Graduate funding is considered taxable income. Taxes are your responsibility. Do not put off thinking about them until early April, or you might incur fines and other legal penalties.

If you are receiving an assistantship from the University or one that is administered by the University, state and federal income taxes should be withheld. A tax withholding estimator is available on the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) website. 

If you are receiving a fellowship/stipend from the University, no taxes will be withheld and you will have to file quarterly Estimated Tax Returns with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and the State of Missouri. Forms and instructions for estimated tax returns may be obtained from the Internal Revenue Service. Review the University’s Financial Services Taxability of stipend payments for more information.

 If you have questions about Federal Income Tax Information call 1-800-829-1040. Visit their web site, IRS.gov, for forms and filing information.

Please review the key tax information For Fellowship Stipend Recipients on the Financial Services page of the Washington University website.

If you are receiving a fellowship from the University, no.  The University’s policy is to withhold on graduate assistantships, for which students provide services to others part of the time while spending most of their time on their own work. The University does not withhold on fellowships, which require only that students’ progress full-time in their work. This distinction reflects federal law and therefore cannot be changed by Washington University. If you are receiving an assistantship from the University or one that is administered by the University but the University is not withholding from you check, please contact your department. 

Every tuition scholarship from Office of Graduate Studies meets the current IRS criteria for tax exemption. Do not report them on your tax forms.

As a full-time student, your graduate earnings are exempt from Social Security and Medicare taxes (FICA). 

You are responsible for paying your taxes and you should consult the IRS about payment options and more accurate estimation in the future. 

Every case is different. Go to the Office of International Students and Scholars for advice.

Washington University, the Office of Graduate studies and your home department are committed to funding most PhD students for the length of their program. Please refer to your original offer letter for your specific funding details.

Stipend payments are disbursed on the last business day of each month.  

Stipends and payroll direct deposits are managed through Workday.  You can enroll or update banking details through the payment elections section located within the WashU Workday portal.

Eligible students are encouraged to seek additional fellowships from external agencies. In addition to the funding amount, which can be more generous than that of a university financial award, these external fellowships are prestigious; they provide valuable training, experiences, and resources, and they enhance future career opportunities. In addition, securing external funding to support training and research is often an important component of the professional development of graduate students.

PhD students receiving university financial support who also receive an external fellowship or stipendiary award may not combine or "stack" the external award with the university financial support. Please refer to the Office of the Provost’s Financial Policies as well as your home department for options. 

Most funding packages consist of tuition remission. Tuition remission covers tuition charges applied during registration.

Tuition remission will be applied to student accounts after the add/drop deadline each semester.

WashU assesses a student health and wellness fee to all full-time, degree seeking students on the Danforth campus. The fee is billed to the student’s account each semester.  This fee helps support membership to the Sumers Recreation center, health education/prevention efforts, the Center for Counseling and Psychological Services, and Timely Care. Most eligible, fully-funded graduate students will receive a 90% subsidy for this fee.

Washington University requires all full-time Danforth Campus students to have health insurance and offers an injury and sickness insurance plan underwritten by United Healthcare Company. All full-time graduate Arts & Sciences students on the Danforth Campus are required to have adequate insurance coverage. Domestic students may choose to waive WashU coverage if they can document that they have adequate coverage through another plan. The University plan is mandatory for international students. The insurance premium is billed annually to the student’s account in the fall semester. Most eligible, fully-funded graduate students will receive a 90% subsidy for this fee.

The student health insurance plan goes into effect on August 1* and continues through July 31. The deadline to make changes to the plan (enroll dependents, purchase additional coverage or opt out) is September 5. 

*To use your student health insurance prior to September 5, you must be registered for Fall courses full-time and visit the UHC website.

Dental Insurance is available to all students enrolled in the health insurance plan; however, it is not required for WashU students on the Danforth campus. Students have the option to waive coverage. The carrier for dental insurance is United Healthcare and the cost is billed annually to the student’s account in the fall semester. Most eligible, fully-funded graduate students will receive a 90% subsidy for this fee.

Please note: If you waive the student health insurance, you will not be eligible to remain on the dental insurance plan.

Most fully-funded A&S graduate students receive a 90% subsidy.  This subsidy covers health insurance, dental insurance and the health & wellness fee for the full-time enrolled student. It does not apply to vision insurance.

The health subsidy does not apply to dependents or other family members.

You are eligible to enroll in a student vision insurance plan, but it must be paid in full upon enrollment. The health subsidy does not apply to vision insurance premiums.

The health subsidy is applied directly after courses start during a semester, but it could take up to 8 weeks to complete.

Students can view and pay their tuition and fees in Workday by selecting Financials Hub on the student homepage. Information on student accounts is available on the Washington University Financial Services website. 

You can view and pay your balance in Workday under the Financials Hub on the Workday homepage.  To use this option, complete “Payment Elections” in Workday using this guidance. 

Student loans can be deferred if you are an enrolled student. Washington University reports enrollment to National Student Loan Data System (NSLDS), which students can use to review and track federal student loan history, balances and current loan servicer. Typically, your loan provider will take NSLDS for deferment, but you may need to submit an in-school deferment form. Contact your loan provider for details.

Student loans can be an option. Please contact j.schmitt@wustl.edu or matthew.c@wustl.edu for more information.