Financial
This information about our costs is to help students make an informed decision when considering the financial investment of the Doctoral Program in Health Related Sciences.
VCU Enrollment Services provides a Tuition and Fees Calculator for university tuition and standard fees.
In addition to the university tuition and standard fees, the PhD in Health Related Sciences Program has an additional program and technology fee that is charged to all students in the program to cover program costs. Full-time program majors are charged $1,750 per semester. Part-time program majors and non-majors taking courses in the program are charged $200 per credit hour.
Some financial aid, in the form of student scholarships, is available through the program. Scholarships are awarded on a competitive basis and are determined based on financial need, academic achievement, and scholarly promise.
The traditional model for PhD education is that the student leaves their full time job to work in their mentor's lab for 4-6 years; during this time their tuition is covered and they get a stipend to live off of. This model does not work for most people who already have careers and families. Our program allows people to keep their job (and their salaries) and does not require a major move. But, the trade off is that we do not offer full tuition or automatic stipends for students. Here is what we do offer:
- We get approximately $100,000 in scholarship funds each year to distribute amongst all our PhD students. This means that nearly all of our students get some scholarship money, but it can range from $1500- $20,000 based on need and availability
- On a year-to-year basis there are limited numbers of teaching assistant, adjunct teaching, and research assistantship positions. Some of these positions are distance-based (online) and others require in-person availability.
- Each time you come to campus, you are able to request a travel grant of $300 to offset your travel costs.
- When you get to the dissertation phase, we offer $750 in dissertation grants to help offset the costs of doing your research (not for tuition).
To learn more about funding options and how to be considered for our scholarships, please contact Stacey Reynolds at reynoldsse3@vcu.edu in the Doctoral Program in Health Related Sciences office. You may also visit the VCU Graduate School Funding Opportunities webpage for more information.
Students admitted to the PhD in Health Related Sciences program must have a personal computer manufactured within the last two years, and access to a high-speed Internet connection.
While some coursework may be completed using a Chromebook, Tablet, or may even call for the use of a Smart Phone such as an iPhone or Android device for certain apps for classroom engagement, these devices are not sufficient for completion of most coursework you will need to complete during your time as a student at VCU and therefore we cannot recommend these devices.
The cost of textbooks, readers, and software varies by semester and averages approximately $400/semester.
The average cost of nightly lodging for a single room in the downtown Richmond varies. It is recommended that students consider one of the extended stay facilities in the area, as most provide in-room cooking options and internet access. A travel stipend of $300 is available for students that reside more than 45 minutes from Richmond. Please contact Kate Creveling at crevelingc2@vcu.edu for information on applying for the travel stipend.