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Virginia Tech Graduate School Financial Certification Form for Graduate International Students

The Financial Certification Form is not an application for financial assistance; however, the form must be completed and submitted with your application for graduate studies. Failure to complete and return this form promptly to the Graduate School will delay your being issued a student or exchange visitor visa.

Instructions: Documentation of means of support is an important part of the application process. Some academic departments restrict admission to those students who have support from an international agency, or from their governments, or who have been offered a departmental assistantship. The purpose of this form is to document that as an international student, you or your family have sufficient funds to undertake graduate studies at Virginia Tech. All non-immigrant applicants must complete this Financial Certification Form and return it with their application material. Funds listed on this form must be verified by a bank official. In the case of applicants who have been awarded a scholarship from an international agency or from their government, notification of the award must be attached.

Financial Requirements: Tuition and fees for the 2000-01 academic year are $3,974.50 per semester, or $7,949 per academic year. Living expenses per month are judged to be a minimum of $600, or $7,200 per calendar year (12 months). Students should plan to spend an additional $1,000 per year for health insurance, which is required, books and incidental expenses. The total amount needed for one year is thus $16,149. Please note that these figures reflect costs for single students and do not include expenses for dependents. Students accepted into departments where financial aid is not available will be requested to present evidence for sufficient funding for the duration of their degree program. A master’s degree normally requires two years. A doctoral degree, normally following a master’s degree, requires four years.

Spouses: There are additional requirements for spouses. Students wishing to have their families join them should estimate an additional $4,000 per year for a spouse and an additional $1,500 per year for each child. Please note on the Financial Certification Form that you wish to have your spouse or dependent children accompany you. You will receive additional material and instructions.

Sources of Financial Support for International Graduate Students: There are three sources of financial support: graduate and research assistantships, instructional fee scholarships, and fellowships. Information about fellowships, assistantships, and instructional fee scholarships should be requested directly from the academic departments. Due to the demand for our programs, the number of assistantships available cannot meet the demands. Some departments will offer only partial assistantships, and most assistantships do not cover the summer months. Many academic departments will not offer any assistantships for the first year of study. Therefore, international students should not plan on paying for the complete cost of a graduate degree from on- campus part-time jobs. Such jobs, furthermore, are limited in number.

Employment and Taxes: No international student can expect to work off campus for the first nine months of residency in the United States. Employment on campus is possible, but positions are difficult to find. Earnings from employment, assistantships, and scholarships are subject to federal and state taxes at an approximate rate of 12%.

Post Admissions Procedures: Applicants who have been admitted and demonstrated that they have sufficient financial resources will be issued an I-20AB or IAP-66 as appropriate.

TUITION AND EXPENSES ARE SUBJECT TO CHANGE.


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