From the issue dated September 28, 2001 Stipends for Graduate Assistants, 2001 The Chronicle surveyed the top research universities in the United States about the benefits they provide to their teaching and research assistants. The survey was designed to provide a snapshot of the benefits, rather than a comprehensive look at every graduate student or every graduate institution. The Chronicle contacted all 61 American institutions in the Association of American Universities, and received responses from 45 of them. The survey asked for information about first-year graduate students in six disciplines: biology, economics, English, history, mechanical engineering, and sociology. At some institutions, the listed figures are minimum amounts, and individual departments sometimes augment the stipend with other money. Comparisons among institutions are difficult because of the various ways they administer their support packages for graduate students, but some universities stand out. Below are some of the highest and lowest 2001-2 stipends among the institutions that responded to the survey. The teaching-assistant stipends are for academic-year appointments. The research-assistant stipends cover institutions that reported full-year appointments. The following institutions did not supply stipend information: Brandeis U., Brown U., Carnegie Mellon U., Case Western Reserve U., Catholic U. of America, Harvard U., Purdue U., Syracuse U., U. of Arizona, U. of California at Los Angeles, U. of Chicago, U. of Florida, U. of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, U. of Missouri at Columbia, U. of Pennsylvania, and Yale U. Bold figures indicate a 12-month stipend; all others are for the academic year. * = Amount is from the 2000-1 year because the 2001-2 figure is unavailable. Teaching assistants Research assistants Percentage of health- care premiums covered English Economics Mechanical engineering Biology Student: 75% or more Spouse, dependents: 50% or more California Institute of Technology A $14,000 C $20,340 Yes C Columbia U $15,000 $15,000 C $22,000 Yes Yes Cornell U B $13,185 $19,985 $15,985 Yes No Duke U $13,000 $13,000 $14,500 $14,500 Yes No Emory U $12,235 $12,235 A $19,000 No No Indiana U at Bloomington $11,475 $11,120 A $17,000 Yes No Iowa State U $12,996* $11,340* $15,732* $16,800* Yes No Johns Hopkins U $11,000* $11,000* C $18,000* No No Massachusetts Institute of Technology A $17,604 $21,600 $23,000 Yes No Michigan State U $10,770* $10,963* $13,436* $12,582* Yes No New York U $13,000 $18,000 A B No C Northwestern U $13,419 $13,419 $16,104 $20,000 No No Ohio State U $10,584* $10,521* $19,200* $17,592 No No Pennsylvania State U at University Park $11,495 $12,283 $13,210 $13,210 Yes No Princeton U $17,500 $17,500 $16,500 $16,500 Yes C Rice U $12,000 $12,000 $12,600 $12,500 No No Rutgers U at New Brunswick B $14,000 $16,002 $16,002 Yes C Stanford U $16,338 $16,338 $21,924 $19,760 No No State U of New York at Buffalo $8,400 $8,400 $11,400 B Yes Yes State U of New York at Stony Brook $11,230 $11,230 B B Yes Yes Texas A&M U at College Station $11,070 B $14,400 $15,300 Yes C Tulane U $10,250 $10,750 $14,000* $17,000 No No U of California at Berkeley $14,075* $14,075* $13,430* $13,430* Yes No U of California at Davis $14,067* $14,067* $10,917* $10,917* Yes No U of California at Irvine $14,356 $14,356 $15,997 $15,997 Yes No U of California at San Diego $14,356 $14,356 $17,387 $21,500 Yes No U of California at Santa Barbara $14,074 $14,074 $10,917 $10,917 Yes No U of Colorado at Boulder $11,981 $11,981 $11,981 $13,860 No No U of Iowa C $14,718 C $18,650 No Yes U of Kansas $9,161* $9,966* $8,237* $11,960* No No U of Maryland at College Park $12,265 $11,900 $20,655 B Yes Yes U of Michigan at Ann Arbor $12,726 $12,726 $12,950* $13,264* Yes Yes U of Minnesota-Twin Cities $9,937 $11,489 $12,940 $18,000 Yes Yes U of Nebraska at Lincoln $12,000 $10,500 $11,000 $12,756 Yes No U of North Carolina at Chapel Hill $13,200 $12,250 A $14,000 Yes No U of Oregon $9,540 $10,900 A B Yes Yes U of Pittsburgh $11,980 $11,980 $11,980 B Yes No U of Rochester $10,000 B $17,000 $17,785 No No U of Southern California $14,420 $14,420 $14,420 $14,420 Yes C U of Texas at Austin $10,300 $10,500 $15,600* $18,500* Yes Yes U of Virginia B $6,000 $18,000 $18,000 Yes No U of Washington at Seattle $11,340 $11,340 $14,544* $20,016 Yes Yes U of Wisconsin at Madison $10,475 $10,475 $16,350 $16,350 Yes Yes Vanderbilt U $12,000 $11,700 $16,800 $17,700 Yes No Washington U in St Louis $11,475 $11,475 $14,700 B Yes No A - no program B - no first-year students in this category C - did not provide information Source: Chronicle reporting