Jump to: Enrollment Requirements - Progress to Degree - Leaves of Absence - Fellowship Reserve Status - Taxes - Supplemental Appointments - Health Insurance Subsidy - Fellowships in addition to VPGE Fellowships
Enrollment Requirements
Fellows must review their degree program's enrollment requirements, as they may differ from VPGE policy.
SGF, CCSRE, Zhang (enrollment required all four quarters)
Fellows must enroll in a minimum of eight units (unless they are in TGR or graduation quarter tuition status) all four quarters to receive their fellowship funds. If a degree program requires a higher enrollment rate than is provided by a VPGE fellowship and additional funds are needed to satisfy degree program enrollment requirements, fellows should consult with their degree program’s student services administrator. ***Fellows who are in TGR or graduation quarter tuition status MUST enroll in a zero unit TGR course***
Fellows who do not enroll in the required number of units can request to put their fellowship support on reserve for future use if eligible; otherwise the support for that quarter is forfeited.
Please note that, by default, the SGF, CCSRE and Zhang are budgeted for TGR tuition support during the fifth year of graduate study.
Lieberman, DARE (enrollment required all four quarters)
These fellowships provide tuition support at the TGR rate regardless of whether a student has moved to TGR status. If a fellow has not yet moved to TGR tuition status and additional funds are needed to satisfy degree program enrollment requirements, they should consult with their degree program’s student services administrator. ***Fellows who are in TGR or graduation quarter tuition status MUST enroll in a zero unit TGR course***
Fellows who do not enroll will forfeit VPGE tuition and stipend support for that quarter. Banking is not permitted.
SIGF (enrollment required all four quarters)
Fellows must enroll in a minimum of eight units during the academic year, e.g., autumn, winter, and spring quarters, for the first two years of the fellowship (unless they are in TGR or graduation quarter tuition status) to receive their fellowship funds. The SIGF provides tuition support for three units of enrollment for the first two summer quarters and fellows must enroll in a minimum of three units to receive their fellowship funds during these two summers. During the third year of the fellowship, tuition support equal to the TGR amount is provided. If a degree program requires a higher enrollment rate than is provided by a VPGE fellowship and additional funds are needed to satisfy degree program's enrollment requirements, fellows should consult their degree program’s student services administrator. ***Fellows who are in TGR or graduation quarter tuition status MUST enroll in a zero unit TGR course***
ARCS (enrollment required autumn, winter and/or spring quarter)
ARCS Fellows are required to be enrolled in a minimum of eight units for autumn and winter or TGR for autumn, winter and spring quarter of the academic year of their fellowship. If a degree program requires a higher enrollment rate than is provided by the VPGE fellowship and additional funds are needed to satisfy the degree program's enrollment requirements, fellows should consult their degree program’s student services administrator. ***Fellows who are in TGR or graduation quarter tuition status MUST enroll in a zero unit TGR course***
Fellows who do not enroll in the required number of units will forfeit VPGE tuition and stipend support for that quarter. Banking is not permitted. All quarters of support must be used in the fiscal year of the fellowship award.
EDGE
Autumn quarter stipend - fellows must be enrolled in a minimum of eight units in order to receive their autumn quarter stipend.
Research stipend (summer quarter) - fellows must follow their degree program’s enrollment policy in order to receive their research stipend.
Summer Start
SGF, SIGF, CCSRE, Zhang and Lieberman fellowship recipients may begin tenure early, during summer quarter, when approved by the recipient's degree program and VPGE staff. Fellows must note that the current fiscal year’s stipend rate will apply.
Practical Training
International students may not use VPGE fellowship funds while enrolled in Practical Training (CPT or OPT).
Progress to Degree
All VPGE fellowship recipients are expected to continue to make satisfactory progress towards their degree, otherwise VPGE support may be suspended or canceled.
SGF, CCSRE and Zhang
Each year, degree programs are asked to report on the progress of fellows with remaining SGF/CCSRE/Zhang support. Support for the following academic year will be released for the fellow’s use, except where there is unsatisfactory progress, or identified milestones are not completed, as described below.
Unsatisfactory Progress: For fellows not making satisfactory progress, fellowship support may be released on a quarter-by-quarter basis, or depending on type and length of issues, the fellowship may be suspended or remaining quarters of the award may be canceled.
Milestone Completion: fellows are expected to complete degree program-qualifying procedures and be admitted to candidacy prior to the start of their third year as a Stanford graduate student. SGF/CCSRE/Zhang support will be suspended until the quarter following completion of the milestone. This policy overrides any extensions for milestone completion approved by degree programs.
For degree programs where the usual time to advance to candidacy is not before the start of the third year of graduate school, support for autumn quarter of the third year will be released for the fellow's use. Subsequent support will be suspended until the quarter following completion of the milestone.
