Graduate Program Information

Finances

Fees and Expenses

(Fees and non-resident tuition subject to change at any time.)

For 2007-2008 the estimated cost of graduate study at Berkeley for California residents is $9,578.50 for the academic year. The cost for non-resident domestic and international students is $24,566.50 ($9872.50 in educational fees, plus $14,694 in non-resident tuition). Students from outside California, who are citizens or Permanent Residents of the US, can establish residency status at the end of their first year in California, significantly reducing the cost of graduate work at the beginning of the second year.

International students are assessed non-resident tuition (as well as registration fees) each semester at the full rate until advancing to PhD candidacy unless they have a fellowship or employment that covers or remits tuition and/or fees for the semester. Once they advance to PhD candidacy, international students are eligible for a 100% reduction in non-resident tuition for three consecutive years from the advancement date, whether registered or not. Any such student who continues to register after the grace period will be charged the full non-resident tuition rate effective at the time. Advancement does not reduce in-state fees.

Budget Requirement for Visa Documents: U.S. Federal regulations require that international students be able to demonstrate sufficient financial support for their studies in the U.S. before a student visa (F or J) may be issued for entry into the U.S. After being admitted to the University, you will be informed of your required minimum annual budget for visa purposes and must be prepared to document financial resources equal to or greater than this budget. (This process is not part of the application for admission.) Further information about finances and international students can be obtained at: http://www.grad.berkeley.edu/prospective/index.shtml (click on Cost and Fees under "Financing a Berkeley Education”). Information about visa requirements can be obtained from Services for International Students and Scholars, International House, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720-2321, or by e-mail (siss@berkeley.edu).

Financial Support

(Continued support after the first year is contingent upon satisfactory progress as assessed yearly by the department)

Entering students apply for University and Department fellowships at the same time they apply for admission through the Berkeley Graduate Application for Admission and Fellowships, and they should apply for all fellowships for which they are eligible. (There are separate fellowship application sections for domestic students versus international students). Domestic applicants should apply for a Foreign Language and Area Studies fellowship (FLAS) if they can demonstrate how the study of the language of application is relevant to the preparation for their chosen career. The entire application is due by the December deadline. In addition, domestic students must file a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA ) by March prior to fall entry. The FAFSA is available at financial aid offices at all colleges and universities, and at high schools. It can also be obtained, updated, and submitted on-line at http://www.fafsa.ed.gov. Students are also encouraged to apply for all extramural fellowships for which they are eligible.

The department nominates at entry a small number of entering students to the University fellowship competition (including FLAS) and considers all admitted students for Department fellowships. Starting with the entering class of Fall 2007, the Department aims to guarantee five years of full support at $17,000 (in a combination of stipend and salary) plus tuition and fees Continued fellowship support would be contingent upon timely and adequate progress through the program, and a Dean’s Normative Time Fellowship is part of the package, but is guaranteed only if the student advances to candidacy by the prescribed time for their field (see box). All guaranteed support years must be completed by the end of the fifth year, unless other arrangements are specifically approved by the Department. Continuing students should continue to apply for Foreign Language and Area Studies fellowships as applicable (which may serve to reduce the work obligation) and apply for outside grants for their research year, as a strategy to augment their resources (e.g. an extramural research fellowship obtained in the research year can enable the student to postpone use of the Dean’s Normative Time Fellowship to a later year). After the five guaranteed years of funding, students have opportunities to apply competitively for additional GSI and Reader appointments as well as a dissertation write-up award.

Students apply to renew their eligibility for their department fellowship each year in February.

Applicants who are or ever were a graduate student at Berkeley come under the category of Change of Major Student. They must use a paper application to apply for admission and are not eligible to apply for university fellowship awards designated for students entering Berkeley for the first time. Exceptions: 1) MA-only students from Folklore, Asian Studies, and Range Management who are completing their MA in these fields in May prior to fall entry are eligible to compete with first-year students for University multi-year fellowships. 2) currently enrolled change of majors can apply for a one year FLAS, but they must apply as a continuing student in their department of origin and adhere to the FLAS deadline for continuing students. Change-of-majors are considered for departmental fellowships along with other entering students.

