Disclosure: I am not a financial professional, advisor, or accountant. The personal finance tips in this post are not financial advice, they are for financial education. This post is written from the perspective of someone living in the United States and a United States citizen. So, some elements of this post will be more relevant to US citizens.

Living off a Ph.D. student stipend is HARD.

Grad students are underpaid and overworked and don’t have the opportunity to negotiate their stipends or salaries. Nor are they offered the typical financial benefits packages of conventional jobs, such as healthcare, retirement, or paid time off.

I’ll go off on my soapbox for a hot minute before we get into the personal finance tips for Ph.D. students. Graduate students are often paid and taxed like university employees, but they aren’t offered any of the financial perks of employment. Graduate students are expected to work and produce research deliverables (like publications and thesis), but they’re underpaid and under-compensated simply because they are still considered students. Yes, tuition waivers and the education received are a form of indirect payment, but it’s still not fair to only pay graduate students for 20 hours of work per week while working upwards of 40+ to produce research scholarship. And even if graduate students are at one of the schools with a graduate student Union or offer higher pay than others, a grad student’s stipend is quite below the level of what even someone with a bachelor’s degree would make fresh out of college.

And end scene.

That said, managing your finances as a Ph.D. student is challenging. In this post, I want to share some of the personal finance and budgeting tips I’ve learned as a Ph.D. student. I will be the first to say that I acknowledge that being white, not first generation, and from a middle-class upbringing, I have more personal finance background than others in this area. In the world of personal finance, knowledge is power. And today, I want to share that with you so you can work towards financial freedom after graduate school. At the end of this post, I’ve included some of my favorite resources that helped me learn more about personal finance as a Ph.D. student, including books, creators, and podcasts.

Personal Finance Tips for Ph.D. Students

Preparing for your financial future as a Ph.D. student

In this section of this post, we’re going to go over how to prepare for your financial future as a Ph.D. student through saving and investing. It might be hard or counterintuitive to think about preparing for the future when you can barely pay your bills, but preparing for the future now is incredibly valuable, and we’ll get into why.

Invest in a Roth IRA

Most Ph.D. students are not offered retirement benefits. If you are, please USE THEM. If you want to retire, you need to save for retirement by investing in the stock market. Up until about three years ago and four years into my Ph.D., I didn’t know this. I just thought you could retire automatically at 65 or that you could save your money the old-fashioned way in a savings account. That’s wrong unless your employer offers a pension, but those are basically nonexistent in 2023. So, because this is the reality in capitalistic America, you must invest to retire using methods like a 401k (most common employee sponsored retirement account) or an IRA. The earlier you start investing, the better your retirement account balance will look. Ph.Ds typically spend 5-7 years of their young adult lives without an employee-sponsored retirement package. This means 5-7 years of investing in the stock market is LOST. Here is a quick graph showing how waiting to invest can set you back.

Scary right?? It’s unfortunate that Ph.D.s are systemically set back from being retirement nest eggs and wealth by not being offered retirement benefits.

Well, even though Ph. Ds aren’t offered employee-sponsored retirement packages, there is one way to do this on your own! This is by using an IRA or ROTH IRA. An IRA is an individual retirement account, meaning it’s an account you can open without it being tied to your employer. This is perfect for graduate students because you can open it on your own as long as you have earned taxable income. A traditional IRA and ROTH IRA differ in how they are taxed, but both allow you to invest in the stock market. Here are some resources to learn more about opening one of these accounts.

I personally started to invest using a ROTH IRA through Fidelity because it’s a beginner-friendly platform, and they offer nice welcome offers for new accounts. I researched what to invest in using resources like Nerd Wallet and Fidelities education pages.

I must note, though, that the “earned taxable income” part of an IRA is what can make this process different for some graduate students, especially if your stipend comes from a grant or scholarship. Sometimes, this money isn’t considered income, even though it’s money to compensate you for your work (stupid, right?). Because of this, if you think your funding might be from a source that makes you ineligible for an IRA, check with an accountant.

