Application costs
The cost of applying for admission to graduate school in 2006-07 includes the $130 registration fee for the GRE General Test and an estimated total of $640 in application fees (average $80 for each of eight institutions). Variable expenses include postage and fees for transcripts from institutions other than Duke. (Duke students pay a one-time transcript fee upon matriculation, and there is no additional charge for transcripts.) Add the cost of travel to visit any institution unless you visit for a recruiting event for which expenses are covered or reimbursed. Such recruiting events are common for departments in the natural sciences, and we are seeing an increasing trend for recruiting visits by humanities and social science departments.
Tuition and living costs
At some institutions, tuition for the doctoral program is charged at two rates with a reduction occurring after the second year or after passing the oral preliminary examinations. A few graduate institutions charge the same annual tuition throughout the degree period. In any case, scholarships and fellowships awarded by the graduate department or institution will cover much of the expense and will also include a living stipend for study toward the Ph.D. Support for study toward the masters degree as a terminal degree is generally arranged through institutional loans rather than supported through a fellowship, but there are exceptions.
Taking the first year of a doctoral program as an example, total costs including room and board range widely–from $20,000 for an in-state resident attending a state university to $50,000 for a prominent private university. These figures for the 2006-07 academic year include institutional estimates for room and board in university residence halls, books, required fees and travel. Decisions about housing options will affect the estimate considerably. Remember that for all or part of your graduate career, you will be eligible for fellowships that will cover tuition and reasonable living costs.