Graduate Aid Curriculum
Graduate Aid Encyclopedia
MIT’s mission of education and research includes teaching and training graduate students so that they may become teachers and researchers in the future. The graduate aid process therefore is integral to the Institute’s overall mission, and engages considerable financial and personnel resources across the Institute. Graduate Research Assistants, Teaching Assistants, and Fellows comprise over half of the MIT payroll. External sponsors spend well over $100,000,000 annually in support of tuition, stipends, and salaries. Processing graduate student awards and appointments, from admission through graduation, involves collaboration among staff from over a dozen central administrative offices and administrators in the Institutes academic departments, research labs and centers.
This document consolidates graduate aid information, knowledge, and best practices from resources integral to the graduate aid process around the Institute. It is presented in five component sections: Overview of the business requirements and regulations; Data Gathering recommended best practices; Data Entry tools and important concepts; Reconciliation for insuring that awards and appointments have been processed correctly; and Reporting on graduate student awards and appointments.
OVERVIEW
HOME DEPARTMENT RESPONSIBILITY
While there is a wealth of interest and participation in interdepartmental fields of study and research, the procedures for admission, registration, and awarding of graduate degrees are departmentally oriented. Every graduate student is admitted through one of the Institute’s 24 graduate departments. In short, every graduate student, including those working on interdepartmental programs under the guidance of standing or specially created interdepartmental committees, must be admitted through and have a “home” in an academic department.
The graduate student’s home department processes the graduate award or appointment. It is not uncommon at MIT for students from one department to be financially supported by a faculty member from another department. In such instances of cross-departmental collaboration and support, the home department administrators are responsible for gathering the relevant information (such as cost object number and time period of the appointment) and processing the appointment for the student. This insures that those individuals who have the best knowledge of the student’s situation (academic status, degree level, stipend and salary rates, and so on) can be certain that the student meets the necessary requirements for receiving the appointment.
The home department number is associated with every graduate student in the MIT Student Information System (MITSIS). The data fills in automatically in Web Grad Aid (the data entry tool) when the students name or MIT student ID number is filled in. Home department numbers are also listed with each student’s name in the MIT Student Directory. Department number codes can also be found at the MIT web site, , under the Education | Schools + Courses link.
BILLING AND PAYMENT CYCLES
When processing graduate student appointments and awards, it is important to consider the timing of tuition bills and payment deadlines. MIT’s Office of Student Financial Services issues tuition bills well in advance of the start of the term. The billing schedule for Fall and Spring terms is as follows.
Term Tuition Bill presented Payment Due
Fall July 10 August 1
Spring December 10 January 1
Graduate students who anticipate receiving financial support, and whose appointments and awards have not been made before the payment due date, will be charged late fees. While these fees can be removed by the appropriate Student Account Representative in Student Financial Services, there are two ways to avoid this action and the associated anxiety for the students.
1. Process all appointments prior to the payment due date for a term. This may require beginning the data collection and data entry processes as early as the May-June timeframe for the Fall term and November-December for the following Spring term.
2. Enter estimated awards using Web Grad Aid until the information needed to process the actual award (usually the cost object) is available.
Meeting Payroll deadlines for payments of graduate appointments and awards is of greater importance in terms of avoiding unnecessary hardships for students. For the MIT Fall Term the appointment must be received in the Payroll Office by mid-September for the salary or stipend payment to be made on time at the end of the month.
Graduate Research Assistants (RAs), Teaching Assistants (TAs), and Fellows are paid a monthly salary or stipend at the end of each month during the appointment period. The graduate appointment and award periods at MIT correspond to the academic periods. The Financial Aid Year for 2012-2013, for example, includes all of the following time periods.
Term Dates
Summer Term June 1 – August 31, 2013
Fall Term September 1, 2013– January 15, 2014
Spring Term January 16, 2014 – May 31, 2014
Graduate RA, TA and Fellowship appointments must be received in the Payroll Office by the third Wednesday of the month for payment to be made at the end of the month. Exceptions to this timing may occur as a result of observed holidays.
Payroll’s monthly closing schedule is posted on the web site for the Vice President for Finance, at this url:
In general, the Payroll cutoff date is the Wednesday before the last full working week of the month. When Payroll Office deadlines are not met, extra effort is necessary in order pay the student.
