Financial Support for Graduate Students

The most common form of support in the Department is a graduate teaching assistantship (GTA). These are awarded on a competitive basis. Teaching assistants with little initial teaching experience gain basic teaching skills in our Studio Classroom under supervision of an experienced teacher. With qualified teaching experience, our teaching assistants have complete responsibility for an introductory class, which is a far greater responsibility than simply grading or leading a recitation session. This is because we do not use large lecture classes with discussion sections run by graduate assistants, as do many other departments.

Obtaining and maintaining teaching excellence is a priority for the Department of Statistics. The GTAs are teachers in this system and also students. Our department provides extensive training and support for GTAs through our GTA training Program. Training begins during orientation, the week before classes, where GTAs learn the basic ideas of general education, how to teach statistics using this approach, and obtain feedback through practice teaching sessions. During the semester, weekly teaching meetings are held, where teaching ideas are presented and discussed, as well as other issues in statistics education. The department has found that this training program provides a cooperative teaching environment that encourages GTAs to work together, thus benefitting from the combined knowledge, experience, and ideas of the group. The goal of the training program is to help our GTAs become excellent communicators and teachers. The skills gained during this training should greatly enhance one’s marketability and future success as a professional statistician.

First semester teaching assistants are appointed for five-tenths time (16-20 hours/week) with a stipend of approximately $19,000 for nine months (i.e., the academic year) to teach one course section per semester. After their first semester of teaching, and if they are considered to be successful teachers, GTA’s may be considered for additional duties at an increased stipend . Teaching assistants receive a full tuition waiver for up to 10 credit hours.

Students whose native language is not English are required to pass the revised TSE exam with a score of 50 or more, or the speaking portion of the IBT (Internet-Based TOEFL) with a minimum score of 22, to be considered for a teaching assistantship. This is a University requirement which cannot be waived.

See How to Apply.

These assistantships are generally funded through research grants or contracts awarded to the University or by funds provided by the Kansas State Research and Extension (KSRE), and the College of Arts and Sciences. The number varies from semester to semester. A student who is appointed to a research assistantship will be involved in one or more major consulting or research projects. These positions are frequently held by our more senior and experienced graduate students. Demonstrated ability and willingness to work hard are the two most important criteria for selecting research assistants.

Research assistants are appointed for five-tenths time (16-20 hours/week) with a stipend that varies with the nature of the appointment. Some GRAs are employed on a 12 month basis. Graduate research assistants do not usually receive a tuition waiver, however tuition is assessed at the resident rate.

University-wide graduate fellowships are available for exceptionally talented US citizens or permanent residents planning to pursue a doctoral degree at Kansas State University. These fellowships include a base stipend, plus a tuition scholarship. Stipends may be supplemented by departments. The fellowships are nominally for one year; departments provide support for additional years. Nominees need not be enrolled at Kansas State when they apply. Nominations for fellowships are made by the department to the dean of the Graduate School. The Department of Statistics has been successful in securing these fellowships for their outstanding applicants. The department must make their nominations by February 1st, therefore to be considered for a graduate fellowship you must have your application materials to the Department of Statistics as early as possible.

For more information, visit Graduate School Funding Opportunities.

Lolafaye Coyne Statistics Graduate Scholarship

The recipient of this scholarship will be a graduate student(s) properly enrolled in the Department of Statistics in the College of Arts and Sciences at Kansas State University. First preference will be given to student(s) planning a career in Statistics.

The Holly and Beth Fryer Scholarship

This scholarship is available to any regularly enrolled student at KSU who is majoring in statistics. Scholastic performance is the criterion used in selecting a recipient. Winners will be expected to enroll for a statistics curriculum during the current academic year. The scholarships will be paid out in two sums, half being provided upon enrollment for each of the two semesters of the academic year.

The Ronald and Rae Iman Scholarship

This scholarship is open only to students are properly enrolled in the Department of Statistics and who have graduated from an accredited high school in one of the following states: Kansas, Colorado, Iowa, Missouri, Nebraska, New Mexico, Oklahoma, or Texas. Preference will be given to strong students who meet criteria in the following order:

• Undergraduates who graduated from an accredited high school in rural Kansas.
• Undergraduates who graduated from an accredited high school in Kansas.
• Undergraduates who graduated from an accredited high school in one of the states listed above.
• Graduate students who graduated from an accredited high school in one of the states listed above and did undergraduate work in Engineering.

Arthur D. and Lavonia B. Dayton Scholarship

This scholarship is available to any undergraduate or graduate student properly enrolled in the Department of Statistics at Kansas State University.

Dr. Lynn Ying-Shiang Lin Statistics Graduate Research Scholarship

The recipient of this scholarship will be a graduate research assistant in good academic standing (as determined by the Department of Statistics Scholarship Committee) who is properly enrolled in the Department of Statistics at Kansas State University. Preference will be given to students with financial need who are involved in food safety or clean water research.

Ray and Carolyn Waller Statistics Scholarship

The recipient(s) of this scholarship will be an undergraduate or graduate student(s) properly enrolled in the Department of Statistics in the College of Arts and Sciences at Kansas State University.

Howard Siepman Memorial Scholarship

This scholarship is available to any PhD graduate student properly enrolled in the Department of Statistics at Kansas State University.

The Statistics Scholarship

This scholarship is available to any student enrolled in the Department of Statistics.

The assistantships within the department are nominally for the academic year. The department tries to make summer support available to those who have served as teaching assistants or research assistants during the academic year. While summer support cannot be guaranteed, it is typically provided. Some summer appointments require classroom teaching and others require assisting faculty members with their teaching, research and/or consulting. The department strongly encourages graduate students to consider summer internships with various industries and federal statistical agencies. An internship is valuable experience that enhances a student’s statistical skills and marketability. The Department of Statistics has been able to arrange an increasing number of such internships for interested students each year.