Fellowships, Tuition, Scholarships & Financial Aid

PRGS's mission is to train future leaders, especially those who will serve in the public sector. For this reason, the program is designed to enable students to graduate with little or no debt if they meet the work requirements of their fellowships.

The Pardee RAND Graduate School offers a research-based fellowship to all incoming students. The entering level for research fellowships in 2011-2012 is $50,000 (taxable) per year. The fellowship is designed to pay tuition plus a modest living stipend ($25,000 before tax). PRGS also provides health insurance coverage, through RAND. Dependents may be included in this subsidized health insurance coverage at the student's expense.

PRGS fellowships are based on students' participation in RAND research projects. This on-the-job training (OJT) is valuable both educationally and financially. (For more on OJT, please see On-the-Job Training). PRGS students learn policy analysis by doing it, as part of interdisciplinary RAND research teams working on problems that range from the inner city to outer space. Students thereby accumulate unique, practical experience that employers in academia, government, business, and non-profit organizations value highly.

At the same time, by doing policy research, students are able to support themselves at levels that equal or exceed most Ph.D. programs. To receive their full research fellowships, students must perform different minimum amounts of OJT as their careers at RAND progress: 60 days (or 480 hours) in the first year, 155 days in subsequent years.

If a student works more than the minimum number of research days in years one and two, that number of days is subtracted from the required minimum in subsequent years. If a student works more than the minimum number of research days in year three and thereafter, the student may be able to earn a larger fellowship.

In their first year in the program, students are paid for 155 days but are required to work only 60. The 95 days for which they are paid in advance may be covered in part or in full by a first year scholarship or repaid beginning in Year 3 when tuition is reduced.

Tuition

Tuition is $25,000 for the academic year 2011-12. First and second year students pay $25,000 in tuition. Students in years 3-5 also pay $25,000 (tuition of $15,500 plus first-year debt repayment of $9,500). Students in years 6 or higher pay tuition of $18,500.

Tuition is payable in three installments, one at the beginning of each academic quarter. Students may choose to have their tuition payments deducted from their fellowship checks on a pro rata basis.

As noted above, students without scholarships are obligated to repay fellowship funds advanced to them in their first year of study in years 3-5, once their tuition has been reduced. This additional OJT debt repayment may bring their total payments to PRGS up close to, but not exceeding, the full tuition amount for that year.

Scholarships

Scholarships are available for first year students and are used to cover the 95 days of OJT that students are not required to work in their first year. Students receiving scholarships will have their repayment obligation in years 3-5 reduced or eliminated.

PRGS strives to award as many first year scholarships as possible. Scholarships are awarded during the admissions process and except in rare instances do not require application.

In addition to general scholarships for which all students are eligible, we offer a few specifically designated scholarships:

Diversity Scholarship

The Pardee RAND Graduate School "Diversity Scholarship" seeks to support and strengthen the work of outstanding and diverse students admitted to the PRGS Ph.D. program in Policy Analysis. Interested applicants should mark the appropriate checkbox when filling out the graduate school application and follow instructions about demonstrating commitment to and experience with diverse communities in their essays. This is a full first year scholarship equivalent to 95 days of OJT.

Mexico Scholarship

The Pardee RAND Graduate School "Mexico Scholarship" seeks a qualified applicant from Mexico interested in pursuing a Ph.D. degree in Policy Analysis at PRGS. Applicants must be a Mexican citizen, hold a bachelor's degree or higher, and receive a score of 100 or higher on the TOEFL exam. Applicants do not need to submit anything additional in their application to be considered. This is a full first year scholarship equivalent to 95 days of OJT with the possibility of partial OJT support in the second year.

Jeremy R. Azrael Scholarship

The Azrael Scholarship is given in honor of Dr. Jeremy Azrael, who devoted his career to promoting better understanding between the U.S. and the former Soviet Union, to support and strengthen the work of a qualified applicant admitted to the PRGS Ph.D. program in Policy Analysis. Applicants must be a citizen of one of 15 independent post-Soviet states: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Estonia, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, or Uzbekistan. Applicants must hold a bachelor's degree or higher and receive a score of 100 or higher on the TOEFL exam. Applicants do not need to submit anything additional in their application to be considered. This is a first year scholarship which covers about 80 days of OJT and may be renewable.

Financial Aid

Financial aid loans are available through the federal government's Direct Loan program. This includes Subsidized Stafford loans, Unsubsidized Stafford loans, and GradPlus loans. The current annual limit for Stafford loans is $20,500 and the limit on GradPlus loans is determined by the cost of attendance. Loans must be applied for on an annual basis. U.S. citizens and permanent residents are eligible.