MA Program Financing & Assistantships
Program Cost
UConn students are charged by residency status at graduate tuition and fee rates. Full, up-to-date program fee details can be found on the Office of the Bursar's website.
The total Cost of Attendance (COA) at UConn includes direct educational costs (i.e., tuition, fees, housing, and food) and indirect costs. Indirect costs include books, course materials, supplies and equipment, transportation, miscellaneous personal expenses, loan fees, and professional licensure or certification, if applicable.
Financial Aid
Some students may be eligible for financial aid or may wish to utilize unsubsidized loans. You can learn more by contacting UConn's One Stop Student Services at 860-486-1111 or onestop@uconn.edu (please include your student ID number or Applicant ID number in your email message).
Scholarships
Learn about available UConn Neag School of Education’s scholarships.
Graduate Assistantships
We strongly encourage HESA students to either hold a Graduate Assistantship (GA) or to work in a higher education institution or in a higher education-adjacent role. Although graduate assistantships are not required for admission to the HESA program, we help students who are seeking an assistantship to secure one through an interview process, which matches their interests and skills with available assistantships. Because our program aims to develop reflective scholar-practitioners in higher education, we aim to support our HESA students in connecting our academic program with practical experience, whether that is through an assistantship or other employment in the field.
Graduate assistantships offer students the opportunity to combine the theories gained through classroom instruction, with supervised, real-world experiences. Assistantships are designed to give students the skills and knowledge to function effectively in the workplace.
All Graduate Assistantships are compensated according to the contract between the GEU-UAW and the University of Connecticut. For the 2024-2025 academic year, a typical Graduate Assistant stipend for a nine-month, 20-hour a week appointment will be $27,764. Additional pay may also be available for students who chose to stay on campus and work during the summer months. For students who hold a Graduate Assistantship of 10 or more hours, they receive a remission or waiver of tuition. Furthermore, Graduate Assistants are able to access affordable employer-provided health and dental insurance and numerous other benefits including paid time off, partial fee waivers, and reduced-cost parking.
Graduate Assistantship Interview Process
Admitted students who seek a Graduate Assistantship will be invited to interview for available graduate assistantships. Interviews typically occur during the Admitted Students Weekend, and in some instances may occur outside of that window of time. Shortly after the interviews, admitted students seeking a graduate assistantship will be notified of their candidacy. The confirmed graduate assistantship sites for HESA MA program students for 2025-2026 are listed below.
Confirmed 2025-2026 HESA-Affiliated Graduate Assistantship Positions
- African American Cultural Center
- Asian American Cultural Center
- La Comunidad Intelectual Learning Community
- Undergraduate Admissions - Lodewick Visitor Center
- Office of Institutional Equity
- Pre-College Summer
- Rainbow Center
- Residential Life – Student Welfare
- Student Activities – Major Events & Programs
- Academic Achievement Center - UConn Hartford**
- Department of Student Activities – Leadership and Organizational Development
- Student Health and Wellness
- Student Union
- Center for Students with Disabilities (CSD)
** Indicates two positions
Current and Past Higher Education Program-Affiliated Graduate Assistantship Sites
- African American Cultural Center
- Asian American Cultural Center
- Center for Fraternity & Sorority Development
- Center for Career Development – Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
- College of Liberal Arts & Sciences – Undergraduate Affairs & Outreach
- Department of Student Activities – Community Outreach
- Department of Student Activities – Major Events & Programs
- Graduate School
- Office of Student Services, UConn Hartford Campus
- Orientation Services
- Pre-College Summer
- Puerto Rican/Latin American Cultural Center (PRLACC)
- Rainbow Center
- Residential Life
- School of Law
- Student Health and Wellness (SHaW)
- Student Union
- Women’s Center