LATEST POSTS FROM THE BLOG

• Do I Owe Income Tax on My Fellowship?
  Postbac, graduate student, and postdoc fellows frequently ask whether their fellowships are considered taxable income. PhD-type fellowships that are not reported on a W-2 are non-compensatory income. […]
• Using Data to Improve the Postdoc Experience (Including Salary and Benefits)
  In this episode, Emily interview Dr. Gary McDowell, the executive director of Future of Research. Future of Research is an advocacy organization that uses data to empower early-career researchers. […]
• Negotiating PhD Funding Offers: This Grad Student Did It Successfully
  In this episode, Emily interviews John Vsetecka, a second-year PhD student in History at Michigan State University. When John was a prospective PhD student, he attempted to negotiate the stipend and […]
• How to Prepare Your Grad Student Tax Return (Tax Year 2018)
  It’s common for funded graduate students to be a bit intimidated by preparing their own tax returns, particularly if they are inexperienced in doing so. The sources of PhD student funding, […]
• Financial Reasons to Work Before Starting Your PhD
  College students who aspire to earn PhDs often ask themselves if they should proceed directly from undergrad into a PhD program or take a year or more “off” to work. From a career perspective, there […]
• As a Single Parent, This Graduate Student Utilizes Every Possible Resource
  In this podcast episode, Emily interview Lauri Lutes, a fourth-year PhD student at Oregon State University and single mother. Lauri’s stipend is equivalent to the local living wage for just one […]
• The First Step to Complete Your Grad Student Tax Return (2018)
  There is one vital step grad students need to take when starting to prepare their tax returns. It’s a super simple step, but most often overlooked, and skipping it can lead to an inaccurate […]
• Can a PhD Achieve FIRE?
  Would you like for paid work to become optional for the rest of your life? What would you do with your time if you didn’t have to work? When you become “financially independent,” […]
• An Unfunded Summer Didn’t Deter this PhD Student Thanks to Her Creative Side Hustle
  In this episode, Emily interviews Bailey Poland, a rising second-year PhD student in rhetoric and writing at Bowling Green State University. Bailey earns a stipend of just $14,000 for the academic […]
• This Prof Used Geographic Arbitrage to Design Her Ideal Career and Personal Life
  In this episode, Emily interviews Dr. Amanda, a tenure-track professor at a small college in the Midwest. While a postdoc, Amanda listened to career advice from R1 university faculty, but ultimately […]