***Covid-19 Update: The faculty senate has approved changes to the university academic policy regarding the deadline for students to be admitted to candidacy:
For students who are currently in the second year of their doctoral program and have not yet been admitted to candidacy, the university will allow departments and programs to defer the university candidacy requirement that students complete the department qualifying procedures and apply for candidacy by the end of their second year in the program. If departments and programs, specifically the department chair, director of graduate studies or graduate studies faculty committee, believe that their qualifying process cannot be implemented in spring 2019-20 due to COVID-19 disruptions, they may decide to allow students to meet the candidacy requirement by the end of autumn quarter 2020-21. If a department offers qualifying exams in spring 2019-20 the student will be given the option to defer to autumn 2020-21 without penalty in terms of meeting their degree progress milestones.
In light of this policy change, please note that VPGE will be working closely with degree programs to make sure that appropriate accommodations are made for those students who will be entering their third year of graduate study in 2020-21 and who have SGF or CCSRE Fellowships (which normally require fellows to have been admitted to candidacy by the start of their third year of graduate study).
Please read more about additional approved changes to academic policy here.
Any suspended SGF/CCSRE/Zhang support is reserved for later use, provided it can be used in the first five years of graduate studies; otherwise it is forfeited. If a fellow has a five-year award, the SGF supplement to the outside fellowship will be forfeited.
Leaves of Absence
All fellows must comply with University Leave of Absence Policy and procedures, as well as any degree program requirements. Please note that fellows on a leave of absence are not eligible to receive VPGE fellowship support during the quarters of leave.
Once a leave of absence is approved by a degree program, fellows must contact the VPGE office to indicate the quarter the leave begins and the quarter in which the fellow will resume studies (including summer quarters without enrollment before or after the leave of absence).
If a fellow does not return after four consecutive quarters of leave (including summer quarters without enrollment before or after the leave of absence), the remainder of the fellowship will be cancelled. Once a student has taken a total of four quarters of leave, any additional leave may result in the cancellation of their VPGE Fellowship.
If the leave of absence is due to serious illness or other medical condition, or active military service, and will result in an absence of more than four consecutive quarters without enrollment, contact the VPGE office regarding fellowship arrangements.
Read the GAP Policy 5.3, regarding leaves of absence
SGF, CCSRE and Zhang
Support for the first four quarters related to an approved leave of absence is automatically reserved for later use, provided the support can be used within the first five years of graduate study.
The period considered the first five years of graduate study for the use of the fellowship is extended up to four quarters related to an approved leave of absence.
Any summer quarter without enrollment that precedes or follows an approved leave is counted as one of the four quarters.
SIGF
Support for the first two quarters related to an approved leave of absence are automatically reserved for later use, provided the support can be used within the first six years of graduate study.
The period considered the first six years of graduate study for the use of the fellowship is extended up to two quarters related to an approved leave of absence.
Any summer quarter without enrollment that precedes or follows an approved leave is counted as one of the two quarters.
Fellowship Reserve Status
For VPGE fellowships that require enrollment for four quarters each year, interruptions in the use of a VPGE fellowship will result in the forfeiture of the affected quarter(s) unless a request to put the support on reserve is approved based on the policies of the applicable fellowship program.
Who Can Put a Fellowship on Reserve?
SGF, CCSRE and Zhang recipients who do not already have support budgeted through the fifth year of graduate study are eligible to put their fellowships on reserve. SGF, CCSRE and Zhang fellowships must be used within the first five years of graduate study, which includes summer quarter of the fifth year. Please note that, by default, the SGF, CCSRE and Zhang are budgeted for TGR tuition support during the fifth year of graduate study.
SIGF recipients can put up to a maximum of two quarters of support on reserve provided that all SIGF support is used within the first six years of graduate study, which includes summer quarter of the sixth year. Quarters put on reserve will retain the same tuition support, i.e., a summer quarter of reserved support that provides three units of tuition support will be rebudgeted for later use with three units of tuition support.
Who Can Not Put a Fellowship on Reserve?
Lieberman and DARE Fellows are not permitted to put their support on reserve.
Reserve Procedures
Please note that degree programs may augment the VPGE reserve procedures with other requirements, so fellows should check with their student services administrator for local procedures and deadlines. In all cases, fellows are encouraged to discuss funding plans with their advisors and degree programs, even when official advisor approval is not necessary.
Advisor Approval Required
Faculty advisor approval is required for reserve requests when the student intends to be supported by that faculty member or when planning to not enroll (e.g., 50% research appointment, Practical Training, internship etc.). The director of graduate studies or degree program chair/director can substitute for the faculty advisor, when necessary.
