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Center for the Book Graduate Fellowships & Graduate Assistantships

UICB Fellowships & Graduate Assistantships and Fee Information

UICB Fellowship

The UICB Fellowship package provides an academic year (or semester) based stipend. The dollar amount awarded qualifies the student to be charged at in-state tuition rates. There is no work expectation with a UICB Fellowship. The award is a combination of a monthly stipend paid in 10-month (or 5-months for a semester-based fellowship) installments, and can sometimes include a % tuition waiver. The fellowship awardee may elect to pay their tuition with other funds, as tuition is due at the beginning of each semester before the entirety of the fellowship has been paid.

The exact amount awarded varies year-to-year, based on available funding. At a minimum, the UICB Fellowship covers the cost of in-state tuition. As UICB funding allows, the UICB Fellowship package may increase to include a more generous stipend or a percentage tuition waiver.

Prior year fellowship examples have been: $14,000 paid over 10 months with no tuition waiver; $10,000 paid over 10 months with a 75% tuition waiver; $10,000 paid out over 10 months with no tuition waiver.

Please see this link for information about taxes and fellowships: 

https://hr.uiowa.edu/pay/payroll-services/tax-information/fellowship-payment-rules

Note: funding resources are determined by a number of interdependent factors, and as such, the UICB cannot provide information about the exact amount of the UICB Fellowship for the coming year. Please speak with the UICB Program Administrator with any questions about the UICB Fellowship.

Graduate Assistantship (GA) 

Research Assistant (RA) or Teaching Assistantship (TA)

GA positions are two things: an academic award and a work obligation. The dollar amount awarded varies year-to-year, based on the COGS union and Graduate College negotiations. For the Academic Year 2024-2025, the amount for a 25% GA was $10,848. https://grad.uiowa.edu/funding/graduate-student-employment-standards/wages 

GA position includes a monthly stipend, paid in 10-month installments, and a 100% tuition waiver plus a 50% mandatory fees waiver for the fall and spring semesters. All UICB GA and TA positions are quarter-time, or 25% -- roughly 10 hours of work per week (GA) or one course per semester (TA). The number of available GA and TA positions also varies year-to-year; on average between five and seven GA or TA positions have been available each academic year.

More information on UI Graduate Assistantships

To Apply

The application deadline for current UICB students for the 2025-26 academic year will be in mid-to-late February 2025. Prospective MFA students will indicate their need for financial support as part of the MFA application process. Criteria for selection will be based on merit and need, with preference given to students lacking other means of institutional support and, for the Fellowships, to students focusing on the arts and technologies.

Each year financial aid in the form of Graduate Assistantships (GAs), Fellowships, and Scholarships is a moving target with a number of factors at play. They include available support, more deserving students than we have funding for, the needs of the program, and our desire to spread the limited support around in as fair a way as possible. The amount and type of support one year cannot be interpreted as a promise of funding—or funding type—the next year (excepting multi-year fellowships like the Olson or the Iowa Arts Fellowship). Superior performance as a GA or as a Fellowship recipient does not ensure the award will be renewed for a second or third year as we routinely work to provide support to other qualified students too. Please bear these realities in mind as you progress through the program and feel free to contact your advisor if you have any related questions. Also, be sure to attend to GA positions available outside of the UICB posted on the Graduate College website https://grad.uiowa.edu/funding/graduate-assistantships-and-loans/graduate-assistantships and any possible funding available through the Office of Financial Aid at https://financialaid.uiowa.edu/. 

Fees

Mandatory Student Fees (University)

In addition to tuition, all UI students are charged student fees. https://registrar.uiowa.edu/mandatory-fees

International Student Fees

International students will be assessed the following additional fees.

For first semester students

For first semester and returning students

  • International Student Fee
    • $250 for fall and spring semester enrollment
    • $67.50 per summer semester enrollment

https://grad.admissions.uiowa.edu/cost/education-estimated-costs-international

UICB Annual Student Fee

All second- and third-year MFA students will be assessed an annual general studio use fee at the start of the Fall semester. The fee covers general studio supplies and allows students access for the entire calendar year to any studio in which they have completed a class. For more information about what this fee covers and what this year’s fee is please see:

https://uicb.uiowa.edu/ui-center-book-annual-studio-use-fee 

Course Fees (UICB, and studio-based courses in other departments)

Course fees will be applied to many of the courses in which you are registered. These fees cover the use of studio facilities and equipment, and materials used in the course to complete assignments.