Financial Aid
Opportunities exist which provide financial support for Ph.D. candidates. For example, we provide partial or full funding for all of our students during the first and second years. In addition, funding is available for professional work on some internships, and there are part-time jobs in other parts of the university. Some Ph.D. candidates have become Resident Advisors or Resident Directors in the university dormitories, or have worked in the athletic facilities or the library. Students must pursue these part-time opportunities on their own and, of course, are never allowed to work full-time.
Hofstra University, as noted in the program brochure, is situated in a geographic location where the cost of living is high. Since we allow only full-time study in the program, students should bear program costs in mind when accepting an offer of admission and planning their education. Ph.D. candidates must be able to provide their own funds for completion of the program.
OPPORTUNITIES FOR FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE
- Research Scholarships
Two one-year, full-tuition scholarships are awarded in the Ph.D. program. These are Harold E. Yuker and Julia R. Vane awards, and cover all tuition costs for one year. The awards are made by program faculty, and are based upon undergraduate performance, standardized test scores, research interests, and other criteria. Students who receive this award collaborate with a member of the Core Faculty on a research project.
- Partial Research Fellowships
Partial Research Fellowships are given to all first and second year students who do not receive a full Research Scholarship. Members of the Core Program Faculty select their own research assistants to help on projects in clinical or school psychology. If the performance of the PhD candidate is satisfactory, awards may be continued into the second year of the program. Awards are not typically given in the third or fourth year, since students are placed on a school or clinical psychology internship and less time is available to work with faculty members.
- Minority Scholarship
Through a fund established by Dr. Mervyn Schloss, partial funding is available for a minority group student who is typically in the first or second year of training.
- Joyce A. Bloom Scholarship for Returning Women
This is an award of $1,000 per year, given each year for a total of up to $5000, to a woman who is returning to school after an absence of five years in order to raise a family, and who has a child under the age of 15 living at home.
- Assignments in the Psychological Evaluation, Research and Counseling Clinic (PERCC)
Assignments in the Psychological Evaluation, Research and Counseling Clinic (PERCC) are also available. This is our campus clinic for psychological assessments and intervention, and all doctoral candidates deliver professional services in PERCC. We hire students to help with reception, billing, ordering of tests, and other such duties. These assignments are made by Director Joseph Scardapane, in consultation with Chairperson Kassinove. Interested students may contact Dr. Scardapane directly.
- Course Assistantships
Some undergraduate and graduate courses taught in the department have assistants assigned to them. These require laboratory teaching duties (such as the statistics or research design courses) while others require marking papers, delivering occasional lectures, etc. Professors hire their own assistants. Students who are interested may contact the department secretaries to see who may want to hire an assistant. Ph.D. candidates may also approach professors directly to see if a position is open.
- Teaching Assignments Opportunities
Teaching Assignments Opportunities may exist for Ph.D. candidates in the program to teach an undergraduate course in the department.
- Research Support
Special support is available for Ph.D. candidates who deliver papers at scientific conferences. According to our current policy, when Ph.D. students present research papers or run workshops at national scientific or professional conventions they are entitled to receive up to $400 from the university to reimburse them for expenses. This policy was developed in recognition of our desire to train scholars who make contributions to the development of knowledge, and who will pass this knowledge along to their peers.
Funding is also available to Ph.D. candidates to help with the completion of their doctoral dissertations. Students can apply to Professor Charles Levinthal for funds to purchase equipment or test supplies, to pay for research subjects, etc. Awards up to $500 are given.
Faculty members with grants may hire students from their grant funds, as appropriate. These awards would be given out by the faculty member who holds the grant.
- Harold E. Yuker Research Prize
A $500 award is given each year for meritorious publications in clinical or school psychology, or presentations at national or international scientific conferences.
- Teaching/Assistant Experiences for Ph.D. Candidates
Some Ph.D. candidates are interested in university-based careers after graduation. For these students, it is useful to have teaching or teaching assistant experience. This experience may be obtained at Hofstra or at another local college or university. Our students have been hired at Nassau Community College, St. John's University, John Jay College, C.W. Post, SUNY at Old Westbury, Queensboro Community College, Kingsboro Community College, and other local institutions. We, of course, are pleased whenever we can provide teaching or teaching assistant experience at Hofstra. However, with regard to the independent teaching of a course, this is not always possible since we give preference to persons with a doctorate. Students without an earned a master's degree are not eligible.
In summary, a number of sources of financial assistance are available for students in the Ph.D. Program. However, as noted above, costs at Hofstra and on Long Island are moderate to high, and students must be able to pay for their own education through personal resources, family support, savings, loans, etc.
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