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Our Commitment

SUSE provides tuition fellowships in all Master's programs (for information about STEP, click here). Fellowships range from $3,000 to $10,000.  In addition, Stanford University is committed to providing financial aid to all graduate students that would cover the cost of attendance, including tuition and expenses from a variety of loan sources.

Tuition fellowships for MA students are merit-based and are awarded along with the offer of admission. Applicants are automatically considered for those fellowships if they answer "Yes" to the question on the application form asking whether they are seeking financial aid from Stanford. There is no separate fellowship application form.

In addition to tuition fellowships, paid internships, community service federal work study, and travel fellowships are also available to students in the mater’s programs.  To cover the cost of attendance, a variety of loans are available through the Financial Aid Office to U.S. citizen and Permanent Residents. International students are not eligible for federal loan programs and may qualify for private/alternative loans, although many programs require a co-signer who is a U.S. resident. A comprehensive list of private loan programs is available at FinAid.org.

Travel Fellowships | Paid Internships | Community Service Work Study | Part-Time Work | Loans | Guide to Fellowships and Grants | Research and Teaching Assistantships |
Special Note to International Students | Bei Shan Tang Scholarship for students from Hong Kong | Cost of Attendance

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Travel Fellowships
SUSE provides travel fellowships to master’s students who are presenting a paper at a conference. Students must provide proof of their presenting a paper at a conference, and must be registered in the quarter in which funds are awarded. Students receive one travel fellowship while in the program.

Paid Internships
For those programs that require completion of an internship or practicum, students are able to work off-campus in paid or unpaid internships up to 10 hours per week, during the academic year. Availability of paid internships varies with economic conditions in the area. Paid internships are based on agreement between the student and the internship organization. Internships cannot be arranged in advance of admission to the program. For more information please contact the Director of Career Services at SUSE.

Community Service Federal Work Study
Master's students who are U.S. citizens and are eligible for financial aid may be eligible to receive federal work-study funds. Federal Work Study positions are paid by a combination of federal funds and School of Education funds.

The focus on community service means that a student may work off-campus in a public agency or private non-profit organization. The work must be designed to improve the quality of life for community residents. No international work (even if based locally) or university research projects may be done in this program. After enrolling students may contact the Director of Career Services at SUSE for more information about the program.

Part-time Work and Consulting
Educational laboratories, educational consulting firms, and local school districts sometimes need part-time employees. Students in master's programs, other than STEP, may have the opportunity to participate in part-time paid work.

Loan Programs
A variety of loans are available to master's students through the Financial Aid Office.

International students may apply for private loans from U.S. banks. Many typically require that a US citizen or Permanent Resident be a co-signer on the loan. A list of private lenders is available on the University Financial Aid website.

Fellowships and Grants
Graduate education is a significant investment and students should approach it by learning as much about the financial aspects as possible. The Guide to Fellowships and Grants offers an array of internal and external funding opportunities designed to respond to a wide range of interests.  

Research and Teaching Assistantships
Although not offered to Master's students by SUSE, research and teaching assistantships may be available through other departments at stanford. The University normally expects students working on 50% (20 hours per week) research or teaching assistantships to enroll in only 10 units. Thus, students who obtain half-time research or teaching assistantships outside the School of Education must complete the Letter of Permission to take units beyond a Half-Time Appointment in order to meet the full-time requirement for the master's degree. The form may be obtained from the Assistant Director at the Office in Academic Services.

Special Note to International Students
To meet immigration regulations, international students must show proof of adequate support for the length of time of their graduate program. Students from foreign countries compete equally with U.S. citizens for fellowship support from SUSE. However, international students are not eligible to receive loans through Stanford. Many international students at SUSE support their cost of attendance from family funds or from corporations, universities, or governments.

Cost of Attendance
The following table shows the estimated living costs projected by Stanford's Financial Aid Office for graduate students in 2009-2010. This budget is used to estimate the loan eligibility for students wishing to receive loans.

 Tuition Rates are set not included in the above table. Tuition for SUSE MA programs varies slightly where programs allow for less than 11-units in some quarter as follows:

Policy, Organization and Leadership Studies: 3 quarters (Autumn/Winter/Spring) of 11-18 units each.

International Comparative Education, International Educational Administration and Policy Analysis and Learning, Design and Technology: 2 quarters (Autumn/Winter) of 11-18 units each, minimum of 10 units in Spring Quarter, and minimum of 6 units in Summer Quarter.

The graduate tuition rates for 2009-2010 are: $8,100 per quarter for 8-10 units; $12,460 per quarter for 11-18 units. Other tuition rates have not yet been announced. (updated 2/25/2009)