Graduate Student Crisis Fund

The Graduate Assembly is establishing a “Graduate Student Crisis Fund” to help support and retain graduate students facing emergencies. The purpose of this fund is to cover medical bills, emergency travel, or critical basic needs and child-care in order to support and prevent graduate students from dropping out of programs when emergencies arise. A sick child or unexpected medical bill could mean the difference between being able to finish a graduate or professional degree and being forced to withdraw.

Berkeley, California is the most expensive college town in the United States [1]. The combination of insufficient wages and a high cost of living and education has produced an environment in which 23% of graduate students are experiencing food insecurity and 15% are experiencing homelessness during their time here [2,3]. Access to additional grant-based financial resources is vital given the high financial burden of life in the Bay Area when student budgets are already critically stressed.

The only way that we can make this happen is through your generosity. Please consider donating $10, $25, $50 or more to support graduate students. Thank you for giving and for sharing with your friends, family, and faculty mentors!

1. https://www.realtor.com/news/trends/the-ten-most-and-least-expensive-college-towns-2017-edition/

2. https://www.ucop.edu/global-food-initiative/_files/food-housing-security.pdf

3. https://housing.berkeley.edu/sites/default/files/pdf/HousingSurvey_03022018.pdf