Appointment Type of Paid
Type Payment When? Amount
Fellowship stipend September 30th monthly rate
then end of
each month*
Research Asst. salary September 30th monthly rate
then end of
each month*
Teaching Asst. salary September 30th monthly rate
then end of
each month*
* Salary/stipend for the period January 1st through 15th is paid at the end of January.
REGISTRATION STATUS
Graduate appointments and awards can be made for students who are registered or are eligible to register as full-time graduate students at MIT.
Nonresident Registration Status – Doctoral students who have completed all requirements other than thesis may register as Nonresident while doing thesis work away from the MIT campus. Effective with the Fall Term 2009, fellowship awards may be given to students registered as Nonresident for the first three regular academic terms in which the student has Nonresident status up to the amount of the reduced tuition.
Students who are registered with Nonresident status pay tuition at a substantially reduced rate: 5% of regular full tuition for the first three terms of nonresident status. The total amount of fellowship awards (whether stipend only, stipend and tuition combined, or tuition only) for students registered as Nonresident may not exceed the amount of the 5% of regular full tuition. More information on Non-Resident status may be found on the web site of the Office of the Dean for Graduate Education, at the following url:
Students registered with Nonresident status for more than three terms pay 15% of regular full tuition, and are not eligible for financial assistance through MIT.
Appointments and awards should not be made for graduate students registered as special students or for students who are not fully registered. If an appointment or award is made to an ineligible student, it must be cancelled immediately. A reimbursement to the MIT Payroll Office will be necessary if a salary or stipend payment has been made in excess of any amount for which the student qualifies.
CAMPUS RESOURCES
Many people in many offices at MIT perform a variety of roles essential to the graduate aid process. The following provides a description of key offices, followed by a list of contact information.
ADMISSIONS OFFICE
While procedures for admission, registration, and awarding of graduate degrees are departmentally oriented, the Admissions Office coordinates and provides all the information regarding graduate programs and applications (whether by mail or download). When a student accepts an MIT offer of admission, Graduate Admissions passes the information to the Registrar’s Office via the MIT Student Information System (MITSIS).
OFFICE OF THE DEAN OF GRADUATE EDUCATION
The Office of the Dean of Graduate Education (ODGE) is an Institute-wide support and referral office for graduate students and graduate administrators. The ODGE complements the departmental administration and advocates broadly for graduate education. The ODGE includes the Office of the Dean for Graduate Education, the International Students Office, and the Graduate Student Council. The mission of ODGE is to enhance the educational and cultural experiences of MIT's graduate students. The ODGE web site provides a wealth of information, including the Graduate Education Manual, and a list of the Institute’s graduate administrators, .
INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS OFFICE
The International Students Office (ISO) provides services that meet the special needs of MIT’s international students and support programs that help them to fulfill their personal and academic goals. The International Student Advisors in ISO work to advise international students on immigration regulations, process legal documents required for admission of all international students, and organize orientation programs for entering undergraduate and graduate students.
Currently, the ISO offers the following services through their website :
electronic submission of requests for certificate of studies letters, travel letters, invitation letters; application for the Hosts to International Students Program, and links to various immigration information centers such as US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS); and registration for the ISO office listserv. There are also informative pages posted to their site such as international student statistics, travel information for MIT students and information about employment in the US for MIT international students.
OFFICE OF SPONSORED PROGRAMS
The Office of Sponsored Programs (OSP) web site, provides information about the policies and rules relative to sponsored research at MIT and cost sharing policies and procedures.
PAYROLL OFFICE
This office issues all salary and stipend payments to MIT’s student and staff employees. Through their web site at , you can find links to the monthly payroll closing schedule, payroll cutoff schedules, payroll information for graduate students, as well as tax information and links to the IRS and the state Department of Revenue.
PROVOST’S OFFICE
This office develops policy that affects the graduate aid process. The Provost is MIT’s chief academic officer with responsibility for budgeting and planning the educational and research programs of MIT.
