Currently Funded Students

Congratulations, you’ve received funding support for your graduate degree! The information on this page will help you understand your benefits, rights, and the details associated with processing your assistantship, scholarship, or fellowship paperwork.

YOUR BENEFITS EXPLAINED

Assistantships & Fellowships

scholarships

WORKPLACE POLICIES

FAQs

your benefits explained

The standard minimum stipend is $17,000 for master’s students and $20,000 for doctoral students, based on 2023-2024 figures for a 9-month appointment. Amounts will vary widely depending on the funding source supporting your position.

For graduate assistants, monthly stipends are issued on the last business day of each month of your appointment. For fellows, stipends are also issued monthly, however, the date may vary.

Taxes will not be withheld from your monthly stipend check as some or all of your fellowship stipend may be taxable as income. Refer to the IRS publication for details. You will not receive a W-2 or 1099-MISC at the end of the year from the University of Maine. If you would like a listing of your stipend payments for the year, please contact Ally Davis (allyson.davis@maine.edu).

If you have never received a fellowship stipend payment before, you must complete the W9 form and return to Ally Davis (allyson.davis@maine.edu) in order to be paid.

If you do not have a Social Security Number, then you should complete the W-8BEN instead of the W9.

Depending on the source of funding and the guidelines of that funding source, a tuition waiver may be included in the award. Refer to the award letter documentation for specific information on what is covered.

Tuition waivers will not cover courses taken as audit or below the 400 level. Courses dropped after the official drop period for a given semester will not be covered by an assistantship, with the tuition becoming the responsibility of the student.

Student activity or technology fees are typically not covered in assistantships, fellowships, or scholarships, thus becoming the responsibility of the student to pay. A payment plan can be set up with the Bursar’s Office for those on an assistantship, only after the appointment form has been processed by the Graduate School.

Graduate assistantships and fellowships may cover up to half of the health insurance costs for the GA/TA/RA/Fellow plan. Visit the Bursar’s Office website for coverage details. Scholarships typically do not cover the costs of the Student Health Insurance Plan (SHIP). More information is available in the FAQ section below.

assistantships & Fellowships

If you’ve been offered an assistantship or fellowship, here are the steps you need to complete to ensure the timely processing of your appointment. Note: this timeline will vary depending on the time of year you are appointed.

Assuming you’ve received an official offer for your award, your first step is to accept. Follow up with the hiring or awarding unit if you have not received an award letter.

You must be enrolled in 6 credits (full-time status) in order to be appointed on an assistantship or a fellowship.

You must do this after you have enrolled in courses to avoid the $50-per-month late fee on your student bill. Go to the Bursar’s Office website for step-by-step instructions. Fall tuition bills are generated in early July.

If the appointment form has not been received by the Graduate School by the time the tuition bills for fall have been generated, entering your anticipated resources will alert the Bursar’s Office of your pending award.

The appointing unit must complete and send the Graduate Assistant Appointment Form or Graduate Fellow Appointment Form to the Graduate School for processing as early as possible, prior to the start of the semester. Follow up with your supervisor to be sure this form has been prepared and sent to the Graduate School for processing.

International students will automatically be charged for the international health insurance plan. Go to the Office of International Programs website for additional information on waiving or enrolling in health insurance.

Students on an assistantship or fellowship are only eligible for the GA/TA/RA & Fellows health insurance plan. You will receive more information once the appointment form has been processed.

Once the appointment form has been processed by Graduate School you will receive an email to your @maine.edu account from our staff with further insurance instructions.

Students interested in setting up a payment plan may do so through the Bursar’s Office.

Graduate assistants (TAs, RAs, and GAs) and fellows are eligible for a Graduate Assistant parking permit. You will be able to get the permit once the appointment form has been processed by the Graduate School.

scholarships

If you’ve been awarded a scholarship, here are the steps you need to complete to ensure the timely processing of your award.

Assuming you’ve received an official offer for your award, your first step is to accept. Follow up with the hiring or awarding unit if you have not received an award letter.

You must be enrolled in order to receive university funding, refer to the award letter for a minimum credit requirement. If you’ve received a scholarship through the Graduate School, once you accept your award our office staff will be sure to update MaineStreet to cover the tuition.

Students interested in setting up a payment plan may do so through the Bursar’s Office.

You must do this after you have enrolled in courses to avoid the $50-per-month late fee on your student bill. Go to the Bursar’s Office website for step-by-step instructions.

Students who have received a scholarship are only eligible for the Student Health Insurance Plan (SHIP). Be sure to enroll or waive if you have comparable insurance.

