Options
Options for financial support during graduate school that do not include loans, scholarships or fellowships are limited, but some students find creative ways to support themselves, at least partially. Examples include joining the Student Affairs department as a resident advisor to avoid housing costs altogether or tutoring and grading in their departmental courses. We have heard about students who take out a mortgage rather than a student loan in order to buy a house as an investment; sharing monthly costs with house mates during the time of ownership contributes to the monthly mortgage payments. An important point is not to accumulate credit card debt as a means of financing education. Not only is it expensive to pay off, but such debt can lead to ineligibility for future financial aid. Some universities, including Duke, will permit employees to study toward a degree at a fraction of regular tuition although this is probably more common for undergraduates and candidates for a masters degree than doctoral students.