REGISTRAR
This office has responsibility for assessing tuition for all eligible students each semester, based on degree program and status of registration. The Schedule of Fees and Tuition and the Tuition Proration Tables may be found at the Registrar’s web site, . This web site also provides information about the MIT Summer Tuition Subsidy, and how to determine which students qualify for the subsidy. The Registrar’s web site also provides the academic calendar, links to other offices and information relevant to academic processes at MIT.
STUDENT FINANCIAL SERVICES
This office merges financial aid and bursary functions, including the billing and collection of student tuition, fees, and other institute charges, as well as the management of student accounts. Tuition credits associated with graduate appointments and awards are applied to student accounts to offset the tuition charges. A team of customer service and student account representatives report to the SFS Executive Director.
POINTS OF CONTACT
GRADUATE ADMISSIONS OFFICE
(617) 253-2917
mitgrad@mit.edu
OFFICE of the DEAN for GRADUATE EDUCATION
Professor Christine Ortiz, Dean for Graduate Education
3-132, 3-1957, cortiz@mit.edu
Blanche Staton, Senior Associate Dean for Graduate Students
3-140, 3-4869, bestaton@mit.edu
Keiko Tanaka, Administrative Officer, ODGE
3-138, 3-3582, ktanaka@mit.edu
Scott Tirrell, Manager of Graduate Fellowships, ODGE
35-336, 3-7621, stirrell@mit.edu
HR-PAYROLL SERVICE CENTER
Chris Durham, HR Payroll Manager
(617) 324-1137, cfdurham@mit.edu
NE49-3182
Main phone: (617) 253-4255
Main email: payroll@mit.edu
Fax: (617) 324-0089
Employment Transaction Responsibilities (including students) by Area:
School of Architecture & Planning
Nicole Valente (Ferrante)
(617) 324-0900, nvalente@mit.edu
School of Engineering
Marsha Dailey
(617) 253-2799, mdailey@mit.edu
School of Humanities, Arts & Social Sciences
Office of the Provost
Kristen McCormick
(617) 253-5854, cassidyk@mit.edu
Sloan School, School of Engineering
Mae Jones
(617) 253-2740, maejones@mit.edu
Vice President of Research
Marsha Dailey
(617) 253-2799, mdailey@mit.edu
INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS OFFICE
Danielle Guichard-Ashbrook, Director & Associate Dean for Graduate Students
5-133, 3-3795, danielle@mit.edu
Maria Brennan, Assistant Director & International Student Advisor
5-133, 3-3795, mariab@mit.edu
OFFICE OF SPONSORED PROGRAMS
Patricia Greer, Deputy Director
NE18-901, 3-3864, pgreer@mit.edu
Priscilla Caissie, Contract Administrator/Fellowships
NE18-901, 8-8009, pcaissie@mit.edu
REGISTRAR’S OFFICE
Mary Callahan, Registrar
5-111, 8-6432, callahan@mit.edu
Peter Hayes, Associate Registrar
5-119, 8-6406, prhayes@mit.edu
STUDENT FINANCIAL SERVICES
Elizabeth M. Hicks, Executive Director
11-120, 3-4090, emhicks@mit.edu
Carlene Chisom-Freeman, Director, Student Receivables
11-120, 3-2445, cfreeman@mit.edu
Leslie Bridson, Director of Student Financial Aid
11-120, 3-8477, lbridson@mit.edu
Account Counselors:
A – G Andrea Vojtisek, Student Account Counselor
11-120, 3-3339, avojtis@mit.edu
H – O Dwayne Daughtry, Student Account Counselor
11-120, 3-4131, daughtry@mit.edu
P – Z Ashley Russell, Student Account Counselor
11-120, 3-3335, russella@mit.edu
EDUCATION SYSTEMS, IS&T
Eamon Kearns, Associate Director
W92-290, 3-8577, ekearns@mit.edu
Janet Sahlstrom, Senior Business Analyst
W92-290, 8-6486, janets@mit.edu
For technical help with Web Grad Aid:
ssit-wga@mit.edu
For business help with Web Grad Aid:
business-wga@mit.edu
COMPONENTS OF GRADUATE AID
ELIGIBILITY
All graduate students who receive Research Assistant or Teaching Assistant appointments, or Fellowship awards must be in good academic standing and eligible to register (not on financial or academic hold). Reappointment to the graduate student staff depends on satisfactory academic progress, as well as on satisfactory performance as a Research or Teaching Assistant. A student’s appointment to an assistantship may be cancelled at any time if progress in a graduate program is unsatisfactory or if the student is not carrying out the duties assigned. All graduate students are subject to the policies and procedures of their home departments and of the Institute, and must respect and conform to the rules and procedures of the division or laboratory to which they are assigned. Please also refer to the Graduate Education Manual, available from the web site of the Office of the Dean for Graduate Education, .
