Financial Information

For the 2012-13 academic year, the cost for full-time tuition and fees for the residential graduate program is $12,272 per year for in-state students and $27,203 per year for out-of-state students.

Personal interview and information sessions will be held for funding offered by the School of Journalism and Mass Communication.  These sessions are usually held in February in Chapel Hill. Notification will be sent to invited candidates to alert them of the dates of the interviews. Decisions will be made shortly after the interviews, and candidates will be notified as quickly as possible.

Applicants to the Master of Arts in Technology and Communication (MATC) and the Certificate in Technology and Communication are NOT eligible for funding from the school.

Funded students receive health insurance through Hill Chesson and Associates and are covered during the length of their funding only. Once a student graduates, insurance coverage is terminated.

Some non-funded students hold part-time jobs or work as paid interns during the school year or during the summer. The school’s career services officer works closely with students and employers to identify opportunities that provide students with professional experience as well as income.

Funding offered by the school includes:

• Roy H. Park Fellowships

  With funding from the Triad Foundation of Ithaca, N.Y., the school awards seven or eight new doctoral students and 10 or 11 incoming residential master’s students with Park Fellowships that include generous stipends and payment of tuition and health insurance. Additional money for research and travel to professional and academic conferences is available for doctoral fellows.

  During the 2010-11 academic year, the stipend is $20,500 for doctoral students and $14,000 for residential master’s students. Doctoral student funding extends over the three years of the program (two years of course work and one year for dissertation work). Residential master’s student funding covers two years of study.

  All Park Fellows work as graduate assistants during their time on campus. The assistantships are 15 hours a week, and assignments vary according to the needs of the school and faculty, and the interests and skill levels of the students. Due to the work requirement of the fellowships and the academic demands of the program, Park Fellows may not work outside the school during the academic year. If it becomes necessary for a Park Fellow to seek outside employment during the academic year, the student must obtain approval from the associate dean for graduate studies prior to the employment.

  Continued funding by the school depends upon a student maintaining at least a “P” (passing grade) average in all course work. Any “L” (low passing grade) received must be balanced by an “H” (high passing grade) by the end of one year. Students also are expected to do good work in their assistantship in order to keep their funding.

  Roy H. Park Fellowships are available only to U.S. citizens and only to students enrolled in the school’s residential master’s or doctoral programs. There is no special application for these fellowships. All persons qualified for admission to the graduate program automatically will be considered for Park Fellowships, but only the most qualified students will be chosen.

• Richard Cole Eminent Professor Graduate Student Fellowship

  This fellowship, which honors former dean Richard Cole, is offered once every three years to an enrolling doctoral student. The fellowship provides the same stipend, payment of tuition, health insurance and research funding as the Roy H. Park doctoral fellowships. The Cole Fellowship includes a 15 hour per week research assistantship with the Richard Cole Eminent Professor.

• Peter DeWitt Pruden Jr. and Phyllis Harrill Stancill Pruden Fellowship

  The first fully-endowed graduate fellowship in the school, the Pruden Fellowship for a residential master's student is awarded with a preference to students from North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee or Virginia with some evidence of financial need. The fellowship provides the same stipend, payment of tuition and health insurance as the Roy H. Park master's fellowship and includes a 15 hour per week assistantship.

• The school offers an annual scholarship, ranging from $4,000 to $8,000, named after North Carolina journalist William F. Clingman, for the study of ethics to current residential graduate students.

• Returning residential master’s students interested in a news-editorial career are eligible for the $1,000 Tom Wicker Scholarship.

• The school has limited funds available for returning residential graduate students for thesis or dissertation research through the Eli A. and Minnie S. Rubinstein awards, and the Margaret Blanchard Dissertation Support Award.

The UNC Graduate School awards a few highly competitive named fellowships and merit assistantships that typically go to doctoral students with exceptional qualifications. The school nominates applicants for these awards.

The University’s Office of Scholarships and Student Aid allocates student loans and work-study assignments. For more information about such aid possibilities, please contact that office 919.962.8396.