent employment, and research grants.

Second, the stipend level for fellowships may be higher than the standard level set by the School of Medicine, in which case your stipend will be higher (it cannot be lower and the fellowship stipend will be supplemented if it is lower than the School of Medicine standard). In addition, a fellowship may have travel and research expense allowances which will pay your way to scientific meetings and purchase books and other supplies.

External sources of funds

Several foundations, both governmental and private, provide funding for biomedical engineering education. Each source has certain restrictions. For instance, NSF requires applicants to be in their first semester of graduate school. Others direct funds specifically to minorities, women, applicants interested in space medicine, etc. The BME Program office can provide suggestions as to fellowship programs available to specific students.