GRADUATE STIPEND
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Following complaints, UMD raises minimum stipend for some graduate assistants By Shifra Dayak | @shifradayak | Staff writer The University of Maryland will increase the minimum stipend amount for graduate assistants beginning in January, the university announced in an email to graduate students Wednesday. The university raised the minimum stipend amount for 9-month graduate assistants from about $18,340 to $21,000, effective Jan. 2. The change will mark a nearly 15 percent increase from current minimum stipend amounts for fiscal year 2022. Nine-and-a-half month and 12 month graduate assistants will also receive a proportional stipend increase. Step I and Step II stipends, which are the levels above the minimum stipend amount, will be $500 and $1,000 higher than the Step I minimum amount, respectively, the email said. “This is one step in our continuing efforts to provide graduate assistants with stipends that are competitive with top peer institutions and that take into account the high cost of living in our area,” Senior Vice President and Provost Jennifer King Rice and Associate Provost and Dean of the Graduate School Steve Fetter wrote in the university’s message. This announcement comes after some graduate students spoke out about their stipends being too low The minimum stipend was raised by nearly 15 percent, but some say it’s still not enough. julia nikhinson/the diamondback to sustain the cost of living in and represents graduate assistants and “The increase to minimum stipends around College Park. The planned other student employees — based on … is incredibly low, given the cost of increase in stipend amounts will impact over 60 percent of graduate assis- 2018-19 academic year numbers, the living around College Park,” an FSE tants, Rice and Fetter said in the state- median stipend at this university is statement regarding the university’s $23,775. announcement said. “We await the ment. When compared with the costs-ofday when the university recognizes the “I was really pleasantly surprised at how large the increase was,” said Grad- living and stipends at other universi- work of its graduate students by paying uate Student Government president ties in the Big Ten conference, graduate them the bare minimum needed to live Tamara Allard. “This is going to affect assistants at this university have the a stable life.” DiBella, who is a first-year doctora lot of students, including most likely biggest cost-of-living deficit, which lies at over $15,000, the data shows. al student in the information studies students in my department.” Stipend amounts are decided by in- FSE does not have data based on the school, said this is yet another sign dividual departments, not the univer- current minimum stipend amounts set the university should provide graduate students with collective bargainsity as a whole, Allard said. This means by university administration. Some members of FSE are unhappy ing rights in order to address concerns that some graduate assistants are alabout stipends, a lack of diversity in ready receiving more than the planned with the stipend increase. Samuel DiBella, FSE’s media comthe graduate student body and other minimum amount of $21,000, so the mittee chair, said the increase is “alissues. increases may not apply to them. “There is not a meaningful conAccording to data compiled by Fear- most meaningless” considering how much the cost of living has risen in reversation between the university and less Student Employees — a campus cent years. graduate assistants about working and organization that advocates for and
living conditions, and that the only way for that to happen is if we have collective bargaining rights,” he said. According to the university’s email to graduate students, stipends have risen a total of more than 37 percent over the last four years. In fiscal year 2018, the minimum stipend amount for 9-month graduate assistants was $15,294. While Allard said stipends can always be higher, she is hopeful this stipend increase will be the gateway for more increases and university policies that support graduate students. “I don’t think that this by any means necessarily is going to fix the problem,” Allard said. “It makes me hopeful. And with the changing administration, I’m hopeful that maybe we’ll get some exponential growth.”