Start saving for an emergency fund

An emergency fund is essential for everyone. Emergency funds are savings for emergencies. Everyone should try to have at least three months of essential spending as an emergency fund. Essential spending includes housing, transit, food, healthcare, etc. All the expenses you need to survive. This might sound like a lot of money to you as a Ph.D. student, but any amount in savings, whether it is $100 or $2000 is better than having $0. I recommend trying to save any amount each paycheck simply so you can start building the emergency fund. Even if it’s just $10 every paycheck, it’s better than nothing. And it’s progress!

Money Saving Tips for Ph.D. Students

Negotiate your bills

I didn’t know it was a thing to negotiate your bills until a few years ago. Pretty much any bill is negotiable! All you have to do is try and ask. Because if you don’t ask, the answer is always no! Try calling your cell phone, cable, or internet provider and say that you’re a loyal, happy customer and ask if there is any way to receive financial assistance or better rates on your service.  Do some research beforehand, look up what other providers offer, and say you’d like to say with your current service. Sometimes, they will match the price! You can use this strategy for more than just bills.

Save Money on Housing

I don’t want to sit here like all the personal finance experts and recommend “Get a roommate!!!” to save money on housing. As Ph.D. students, we’re full-blown adults (even if it doesn’t seem like it). I totally understand not wanting to feel like you’re 19 again in undergrad with a roommate. Personal space matters as an adult, so I’m not going to project the “Get a roommate” tip onto you. There are ways to save money on housing without getting a roommate. You can negotiate your lease or monthly rent. You can cut other household expenses, like ditching or downgrading services you don’t use as much. Live in a smaller unit (fewer square feet, less rent).

Saving money in daily spending

While certain streaming services (ah*hem, Netflix I’m looking at you) stopped allowing you to password share, sharing subscription services with family, partners, and close friends is a great way to split costs. I’ve been sharing a Sam’s Club membership with a family member, which has helped with grocery costs since I can shop in bulk.

Use credit cards wisely for points and cashback. If you can use a credit card responsibly, meaning you can pay off what you spent that month every month, you can earn some pretty awesome rewards. Good credit cards will offer rewards like cashback or hotel or airline points in exchange for you using their card. I personally have the DiscoverIt Card and Delta American Express Gold Card. By using these cards, I get Delta points and cashback on all my purchases. The Discover Card has no annual fee, and the Delta card is only $100 a year. I always get more money back in rewards, so the fee pays for itself easily every year. If you sign up for a Discover Card using this link, you’ll get a $100 statement credit on your account! And if you sign up for the Delta Card, you’ll get 40,000 bonus miles after you spend $2000 in the first 6 months, and the first year the annual fee is waived!

Cashback and coupon apps are easy ways to save some money while doing your everyday shopping. Brower plugins like Rakutan, Honey, or Swagbucks are great for cashback and applying coupons to your online orders. I also use ReceiptPal and Ibotta to upload physical receipts after grocery and in-store shopping. These apps are totally worth it since the savings and cash add up!

Managing Debt as a Ph.D. student

If you’re in a Ph.D. program, it’s likely you have some debt from your master’s degree or undergraduate degree. Or even some credit card debt to make ends meet. Thankfully, with federal and some private loans, you don’t have to pay off those debts while enrolled in school actively. However, the debt is still there. In this section, we’re going over how to manage debt while in a Ph.D. program.

Avoid new debt

I know this one sounds stupid and unrealistic, but it’s so important not to take on more unnecessary debt when you have a lot of debt. I doubt as a Ph.D. student, you’re going to be trying to take on more debt by buying something crazy. But I feel like it needs to be said.

Negotiate your interest rates, late fees

Similar to how you would negotiate your bills, you can also negotiate your credit card interest rates or any fees/penalties on your account. In this situation, emphasize that you’re a loyal customer and ask if there is any way that you could receive a lower interest rate or waived fee. Sometimes, negotiating like this can take some talking in circles, like asking the same question twice with different wording to emphasize what you want. Anytime you negotiate, be kind and grateful. Usually, the customer service representatives will be kind back! Here are some tips for negotiating your bills and interest rates.  