Every student holding a fellowship, traineeship, or scholarship for graduate study at the Institute must register as a full-time graduate student for the period of the award. If registration is discontinued, for example, by withdrawal or early completion of thesis, the award must be cancelled or terminated effective the date registration is discontinued. A reimbursement to MIT will be necessary if a stipend or tuition payment has been made in excess of the total amount due for the period of the award.
US immigration laws impose strict regulations for international students. International graduate students holding full time RA or TA positions are not authorized to work additional hours during the academic year. It should be noted, however, that the summer term (June 1 – August 31) and Independent Activities Period (IAP, January 1–31) are not considered periods of regular enrollment from the point of view of immigration regulations. Therefore, during these times only, international students may work on campus in addition to their full time Research or Teaching Assistantships. Only with the explicit permission of the RA/TA faculty supervisor can the student take on extra on-campus work above and beyond the RA/TA employment. In addition the student must be fully registered in the term following IAP or the summer term, in order to take on extra on-campus employment.
Departments with international students should also check with the International Students Office for more information about determining how visa status and US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) regulations affect employment eligibility or ineligibility.
REQUIRED FORMS
I-9 FORM
All graduate students who will be employed as Research Assistants or Teaching Assistants must complete the I-9 form (Employment Eligibility Form), and submit it (in person) at Student Financial Services Center in building 11-120. Departmental administrators must advise their graduate students of this requirement, and direct them to SFS to complete the form.
In accordance with the Department of Homeland Security, all employees are required to provide proof of their eligibility to work in the United States within the first three days of employment. In some cases departments work directly with the International Students Office to ensure eligibility.
Web Grad Aid now validates that the I-9 form is on file for a student for whom an administrator is attempting to process an RA or TA appointment. If the I-9 is not on file, the appointment can only be processed as an Estimated appointment. Once the student has the I-9 on file, the status of the appointment can be changed to “Actual.” Note that a student with an Estimated appointment will not be paid salary until the appointment status is changed to “Actual.”
Other graduate students (for example, those who work as Resident Tutors or Resident Advisors, and whose appointments are approved by the Dean for Student Life) can also complete the I-9 form at the Student Employment Office in 11-120.
TAX WITHHOLDING
All graduate students who receive salary or stipend payments must also complete the appropriate tax withholding forms and turn them in to the Payroll Office. Students may download the forms from WebSIS, . It is also recommended that students use Direct Deposit for receiving their pay, and the Direct Deposit forms may also be downloaded from the WebSIS site.
MIT INVENTION AND PROPRIETARY INFORMATION AGREEMENT (IPIA)
Graduate Research Assistants must also sign the MIT Inventions and Proprietary Information Agreement (IPIA). A copy must be kept in the student’s file, and the original sent to the Technology Licensing Office, at Five Cambridge Center, Kendall Square, Room NE25-230. If you have any questions, please call (617) 253-6966. The IPIA form may be downloaded from the web site
By signing the Invention and Proprietary agreement, employees agree that all inventions created at MIT, with MIT funds, become the property of MIT.
BEST PRACTICES
Have students complete the I-9 form and the MIT Inventions and Proprietary Information Agreement upon matriculation, or within one month of arrival at MIT.
APPOINTMENTS AND AWARDS
APPOINTMENT PERIODS
The graduate appointment and award periods at MIT refer to the time periods of an appointment or award. The start and end dates of graduate appointments and awards usually correspond to the start and end dates of the academic terms. One exception may be when a graduate student completes a thesis early, before the end of the term, in which case the end date of an appointment corresponds to the thesis completion date. The Financial Aid Year for 2013-2014, for example, includes all of the following time periods.
