Doctoral Long-Term Financial Hardship Funding: FAQs

If you have questions about long-term financial hardship assistance, browse these FAQs or contact GradSupport directly.

Reach the GradSupport team by emailing gradsupport@mit.edu. We are here to help!

General questions

Doctoral students who are struggling financially with ongoing essential expenses such as housing, food, and childcare, may be experiencing significant financial hardship.

Application process

If you are selected for verification, you will be asked to submit your tax documentation. We will work with you to make sure you know what you need to submit.

While there is no deadline to submit your materials, the sooner you submit them, the sooner we can review them. Once we have all of your materials, we will review them within 10 working days and your department will notify you once the review is complete.

If you had significant savings established before you became a student, and you plan to use that savings for a home, please include that in the Additional Information section of the application. Should you receive an award that you feel does not represent your current situation, you are encouraged to appeal your award. 

Our goal remains a constant: to construct a well-founded measure of ability to pay. Assets that you may have are a part of the information we need to make an accurate assessment. 

We review applications as we receive them and will do our best to return your evaluation to your department within 10 working days. 

There is no deadline to apply for this long-term financial hardship funding. Funding is available throughout the year.

Expenses like childcare and medical expenses should be included in the Additional Information section of the application.

Students who are married but file taxes separately should add their information together in the application, unless where instructed otherwise.

Special circumstances

Should you not be eligible for additional MIT funding, SFS can advise you on a monthly payment plan or potential loan options.