How much does it really cost to be a graduate student at
UCLA?
To answer this question, the graduate division has released an
online financial aid survey this week to assess the overall
expenses of graduate students.
The survey asks students questions concerning living
arrangements, transportation, and academic and personal expenses
and will be available on the graduate division Web site for the
next two weeks.
The graduate division hopes the survey results will help produce
a financial aid budget that reflects more accurately the needs of
graduate students, said Pamela Taylor, director of institutional
research and information services for the graduate division.
“Unlike undergraduates, graduate students often have
additional expenses such as for research or child care,” she
said.
Taylor said many graduate students with financial concerns have
been forced to take outside jobs, which can have adverse effects on
their academic performances.
While the University of California Office of the President has
been sending out financial aid surveys to help formulate
undergraduate budgets, the most recent graduate survey was likely
done prior to the 1990s, said Nicolas Valdivia, assistant director
at the Financial Aid Office.
Though the survey does not guarantee an increase in the graduate
budget, it will provide the financial aid office with a more
realistic understanding of how much students are actually spending,
he said.
Valdivia added that if the survey does indicate additional
needs, then the graduate financial aid budget will be increased
accordingly.
The results of the survey will also help the Graduate Student
Association in their support of lobbying efforts against further
fee increases, said GSA President Charles Harless.
In March, the University of California Student Association will
hold a lobby day where interested students will travel to
Sacramento to press legislators not to increase fees.
“We can use this information, of how much graduate
students are already paying, to convince UCOP and the regents not
to raise the fee,” Harless said.
Many graduate students have to handle a much wider range of
expenses they did not have when they were undergraduates.
“Being a graduate student is like having a full-time
job,” said Hans Noel, a political science doctoral
student.
Aside from having to pay for housing and a car, Noel said being
a graduate student requires him to conduct more research and attend
conferences.
Other graduate students said they have to spend a significant
portion of their money buying project materials and research
equipment.
“I have to constantly buy tapes and tape recorders to
conduct interviews for my classes,” said Nancy Wang Yuen, a
sociology graduate student.
Graduate students who have families may also face additional
expenses.
Aside from having to buy computer software and video equipment
for her research, Elissa Ikeda, an applied linguistics graduate
student, is also preparing for a child.
“There is definitely going to be a lot more expenses
during the pregnancy, birth, and afterwards taking care of the
baby,” she said.
Faced with financial difficulties, many graduate students have
to support themselves by becoming teaching assistants or taking
outside jobs.
The work naturally detracts from the study time, said Rebecca
Blustein, a comparative literature graduate student.
“Being a TA requires at least 20 hours per week of your
time,” she said, adding that if she wanted to live more
comfortably she would have to take another job as well.