Summer Term 2014 June 1 – August 31, 2013
Fall Term 2014 September 1, 2013 – January 15, 2014
Spring Term 2014 January 16, 2014 – May 31, 2014
BEST PRACTICES
Appointments can be processed for one academic term, an academic year, or an entire financial aid year. Processing appointments one term at a time is highly recommended, especially if it is likely that the type of appointment will change during the academic or aid year.
ELEMENTS OF FUNDING
Graduate appointments and awards may include one or all of the funding elements of salary or stipend, tuition, and Student Extended Insurance Plan benefit. The two primary elements of funding are
1) Salary (in the case of Research Assistants and Teaching Assistants) or stipend (in the case of Fellowships); and
2) Tuition.
The Student Extended Insurance Plan benefit is billed for the fall and spring terms in unequal installments: the bill for the fall term includes the five-month period from September through January; the spring term includes the total amount for both spring and summer terms, the seven-month period from February through August. See the link “Student Extended Insurance Plan (SEIP) Benefit” in the “Useful Links” section of the Web Grad Aid home page for further information about this benefit and eligibility criteria for the Institute’s subsidy of this benefit.
Salary and Stipend Rates
The compensation for Research and Teaching Assistants is adjusted to make the appointments equally attractive, taking into account the availability of tuition scholarships, the opportunities for thesis research, and other associated benefits. The Schools and individual departments establish salary rates each year according to broad guidelines set by the Dean’s Group of the Institute’s Academic Council.
A department may not assign a salary or stipend rate greater than 15% above nor 10% below the established rates without obtaining special approval from the Office of the Dean for Graduate Education. Graduate student staff members should recognize that their salaries and stipends are not necessarily intended to cover cost of living.
Tuition Subsidies
Since 1999 MIT has been subsidizing the cost of tuition associated with Research Assistantships. Effective as of the academic year beginning September 2009, 50% of the tuition for a graduate Research Assistant is subsidized and charged to a tuition cost center that is held and administered by the student’s home department. The remaining 50% of the total tuition is charged to the same cost object as the RA salary.
During the summer, 100% of the tuition for a graduate RA is subsidized from Institute general funds for all graduate students registered ONLY for thesis or pre-thesis research credit. Because the summer tuition subsidy is applied automatically (via the MIT Student Information System, based on the student’s registration status) to eligible students, most summer Research Assistant appointments should include only the salary component.
The tuition tables are published on the Registrar’s web site, . This web site also provides a link to complete information about the Summer Term tuition subsidy.
Student Extended Insurance Plan Benefit
In February 2004 Provost Robert Brown announced a plan to change the way MIT funds the Student Extended Insurance Plan (SEIP) for RAs, TAs, and Fellows who are supported through MIT. This plan went into effect for Academic Year 2005, beginning in the Fall term (September 1, 2004). The goal of the plan is to separate the payment of the SEIP for students funded by MIT as RAs, TAs, and Fellows, from the student salary or stipend.
Please refer to the Student Extended Insurance Plan documentation, available in the “Useful Links” section of the Web Grad Aid home page for more information, including eligibility criteria and frequently asked questions for students and administrators.
Childbirth Accommodation Benefit
A full-time, registered graduate student woman who anticipates giving birth during a time period in which she holds an RA or TA appointment is eligible for the Childbirth Accommodation (CA) benefit. This benefit is administered by the Office of the Dean of Graduate Education (ODGE).
The student must file a petition with the ODGE, and specify the start date and duration of the accommodation period. The student may choose to have the benefit for a period of one month, one-and-a-half months, or two months maximum. In cases where childbirth occurs before the petition is filed, the accommodation period will begin on the actual date of childbirth. The Office of the Dean for Graduate Education reviews and approves all such petitions.
Staff in the Office of the Dean for Graduate Education process the approved Childbirth Accommodation benefit. More detailed information about the Childbirth Accommodation is available from the ODGE web site:
TYPES OF APPOINTMENTS AND AWARDS
Type of Source SAP
Appointment/Award of Funds Cost Object Expectations
Research Assistant Sponsored WBS Element student will perform research
Research duties in lab or center
Teaching Assistant Departmental Internal Order student will help administer/
Budget or Fund Account teach an MIT subject
Fellowship External or Internal Order No work demands placed on
Internal Sponsors or Fund Account student whatsoever
A full-time (100% level of effort) appointment as a Research Assistant or Teaching Assistant carries an expectation of no more than 20 hours work per week.