Advisor Approval Not Required
Faculty approval is not required if a student wishes to put their fellowship on reserve for a teaching appointment (CA, TA, or TF) or use of a training grant, but fellows must still submit a reserve request form to notify VPGE to update the VPGE fellowship record.
Reserve Deadline
It is advisable to submit requests before the start of the quarter for which a reserve period is requested so the fellow can avoid the receipt of, and the need to repay, a stipend. The final deadline for submitting a reserve request to VPGE is the final study list deadline for the quarter for which reserve period is requested. Please refer to Stanford’s Academic Calendar for specific dates.
Make a Reserve Request
Fellows may initiate the reserve process in one of three ways:
- Electronic Reserve Request Form (preferred method): The fellow completes and submits this online form. An email is then sent to the faculty advisor (when applicable) and to VPGE. The advisor can submit an approval via the URL in the automated email.
- Download, print and complete a hard copy of the Reserve Request Form. The fellow obtains their faculty advisor's signature when applicable, then submits the form to the VPGE.
- Email: The fellow sends an email to their faculty advisor (when applicable), copies vpgefellowships@stanford.edu and includes the following information: (a) fellow's name; (b) quarter(s) for which the reserve period is requested; (c) a brief description of the fellow's activity; and (d) a short explanation of how the activity contributes to the fellow's PhD program. When applicable, the faculty advisor "replies all", indicating her/his approval.
Reserve Confirmation from VPGE
For all three reserve request methods listed above, VPGE will confirm approval via email to the fellow, faculty advisor (if applicable) and degree program student services administrator after reviewing the request.
Taxes
As indicated in university policy, fellowship stipends are taxable, but are not subject to withholding (except for non-resident aliens from a country without a tax treaty). Fellows should be sure to budget accordingly for any tax responsibilities. For non-resident aliens only, a 1042-S is issued in early March.
Read the GAP Policy 7.2, 1.7 regarding the taxability of stipends
Find more information regarding taxes on the Student Services website
Supplemental Appointments
Please note: university policies apply to all fellows unless their school or degree program has a more restrictive policy. Fellows should contact the degree program’s student services administrator for more information. University policy, as outlined in the Graduate Academic Policies & Procedures handbook (GAP), allows that students supported by a full fellowship (i.e., SGF, CCSRE, Zhang, Lieberman, DARE, SIGF and ARCS-during quarters of use) may be employed for an additional eight hours of hourly employment or may hold a supplemental teaching appointment (e.g., TA, CA) or research appointment (RA) from a minimum of four hours to a maximum of ten hours a week. If a student has a combination of hourly work and a supplemental teaching or research appointment, the total commitment may not exceed eight hours per week. During summer quarter ONLY, University policy allows fellows to add a supplemental teaching or research appointment of up to 50% to their fellowship or up to 16 hours of hourly work.
Read the GAP Policy 7.3, regarding supplemental appointments
Health Insurance Subsidy
Cardinal Care is a university sponsored health insurance option and the insurance premium is billed over three quarters (autumn, winter, spring). As is provided for any graduate student who has a fellowship paying a non-tuition stipend at or above the minimum salary for a 25% assistantship (SGF, CCSRE, Zhang, Lieberman, DARE, SIGF and ARCS fellows are eligible), fellows receive the University Cardinal Care Subsidy which is equal to half of the cost of the insurance premium for each quarter that they are enrolled and are using their fellowship.
Read the GAP Policy 7.3, 1.8 regarding the Cardinal Care Subsidy
Fellowships in addition to VPGE Fellowships
VPGE fellows are obligated to notify VPGE if they receive support from additional fellowships, so that their fellowship can be reconfigured if needed.
For SGF, CCSRE and Zhang fellows, additional fellowships generally extend the length of the VPGE fellowship up to a maximum of five years. On occasion and with degree program approval, small one-time honorary stipends may be retained in additional to the VPGE fellowship.
If a fellow is awarded a multi-year nationally competitive portable fellowship (e.g., NSF, Hertz Foundation, NDSEG), a three-year SGF fellowship may be converted to a five-year combination award. Please see an example configuration for a newly admitted student in receipt of a SGF and a NSF.
| NSF-SGF dual award example | Year 1, 2, 3 | NSF supplemented by SGF to total SGF levels |
| Year 4, 5 | Full SGF support |
Lieberman, DARE- Additional fellowships do not extend DARE or Lieberman fellowship support. Additional fellowships reduce the funds paid by the VPGE fellowship.
Please note that Knight-Hennessy Scholars are not eligible to be nominated for a Stanford Graduate Fellowship (SGF) or the CCSRE Graduate Fellowship – three-year fellowships that have a competing recruitment component, but they are eligible for EDGE and other VPGE and university fellowships, including later-stage doctoral fellowships that would be awarded after Knight-Hennessy funding has been expended.
