SIPA: School of International and Public Affairs at Columbia University

Types of Aid

Types of Aid that may be in your package:

SIPA Fellowships and Assistantships

These are funds provided to students by SIPA, which do not have to be repaid. Fellowships are direct support with no additional obligation beyond maintaining good academic standing. Assistantships are support linked to a position as a teaching assistant, research assistant or program assistant within SIPA. Statistics discussed below are for fellowships in the two-year full-time masters programs.

Approximately 10% of the first-year class receives support from SIPA, with awards ranging from as low as $5,000 for the year to a very small number of half or full-tuition fellowships. The median first-year award is $15,000. Applicants to the School can indicate in their applications that they wish to be considered for aid. Awards are granted based on a combination of the strength of the admissions application and financial need; although, merit weighs more heavily in the consideration. Some first year awards are a combination of SIPA fellowship funding and funding from external organizations that SIPA partners with to help pay educational related costs.

In year two, approximately 70% of SIPA students who apply for a fellowship or assistantship receive an award, with the amount again ranging from as low as $5,000 for the year to a very small number of half or full-tuition fellowships. The median second-year award is $21,000. Students apply for second-year support during their first year, and awards are granted based on academic performance in the first year and in the case of assistantships the applicants capacity to fulfill the terms of the assistantship are also taken into consideration.

Educational Loans

Education loans are how many SIPA students cover the cost of attending SIPA. Students are encouraged to consider loans carefully. They enable many people to attend graduate school who could not otherwise do so, but loan burdens are a significant challenge for those considering careers in the public and non-profit sector, career paths typical for many SIPA students.  

In 2008, 58.5% of SIPA’s student body borrowed to fund their education. The median loan debt on graduation (not including educational loans taken for undergraduate study) was $66,400.

United States Education Loan Programs

These loan programs are available to U.S. citizens and consist primarily of Stafford and Perkins Loans. Applications should be submitted as early as possible to ensure that loan funds are available by the beginning of the term. More information is available at the following sites:

United States Federal Stafford Loan

www.columbia.edu/cu/sfs/docs/ Grad_Fin_Aid/Federal/Stafford.html

Federal Perkins Loan

www.columbia.edu/cu/sfs/docs/Grad_Fin_Aid/Federal/Federal_Perkins.htm

United States Federal Work-Study Program

This program supports work-study positions on campus for U.S. citizens. For more information, see:
www.columbia.edu/cu/sfs/docs/Grad_Fin_Aid/Federal/Workstudy.html

New York State Tuition Assistance (TAP)

TAP support for graduate students has been suspended at this time. New York State residents are welcome to contact their local representative to state support for this program.

Private Educational Loans

Private loans offered through banks help both domestic and international students pay for educational costs while attending SIPA. Loans may be available both with and without a co-signer, although for international students securing a loan without a U.S. co-signer is not currently an option. For information on private loans, please visit the following site: www.columbia.edu/cu/sfs/docs/Grad_Fin_Aid/Private_Loans/index.html

Student Employment

International students are not eligible for work-study but may work as a "casual employee." Teacher's assistant or program assistant positions are available in the second year and applications must be submitted according to policy set forth by the Office of Student Affairs during the first year of study.

For information on the continuing student fellowship program see this page.

Each department does have its own budget and if you have unique skills, professors may have opportunities for employment.

For links and information on available campus jobs for international students, please visit https://jobs.columbia.edu/ .

External Scholarships/Fellowships

All prospective students are encouraged to pursue funding opportunities through external organizations. To this end we have created a database of external grants and fellowships that can be found here. As a general rule, the more time one spends looking, the more likely one will be to achieve success.

United States Military Veterans

SIPA participates in a number of programs to help ensure that this vital part of the student body is well represented. For years the School has hosted Foreign Area Officers (FAO) from the United States armed forces and will work with FAOs, who are admitted to tailor SIPA’s study schedule to meet FAO program needs.

In addition, SIPA has recently signed on to the Yellow Ribbon program and will support a few students each year with fellowship support, for which the Yellow Ribbon program provides matching funds. www.gibill.va.gov/GI_BILL_info/ch33/yellow_ribbon.htm

Many students have used the GI Bill to support their studies at SIPA. For more information on the GI Bill, please see: www.gibill.va.gov/

The General Wayne A Downing Scholarship fund, sponsored by the West Point Association of Graduates in cooperation with the United States Military Academy Combating Terrorism Center, provides selected officers with the opportunity to study terrorism and counterterrorism issues in top-tier graduate programs around the world.  For more information: www.hrc.army.mil/portal/

 

Special Fellowship Programs

SIPA is fortunate to be able to provide unique funding opportunities through two special programs.

The first program is the Lemann Fellowship. Established by Brazilian entrepreneur Jorge Paulo Lemann, Lemann Fellowships promote student exchange between Columbia University's School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA) and Brazil. The program provides support to SIPA students participating in the School's dual-degree program with Fundação Getulio Vargas Escola de Administração de Empresas de São Paulo, students who live or have lived in Brazil, and for students to engage in study, research, and internships in Brazil. For information on this program, click here.

The second program is the International Fellows Program. The International Fellows Program is a two-semester seminar open to students of all graduate degree programs at Columbia University.  The diverse perspectives and professional backgrounds that Fellows bring to the program enrich their year-long common enterprise. For more detailed information, click here.

SIPA also partners with some organizations to provide funding for students. If admitted applicants have an affiliation with a particular organization or have been awarded funding to attend graduate school, SIPA will often try to award funding to select admitted applicants to help pay for educational expenses.

Receipt of such funding is most often competitive and varies in amount. This means that not everyone admitted that has an affiliation with an organization or who has earned a fellowship is guaranteed funding from SIPA. A list of the organizations we partner with can be found here.