Workplace Policies

Work Schedule

Graduate assistants (TA/RA/GA) typically work 20 hours per week and receive a monthly stipend for 80 hours.

Domestic GAs may work additional hours, if applicable, with 30 hours per week during the school year and 40 hours per week during school breaks being the suggested maximum.

International GA’s often have limitations depending on their visa status and should confer with the Office of International Programs before working additional hours.

Sick, Vacation, Holiday Policies

The Graduate School does not have a set policy on vacation, holiday, and sick time for graduate assistants (TA/RA/GA). Therefore, policies can vary by department, program, or supervisor. When the appointment award is accepted, a pre-determined agreement should be made between the student and supervisor. 

Required Training for Student Employees

Please refer to the Office of Student Employment for standard annual training. Additional training may be required depending on the type of position; confer with your supervisor for more information.

Frequently Asked Questions

Employment Questions

Tax forms and direct deposit information can be completed in MaineStreet Self-Service once the appointment form has been processed fully by the Graduate School and Payroll offices.

Once your appointment form is completed and processed by payroll, you will receive an email confirming that your job is activated in MaineStreet and outlining the next required steps. You will then complete the first portion of the online I-9 via MaineStreet > Employee Self-Service > Personal Details.

When the first portion of your I-9 is completed AND the job is activated in MaineStreet, you will then go in person to the Office of Student Employment in Wingate Hall with your documents so that they can verify and complete the second portion of the I-9.

More information can be found on the Student Employment website.

Graduate assistants are not normally allowed to be employed outside the University of Maine without permission from their graduate program and the Graduate School.

Student Bill Questions

Tuition and insurance benefits are applied in MaineStreet when the appointment form has been processed by the Graduate School.

No. You will be responsible for paying the tuition for any courses dropped after the official drop period for that given semester unless extenuating circumstances exist. Contact our office if you have any questions.

  • International students are charged insurance when they enroll in full-time courses for Fall.
  • GA insurance is added later once the Grad School has processed an appointment form.
  • The voluntary insurance is not billed through MaineStreet and is not an automatic charge for students.

Most GA and Fellow positions will cover 50% of the premium if the student enrolls. Some positions may cover more. The benefit is applied immediately when the appointment form is processed at the Grad School.

Students CANNOT receive the 50% benefit if they do not enroll in the health insurance plan with UMaine.

Contact Allyson Davis at allyson.davis@maine.edu.

Health INsurance Questions

Insurance is not required for grad students unless they are:

  • Grad Assistants, GAs, TAs, or RAs
  • Graduate Fellows or
  • International students

There are only two plans offered through UM.

  • Voluntary insurance (SHIP) $4,648
  • GA/International insurance $3,157
  • International grad students are charged the insurance premium in MaineStreet when they enroll for 6 or more Fall credits. Enrollment or waiver should be completed online at the Gallagher Health Insurance site. The Office of International Programs can help with questions.
  • Domestic graduate students NOT on a GA or Fellowship can enroll in the voluntary plan online through Gallagher Health.
  • Fall course enrollment is necessary to prove eligibility.
  • Domestic Graduate Assistants or Fellows are charged the GA/Intl insurance in the MaineStreet student bill when their appointment form is processed by the Grad School. An email with instructions and the link to Gallagher Health Insurance will be sent to the student.
  • Enrollment or waiver can only happen 24-48 hours AFTER the appointment paperwork has been processed by Grad School staff. The Bursar’s office will upload the GA/Fellow student data to the Gallagher site (daily), so the student will be active to enroll or waive.

YES, grad assistants and international students have until September 15, 2024, to waive the UMaine plan online at the Gallagher Insurance site. If they do not waive out by then, they will be automatically enrolled and billed for the insurance.

Once the waiver has been completed online, it can take 24-48 hours to remove the premium charge on the MaineStreet student bill.

If GA’s chose to waive out of any of the plans because of their own health insurance, the waiver option will appear in a few days. Once the student applies for the waiver, they should receive an email stating that the waiver has been submitted and/or processed. Students should look out for an email from notifications@gallagherstudent.com.

Voluntary SHIP does not allow dependent enrollment, but the GA/International plan does. Students should complete the enrollment online after they have enrolled themselves. GA plan will cover dependents and domestic partners.

Both Voluntary SHIP and GA/International plans begin August 1, 2024, and end July 31, 2025.

Yes, but typically only if they are going to be a December graduate. The Fall-only plan needs to be manually adjusted by the Bursar’s office.

UnitedHealthcare Student Resources
P.O. Box 809025, Dallas, TX 75380-9025
1-866-948-8472 | customerservice@uhcsr.com | www.uhcsr.com

Contact Ally Davis (allyson.davis@maine.edu).