Temporary Bridge Funding for Graduate Students

The Division of Graduate Education and Postdoctoral Affairs (GEPA) administers financial resources to aid graduate programs in funding doctoral/MFA graduate students who are unable to perform the functions of an Academic Student Employee (ASE) or Graduate Student Researcher (GSR) due to a documented medical condition (physical or mental) that interferes with their ability to work or return to work.  This short-term one-time bridge funding is intended to bridge the period of time during which the academic home department/program works to identify other funding mechanisms for the student. The goal of the bridge funding is to ensure that the student is supported at a rate equivalent to at least a 50% TA position.

Eligibility

To be eligible for the bridge funding, the academic home department/program and the doctoral/MFA student must demonstrate that they have engaged in the interactive process with the Disability Counseling and Consulting (DCC) office to determine functional limitations and reasonable accommodations.

The student must remain registered full-time in good academic standing while receiving the bridge funding.

Award

The amount of the award will be determined through discussion with the student’s academic home department/program, GEPA, and in consultation with the Divisional Dean’s office. A student may qualify for up to one quarter of bridge funding.

Request and Review Process 

The MSO in the student’s academic home department/program should submit a bridge funding request. Students cannot submit requests, they must work with staff in their academic home department/program to have a request submitted on their behalf. Requests should include student name and PID, DCC documentation, and specific dollar amount needed for the quarter of application, among other information. Requests will be reviewed by the Dean of The Graduate Division on a rolling basis. 

Request Deadlines

Requests may be submitted at any time, however no later than Week 8 for the following quarter is preferred.

Notification

Award decisions will be made on a rolling basis.

Questions

Questions about temporary bridge funding can be directed to April Bjornsen at abjornsen@ucsd.edu.