Paying off debt

For paying off debt, it’s important always to pay the minimum balance. But if you can, try to pay more on it, especially if it’s credit card debt. By paying more, you won’t lose as much money by being charged more interest in the next month. Credit card interest can be really high, so paying more will reduce you bill and associated interest. There are a ton of debt payoff strategies like the snowball, highest interest first, etc. I personally found that paying the credit cards off with the higher balances made me feel better because I liked seeing that large number get smaller. Read more about each of these strategies and see which one you think is best for you!

Use balance transfers strategically

Sometimes, you can’t avoid having credit card debt. I didn’t know with some credit cards, you can transfer your balance from one to another. By doing this, when you transfer debt from one card to another, your debt will be subject to the interest rate on the new card. Sometimes, cards will especially offer balance transfer promotions. In a balance transfer promotion, if you transfer debt from card A to card B, the balance transferred to card B will be offered a lower or even 0% interest rate! Usually, they charge a small fee, but this fee is usually much less than the interest you would have to pay if you kept the debt on card A. I’ve done this before and honestly saved several $100. But when you do this, make sure that you know when the balance transfer promotion is over. They don’t offer that promotional rate forever, so be ready to pay the full interest rate. But doing this buys you time to save money for paying off the debt, and you save money on interest.

Saving money as a Ph.D. student

Automate your savings into a high-yield savings account  

Like I said in the last point, any amount saved is better than nothing, which is why I started to automate my savings and other finance activities. Every month, I scheduled a transfer from my checking account to my savings account, so no matter what, that money was going into my savings. I recommend this strategy because, to me, it psychologically made me feel like that money was never mine to begin with to spend because it automatically disappeared into my savings account. I’ve been using the Discover high-yield savings account and love it because it’s easy to use, and offer competitive interest rates.

Making money as a Ph.D. student

I don’t recommend getting a second job as a Ph.D. student because that’s a recipe for fast burnout, but I understand why someone might be in the position to take another job. If you must have a second job as a Ph.D. student, it’s important to have a balanced schedule that enables you to be successful, not drown in misery. Today, more than ever, more “side hustle” type jobs don’t require strict hours. I hate the phrase “side hustle,” even though this blog I’m writing on is literally my side hustle. But having a side hustle can take the edge off your financial stresses. Uber Eats, Instacart, Lyft are all flexible side hustles that more people are taking on. But there are others for academics that might be more enticing than delivery groceries. Look for online tutoring gigs or course curriculum design jobs, or consider adjuncting online for another university. Sometimes, you might be able to even find a flexible job on campus. If you’re considering a side hustle, my best recommendation is to think about the things you enjoy that can be monetized. If you love to drive, drive for Uber. If you love shopping, join Instacart. Enjoy graphic design? See templates or stickers on Esty. The digital world has made side hustling more accessible and I’ve found that monetizing something that is already easy for you to do is the simplest way to do it.

Budgeting as a Ph.D. student

Some people hate budgeting, and I totally get why. It was so hard for me to find a budgeting strategy that worked. The best for budgeting is the best one that works for you. The best way to start is to add up all of your non-negotiable expenses, like housing, transit, food, and other bills you need to pay to survive, and then see what money you have left over. I understand you might be in a position where there isn’t much left. If that’s the case, take a close look at where you might be able to target some savings and expense cutting. Then, consider if community or campus resources might be available to help you. It’s OK if you need to use a credit card to survive; don’t feel guilty. If you do, try negotiating a lower interest rate or using a balance transfer. Then, think about how you can maybe start to earn more money. Whenever my stipend changed at my University since my NSF GRFP fellowship funding was over, I took a massive pay cut. So I immediately felt the need to adjust my finances, and She Sciences was born.

Personal Finance for Ph.D.s Resource List