Research Assistantship
The principal duty of a graduate Research Assistant is to contribute to a program of departmental or interdepartmental research. Research Assistants are compensated on the basis of the time devoted to research activities. A 100% graduate RA appointment also includes payment of full tuition for the period of the appointment. Partial appointments (for effort less than 100%) are also possible, and are frequently used to supplement outside fellowships. Note that for a 100% RA appointment, a graduate student will work NO MORE THAN 20 hours per week.
Research Assistant salaries are paid monthly at the end of each month for the period of the appointment. The Institute is obliged to withhold Federal and Massachusetts state income taxes from RA salaries. Graduate students with RA appointments must file the necessary Federal and Massachusetts state withholding tax forms with the Payroll Office. These forms may be obtained from the Payroll Office or the student’s departmental Graduate Office. Failure to submit these forms will result in the required maximum tax being withheld.
MIT subsidizes 50% of tuition on Research Assistantships, and this is covered in the section on Tuition Subsidies (p. 11).
Off-Campus RA
A student can be registered at MIT while performing research at an off-campus facility or industrial site. It may be desirable to pay this student as a Research Assistant in order to compensate the student for research work, and to pay the MIT tuition. Since MIT facilities are not being used to the same extent as an on-campus student, there is a mechanism for processing the student as an off-campus RA. In this case, the overhead rate that is applied to the student’s salary (and therefore borne by the research advisor) is reduced from 56% to 4.5% (FY13 rates). Research Assistants may be flagged as off-campus in the following instances:
▪ Research Assistants who are away from the campus for more than six months for more than 50% of the time.
▪ Research Assistants whose Summer Term appointments are 100% off campus for the entire summer.
▪ Research Assistants whose appointments are supported by Lincoln Laboratory even if the research is conducted on campus (requires approval of the Office of the Vice President for Research).
During the data entry process, administrators should make sure to indicate whether the RA appointment is off-campus; Web Grad Aid users will note that the system default is on-campus. A comment should also be placed in the comment field (for example, “Off-Campus / student is at IBM for Summer Term”), to insure an audit trail within the system for the off-campus status.
Teaching Assistantship
The duties of a Teaching Assistant include assisting faculty members in grading homework, quizzes, classroom and laboratory instruction, preparing apparatus or material for demonstrations, and conducting tutorials and leading discussion sections. Academic departments are provided with funding for teaching assistantships from the Institute budget in accordance with their respective teaching load and needs. Decisions on teaching assistant allocations and assignments are made at the departmental level, and best practice is that students assigned as TAs be notified of this assignment well in advance of the term.
A full-time graduate TA appointment (100% level of effort) pays a salary and full tuition. Students who receive partial financial support from other sources (Fellowships, Research Assistantships, etc.) may receive partial Teaching Assistantships only in accordance with Institute and department guidelines, and must have the approval of their primary source of support.
Teaching Assistant salaries are paid monthly at the end of each month for the period of the appointment. The Institute is obliged to withhold Federal and Massachusetts state income taxes from the salaries of Teaching Assistants. Students must file the necessary Federal and Massachusetts tax withholding forms with the Payroll Office. These forms may be obtained from the Payroll Office or the student’s departmental Graduate Office. Failure to submit these forms will result in the required maximum tax being withheld.
Instructor-G
Registered graduate students with considerable teaching experience may receive Instructor-G appointments. These appointments are given only to more advanced students with proven teaching ability who, in the opinion of the department head, are competent to accept teaching responsibilities warranting the grade of Instructor. The rate of compensation for such students is determined in each case by the Dean of the School concerned, according to the circumstances of the appointment. Instructor Gs are also provided with tuition that corresponds to the level of effort for the appointment (for example, a 100% IG receives 100% tuition, 50% IG receives 50% tuition, and so on).
