Finances & Lifestyle
Financial Support
All first-year students are supported as teaching assistants during the academic year and receive, in addition to a competitive stipend, a full tuition scholarship and a summer research appointment. After the first year, students are supported as teaching or research assistants either through university support, by their faculty mentor through external research awards or through external fellowships. Support is provided as long as progress towards degree requirements is being made.
The University of Notre Dame is situated in one of America’s most affordable locations: South Bend, Indiana (part of the Greater Michiana area), making the cost of living very attractive. To compare cost of living here with other locations, the Graduate School has provided this tool for easy reference.
For the 2022-2023 academic year, the 12-month stipend for entering students is $34,428. A full tuition scholarship is provided to all graduate students, in addition to a full health care subsidy. Several university and departmental fellowships that provide higher stipends are also available on a competitive basis.
Graduate Student Life
Graduate school requires intense focus, discipline, commitment, and perseverance. In addition, maturity, creativity, and a sense of purpose are crucial to pursuit of a Ph.D. The Notre Dame community houses several enriching extra-curricular opportunities that many of our graduate students take advantage of while here on campus. The role of the Graduate Student Life program at Notre Dame is to provide a wide range of resources and experiences outside of the classroom, library or lab to assist students in sustaining a healthy and happy life at Notre Dame. For more information visit Graduate Student Life.