List of Funding Sources

(Fellowships, Employment, Financial Aid)

(Continued support after the first year is contingent upon satisfactory progress as assessed yearly by the department)

Fellowships

UNIVERSITY FELLOWSHIPS: University fellowships include the following: (1) Multiple-year and single-year fellowships awarded to entering students who have completed Form C (and FLAS Form D if applicable), and have been successfully nominated by departments to the university-wide fellowship competition; (2) Foreign Language and Area Studies (FLAS) fellowships awarded in the continuing FLAS competition; (3) Dean’s Normative Time Fellowship (DNTF) awarded to continuing students who pass the orals and advance to PhD candidacy by the prescribed time for their field; (4) Dissertation Write-up Fellowships’; (5) Miscellaneous fellowships that become available. Fellowship recipients, unless approved for a traveling fellowship, must register for courses and pay registration fees by the end of the 3rd week of the semester, or they will lose their fellowship.

DEPARTMENTAL FELLOWSHIPS: Entering students who do not receive a university fellowship at entry are considered for a limited number of departmental fellowships, which may include (in-full or in-part) a living stipend and/or non-resident tuition and/or in-state fees for the first year of study. Continuing students, in anticipation of soon advancing to candidacy, can apply for a departmental research fellowship, which provides stipend-only, and requires that the student be registered, unless on travel status. Students can apply for a departmental dissertation write-up fellowship for their final year. This final-year award provides stipend and fees. Continuing and returning graduate students obtain fellowship applications from the Graduate Assistant in the fall, and file them along with supporting documents, transcripts and letters of recommendation, to the History Graduate Office by early February. Fellowship recipients, unless approved for a traveling fellowship, must register for courses and pay registration fees by the end of the 3rd week of the semester, or they will lose their fellowship.

EXTRAMURAL FELLOWSHIPS: Entering students are encouraged to apply for fellowships from the Mellon Foundation and the Javits Foundation, and other sources. Students in the field of 'history of science' should contact the National Science Foundation about graduate fellowships in their field. Continuing students may obtain information and application forms at the Graduate Division Fellowship Office (318 Sproul) for a number of extramural award programs (e.g., Institute of International Education Grants Fulbright-Hays Doctoral Dissertation Research Abroad, Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst Competition [DAAD], NSF, and others). Students are encouraged to consult ‘The Grants Register’ and ‘The Annual Register of Grant Support’ for information about extramural award competitions. These reference books are available in the Doe Library Reference Room and the Graduate Fellowship Office.

Graduate Student Employment

Fee Remission. By union contract, students employed as Graduate Student Instructors (GSIs), Readers, and Graduate Student Researcher (GSRs) are currently eligible to receive, in the semester of employment, a 95% reduction (estimated) of their registration fees, if their appointment is for the entire semester and at a 25% time minimum. (Note that most GSR positions in History are less than 25% time and some readerships may be less than 25% time, and will not come with a fee remission.)

Students employed as GSIs, Readers, or GSRs must complete registration by the end of the 3rd week of the semester or they will lose their eligibility for the fee remission.

GRADUATE STUDENT INSTRUCTORSHIPS (GSIships): Academic requirements: GSI's must have at least an overall 3.1 gpa, at least a 3.5 gpa in graduate history courses, and no more than two incompletes. Applications for GSI appointments are available in the Graduate Assistant’s Office during the fall semester and must be submitted by February 1 for consideration for appointments in the summer and the following academic year. Assignments for summer (which are few in number), fall, and spring are announced in mid-April (unless otherwise noted). A new application is required for each hiring cycle. Students are normally not appointed to teach in their first year; and any graduate student with more than two outstanding “Incompletes” is not eligible for an appointment. Fellowship recipients are limited to 25% time employment for the year or 50% time for one semester during the year of their fellowship. GSI appointments are normally 50% time per semester and come with a partial fee remission. GSI's must remember to pay at least 20% of their registration fees and enroll in at least 8 units by the end of the 3rd week of the semester to keep their eligibility for the fee remission. All new GSIs must successfully complete the online short course, GSI Professional Standards and Ethics, and they are expected to attend a campus orientation. In addition, all new GSIs are required to enroll in a 300-level pedagogy course.

Appointments to teach History 101 are normally assigned to students with two semesters of teaching experience; GSIs appointed to teach History 103 must be advanced to doctoral candidacy. 103 appointees with less than 4 semesters of teaching experience will be appointed under faculty supervision.

Details about the selection of GSIs, qualifications, and salaries can be found in the separate brochure, "Statement of Departmental Policy on Graduate Student Instructors," available in the History Department Graduate Office, 3310 Dwinelle. GSIs must see our payroll assistant to complete payroll paperwork before beginning their appointment.