Fellowship
A fellowship is an award to a graduate student that covers tuition, partially or fully, and/or provides a stipend to help defray living expenses. Most fellowship awards are made on the basis of merit and in some circumstances on financial need. The Institute receives funds from individual donors and corporations for fellowships. In addition, government agencies and foundations offer fellowships that they award either directly to outstanding students for use at institutions of their choice or, in a few cases, to institutions for awarding to students. Individual departments often have internal and/or institutional fellowship support as well.
According to IRS regulations, that portion of such grants which exceeds tuition and direct educational expenses is subject to income tax, but it is not withheld. MIT is not required or allowed to withhold Federal income tax on the taxable portion (stipend) of a fellowship for US citizens. Nonresident aliens are subject to federal income tax withholding at the rate of 14%. Fellowship stipends received by legal residents of Massachusetts are subject to state income tax; however, no Massachusetts state income tax can be withheld from any fellowship.
A fellowship is a sum of money provided to an individual in support of his/her education or research; there cannot be any requirement that work be done in exchange for the funding. While there may be some stewardship obligations on fellowships (for example, maintaining a relationship or contact with the sponsor/donor), there is generally no obligation to perform work. Another aspect of fellowships is that a stipend (not a salary) may be paid for the term to the recipient.
The Guidelines for Supplementing Fellowships (available at the “Useful Links” section of the Web Grad Aid home page) reviews many of the outside fellowships most frequently received by MIT graduate students (available in the “Useful Links” section of the Web Grad Aid home page). These fellowships, generally offered by the government or foundations, often do not cover the full cost of MIT tuition and stipend. In these cases, it is necessary to supplement the fellowship, and the Guidelines document and the accompanying spreadsheets provide guidance specific to this process.
Training Grants are multi-year research programs funded by the government that often provide financial support for graduate students across several MIT disciplines and departments. The stipend and tuition funded through such grants are processed as fellowships. It is often the case that such grants do not cover the total tuition and stipend, and need to be supplemented in some manner. Each training grant should have a primary administrator at MIT who can be consulted in such cases. More detailed information on the NIH Biotechnology Training Grants can be found in the Guidelines for Supplementing Fellowships.
MAXIMUM PAYMENT POLICY
Students who hold full time graduate student staff appointments cannot engage in additional employment for which they receive compensation from MIT-administered sources. One exception is made for students who are citizens or permanent residents of the United States. Such students may be eligible to work on campus up to ten additional hours per week, on the student hourly payroll. The MIT Payroll Office will not issue payment for additional work beyond this ten-hour limit, and will refer such cases to the Office of the Dean for Graduate Education for approval.
ESTIMATED AWARDS
It can happen that a graduate student anticipates receiving financial support, but the appointment or award cannot be made before the appointment due date, for example because funding has not arrived and a cost object is not yet established to which salary or stipend costs may be distributed. In order to prevent the assessment of late fees on the student’s tuition account, the administrator may enter an estimated award in the Web Grad Aid application, until the information needed to make the actual appointment or award is available.
Once the necessary information is available, the Web Grad Aid user should change the status of the appointment/award from “Estimated” to “Actual.”
REASONABLE COMPENSATION
The purpose of the Reasonable Compensation Guide is to help academic administrators understand how to allocate salary and tuition dollars in keeping with IRS regulations.
Reasonable compensation applies only to Research and Teaching Assistantships, and such appointments cannot be made with only a tuition component. The IRS regulations on reasonable compensation do not apply to Fellowships, and fellowship awards can have only a tuition component.
As per IRS Revenue Notice 87-31 tuition only appointments are not allowed for Graduate Research Assistant (RA) or Teaching Assistant (TA) appointments. When an RA or TA appointment is processed, there must be a reasonable allocation of salary and tuition dollars in the graduate appointment.
In order to be compliant with IRS regulations, Research and Teaching Assistant appointments cannot be tuition only. MIT policy also requires that where a partial (or reduced) Research or Teaching Assistant appointment is provided, and there is to be a tuition award included, there must be a reasonable allocation of dollars between the salary and tuition components. This reasonable allocation must be consistent with the proportional allocation of a standard full time appointment.
