Last updated May 14, 2022
As part of my series on How to Fully Fund Your PhD, I provide a list of universities that offer fully funded PhD Programs in Civil Engineering. A PhD in Civil Engineering can prepare you for a career in different fields including transportation, construction management, environmental work, and academia, among many others.
“Full funding” is a financial aid package for full-time students that includes full tuition remission and an annual stipend or salary for the three to the six-year duration of the student’s doctoral studies. Funding is typically offered in exchange for graduate teaching and research work that is complementary to your studies. Not all universities provide full funding to their doctoral students, which is why I recommend researching the financial aid offerings of all the potential Ph.D. programs in your academic field, including small and lesser-known schools both in the U.S. and abroad.
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Carnegie Mellon University
(Pittsburg, PA): Many of our graduate students conducting research in the department receive financial aid in the form of research assistantships that cover tuition, technology fees, and a stipend for living expenses for the calendar year (including Summer) for up to five years, as long as sufficient progress is made toward degree completion.
John Hopkins Whiting School of Engineering
(Baltimore, MD): All PhD students are fully funded with tuition, a stipend, and benefits (including healthcare) for the entire duration of the program.
Northwestern University
(Evanston, IL): All PhD students are fully funded throughout the duration of their studies by a combination of internal and external fellowships, grants, and teaching and research assistantships. The Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering offers a substantial number of academic quarters of fellowship and assistantship support for outstanding PhD degree applicants.
Stanford University
(Stanford, CA): All PhD students who are in good standing relative to their PhD program requirements are funded to the department’s Ph.D. standard. In all departments, this is at least equivalent to Stanford’s 20-hour-RA salary plus tuition to cover the department’s required enrollment (summer enrollment requirements vary by department).
Texas A&M University
(College Station, TX): The Zachry Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering is offering multiple fully supported fellowships for graduate students who want to pursue doctoral degrees. These four-year fellowships will include tuition, fees, stipend, and professional development opportunities.
University of Michigan
(Ann Arbor, MI): All incoming Ph.D. students are offered full financial support which includes a stipend, full tuition, health benefits, and dental benefits while they are active in the program. Support may be offered in the form of a Departmental Fellowship, Graduate Student Research Assistantship (GSRA), Graduate Student Instructorship (GSI), or through External Fellowships.
University of Toronto
(Toronto, Ontario): Ph.D. students receive 4 years of funding for their PhD program This includes a stipend, tuition, and fees. Packages are made up of Scholarships, Fellowships, and Research Assistantships (RA).
University of Virginia
(Charlottesville, VA): Most accepted Ph.D. students receive financial aid. Funding offers take the form of GRAs, GTAs, and/or various fellowships. ESE is committed to acquiring the resources to fund Ph.D. students for five years, contingent upon satisfactory progress toward the degree. The department’s default stipend is $27,000 for Ph.D. students.
University of Washington
(Seattle, WA): Ph.D. students are fully funded with research or teaching assistantships, departmental support, and fellowships from a variety of organizations, such as the National Science Foundation, Achievement Rewards for College Scientists, and many more.
Need some tips for the application process? See my article How To Get Into a Fully Funded PhD Program: Contacting Potential PhD Advisors.
Also, sign up to discover and bookmark more than 1800 professional and academic fellowships in the ProFellow database.
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