Financial Aid
The most current information for Boston University’s Graduate Financial Aid can be found here.
All newly admitted PhD students are offered five years of funding, conditional on satisfactory progress in the program. First-year students in the PhD program all receive non-service fellowships, meaning that they are not expected to be teaching assistants, research assistants, or perform other tasks in exchange for a stipend. Second- and higher-year students typically receive either teaching fellowships, where they assist with the department’s teaching mission, or research assistantships, where they work with faculty on research projects. The funding covers tuition charges (detailed above), health insurance, and a stipend for living expenses. For the 2023-2024 academic year, the stipend is $26,267. In some cases, summer funding may also be available.
Graduates of BU’s Economics master’s program are automatically considered for a special prize which provides a summer stipend of $4,000, payable the first summer in the PhD program. This prize was made possible by a generous donation from the family of an MA alumnus. The recipient will be selected on the basis of merit by the PhD admissions committee. All applicants to the PhD program who have earned (or will earn before joining the PhD program) an MA, BA/MA, MA/MBA (in Economics), MAEP, or MAGDE degree—within the three previous years—are automatically eligible for consideration. For admissions in 2022/2023, this means that an eligible applicant must earn his or her master’s degree from Boston University sometime between May 2019 and September 2023.
Through the Economics Department’s Institute for Economic Development (IED), PhD students are eligible for research awards, travel grants, and journal submission grants. Please visit IED for more information.
Expenses
Please visit this link for updated information regarding cost of attendance at Boston University.
Massachusetts law requires all students who are carrying at least 75 percent of the full-time curriculum to have medical insurance. Students who cannot demonstrate coverage under a qualifying medical insurance plan are required to purchase the University’s student health insurance plan. Again, health insurance is included in the financial aid package offered to all newly admitted PhD students.
Estimated minimum off-campus living expenses for one academic year (September to May) are approximately $19,000 for a single student. Please keep in mind that the figures for living expenses are estimates, and students are advised to bring additional funds, if possible.
For more information, see the Graduate School of Arts & Sciences Aid for PhD Students page.