Pay and Compensation#
As of 2026, the Graduate Student Affairs Coordinator (formerly Yasasha Ridel, with Johnny Morales and Nisha Bhatia temporarily substituting) provides an individualized funding schedule to each graduate student. Your job is to read this, confirm its veracity, and reply affirming so or provide corrections. Though the graduate students spent several years working with the faculty to get this better pay system (which solved a lot of issues), to guarantee your proper payment, it is your responsibility to track your funding.
Your pay schedule depends on what type of funding you have. For most GSI / GSR positions, you will receive payments at the beginning of each month. Department fellowships disburse payments in lump sums at the beginning of the semester, while, e.g., NSF fellowships disburse monthly payments like GSI / GSR stipends. Note that electronic fund transfers for fellowships and GSI positions differ, so be sure to set them up separately if you don’t want a paper check.
Note
Pay attention to the tax witholdings from your payments—fellowship payments do not withhold taxes, which can be a large surprise when you prepare your taxes (~$4,000).
The department has an emergency support fund for graduate students experiencing pay issues. This should be your first resource rather than an emergency loan from the university. Please contact the chair, head graduate advisor, and / or the student affairs coordinator for access to this fund.
The graduate student handbook states the following regarding graduate student pay.
The Astronomy Department works to guarantee a minimal level of funding for each graduate student for the duration of their time in the program. Most students are supported by some combination of GSI and GSR appointments, as well as Fellowships. The total amount of financial support is reviewed annually by the Astronomy Faculty, typically around the time of graduate admissions. The amount of support is affected by a number of factors, including cost of living, competitiveness with peer institutions, support offered in other MPS departments, and the funding landscape of the University, federal grants, etc. Annual increases in support are not guaranteed, though the faculty make good faith efforts to provide the highest level of support possible in light of the above factors. Each spring, the Department Chair will notify the graduate students of the level of support for the next academic year.
In most departments in our division (e.g., Math, Physics) students’ primary form of support is through teaching. Historically, Astronomy faculty have been able to support many students through research grants, or students have been able to obtain their own external fellowship funding (e.g., NSF, DOE). We make our best efforts to provide research funding for students, and have a good past record of doing so. However, as with most departments on campus, students should be prepared to GSI if other funding sources are not available.
Note that graduate students do not typically get paid evenly throughout the year (i.e., it is not correct to simply divide the annual salary by 12 to get a monthly amount). Certain fellowships, teaching pay, research pay, and summer vs. academic year pay are often distributed unevenly and on different schedules throughout the year. This is particularly important for first-year students as they adjust to finances in grad school. Please contact the GSAO with any specific questions about funding.
Updated 3 February 2026
Check other sections of the handbook for more information regarding pay and filing taxes.
If you experience a financial emergency, you may be eligible for a short-term emergency loan from the university’s Financial Aid and Scholarships Office. These loans are up to $3,000 with zero interest and a payment deadline of approimately 60 days, but require a $20 application fee (also due at the payment deadline of the principal loan) and may be unavailable between the end and start of consecutive semesters.