English proficiency examination. To ensure that the department hires only those GSIs whose spoken English is strong enough to be understood in the classroom, an examination is given to international students from non-English speaking countries and to students who self-identify, on their admissions application, as not being native speakers of English. The Speaking Proficiency English Assessment Kit (SPEAK), is administered by the Graduate Student Instructor Teaching and Resource Center. To register to take the test, contact the IGSI testing coordinator at 643-1007. Be sure to take the exam early because a teaching appointment cannot be made until there is evidence of a passing score of at least 50. Scores are valid for two years. Students failing to receive a minimum score must take a second test (the OPT).

READERSHIPS: Academic requirements: Readers must have at least an overall 3.1 gpa, at least a 3.5 gpa in graduate history courses, and no more than two incompletes. Readers grade examinations and papers in large undergraduate lecture courses. They also hold office hours to discuss students' work and attend the lectures for the course. Readers are appointed in history for courses that enroll a minimum of 30 students by the end of the first week. Readers are eligible for a partial fee remission if at the end of the third week their appointment is at a minimum of 25% (i.e., they are responsible for 35 students or more), and they have paid at least 20% of their fees and have enrolled in at least 8 units. Note: fellowship recipients are limited to 25% time employment for the year or 50% time for one semester during the year of their fellowship. Salary information is available in 3226 Dwinelle. Interested students complete a Reader application available in the Graduate Assistant's Office and submit it to the faculty member(s) for whom they wish to read. Readers must see our payroll assistant to complete payroll paperwork before beginning their appointment.

GRADUATE STUDENT RESEARCH ASSISTANTSHIPS (GSRships): Academic requirements: GSRs must have at least an overall 3.1 gpa, at least a 3.5 gpa in graduate history courses, and no more than two incompletes. A Graduate Student Research Assistant does research under the direction of a faculty member. The Graduate Division requires that all GSRs be registered. Salary information is available in 3226 Dwinelle. Students with more than two outstanding “Incompletes” are ineligible for an appointment. Interested students should contact the faculty member for whom they wish to do research to find out if a research assistant is needed. There is no formal application. Fellowship recipients are limited to 25% time employment for the year or 50% time for one semester during the year of their fellowship. GSRs with a minimum 25% time appointment for the semester are eligible for a partial fee remission, but they must pay at least 20% of their fees and enroll in at least 8 units by the end of the 3rd week of the semester to keep their eligibility. It is important to note that due to funding limitations most appointments in History are below 25%. GSRs must see our payroll assistant to complete payroll paperwork before beginning their appointment.

Financial Aid Office (FAO)

Complete information concerning financial aid programs is contained in the publication Financial Aid Handbook, which may be obtained, along with an application, from the Financial Aid Office in 201 Sproul Hall (510/642-0485). Graduate students may apply for university grants‑in‑aid, educational fee grants, National Direct Student Loans, work‑study program, and other aid programs. Applications must be returned to the Financial Aid Office by March 2nd (double check the date!) Applicants for financial aid must report to the Financial Aid Office any sources of income (e.g. fellowships, employment) that had not already been reported on the FAFSA . Failure to report income in a timely way may result in an unexpected reduction in your financial aid offer. The majority of aid dispensed by the Financial Aid Office financial aid is in the form of loans, though occasionally small grants and work-study is a possibility.

HELLER GRANTS-IN‑AID Advanced graduate students may apply for small grants for dissertation research (such as microfilming expenses). A subcommittee of the Graduate Advisers Committee meets once each semester to review these applications. Deadlines for applying are November 3 and February 25 (unless otherwise noted). Applications may be picked up from the Graduate Assistant.

CONFERENCE FUND Funds permitting, the department may offer partial support to offset travel costs to students giving papers at professional conferences. Deadlines for applying are in November and February. Check with the graduate assistant for exact dates. Two other sources of funding to attend conferences are Graduate Fellowships Office (318 Sproul) and the Graduate Assembly (Anthony Hall).

AHA JOB INTERVIEW TRAVEL FUND Funds permitting, students and recent PhD graduates (who filed the dissertation up to one year prior to the January conference) may apply for partial reimbursement of the cost of travel to attend an invited job interview at the annual American Historical Association meeting. Only those who have never received AHA travel support are eligible. Applicants must provide a copy of the pre-arranged interview invitation and original travel receipts. See the Placement Assistant in 3312 Dwinelle for an application.

Revised July 2007