This principle is illustrated in the example below, which shows a 100% and 50% RA:
100% RA for Fall 2013-2014:
Tuition $21,605.00 64% of TOTAL
Salary $11,988.00 36% of TOTAL
TOTAL $33,593.00
50% RA for Fall 2013-2014:
Tuition $10,802.50 64% of TOTAL
Salary $ 5,994.00 36% of TOTAL
TOTAL $16,796.50
It is allowable to allocate more dollars to salary and less to tuition than the standard proportional allocation because this would exceed the Internal Revenue Service’s requirement.
Occasionally in a Fall or Spring term (and almost exclusively in the Summer), a student needs only the salary portion of the Research or Teaching Assistant appointment. It is allowable to provide a student with an RA or TA appointment with salary only (and no tuition award) because this exceeds the IRS’s requirement.
On occasion a student who is being provided a Research Assistant or Teaching Assistant appointment may only need the Tuition Award portion because his/her salary is being provided from an outside source (usually the student’s employer, including the military). MIT requires, in this case, that an RA appointment be provided to the student with both salary and tuition components. In such a case the student should be provided with a reduced salary and a commensurately reduced tuition award. The intent is that the net pay from the monthly salary checks will be sufficient to pay off the shortfall on the reduced tuition award.
➢ In such cases, students are required to pay off the tuition shortfall using the after-tax net salary. Students are advised to contact Student Financial Services and make a payment arrangement.
The Reasonable Compensation Guidelines provide a step-by-step guide of how to calculate the level of effort for the appointment to cover the tuition shortfall while keeping to the IRS guidelines.
DATA GATHERING
ACADEMIC YEAR
Graduate appointments and awards are recorded by Academic Year and all appointments and awards must fall within that time frame. The Institute’s Academic Year begins with the Fall Term, and therefore follows the Fall-Spring-Summer time frame. For example, the Academic Year 2014 runs from September 1, 2013 through August 31, 2014.
FINANCIAL AID YEAR
The Financial Aid Year, however, begins with the Summer Term, and follows the Summer-Fall-Spring time frame. This means the summer term in the Academic Year is not in sync with the summer term in the Financial Aid Year. It is important to keep this in mind when viewing Financial Aid screens in the Web Grad Aid application. The Financial Aid Year 2014, for example, consists of the following time periods:
Term Dates
Summer Term June 1 – August 31, 2013
Fall Term September 1, 2013 – January 15, 2014
Spring Term January 16, 2014 – May 31, 2014
TIME PERIODS FOR APPOINTMENTS
Appointments can be processed for an academic term, an academic year, or an entire aid year. Best practice indicates that processing one term at a time is preferable, particularly if it is likely that the type of appointment will change during an Academic or Aid year.
ELEMENTS OF FUNDING
The three primary elements of funding for graduate student appointments and awards are as follows:
1) Salary (in the case of RA’s and TA’s), or stipend (in the case of Fellowships);
2) Tuition; and
3) Student Extended Insurance Plan (SEIP benefit), the single student medical insurance plan.
a. Fall SEIP = 5 months, September through Janury
b. Spring SEIP = 7 months, February through August.
Note that single student medical insurance is billed for the Fall and Spring terms in uneven amounts because the spring installment includes an amount for the summer term.
RA and TA SALARY RATES
Salary rates for RAs and TAs are established each year by individual departments within broad guidelines formulated by the Dean’s Group of the Academic Council. Salary rates are widely circulated at the Institute and School levels. An individual department may not assign a stipend or salary greater than 15% above or 10% below these rates without obtaining special approval from the Office of the Dean for Graduate Education. Graduate student staff members should recognize that their stipends and salaries are not necessarily intended to cover cost of living.
In establishing levels of supplementation for Fellowship stipends, departments should follow the guidelines that apply to compensation for full-time graduate student appointments.
TUITION SUBSIDIES
Since 1999, MIT has been subsidizing the tuition costs associated with Research Assistantships.
During the Academic Year 2014, 50% of RA tuition is charged to the tuition subsidy cost object held and administered by the student’s home department. The remaining 50% of the total RA tuition cost is charged to the same cost object as the RA salary.
During the summer, 100% of the tuition for a graduate RA is subsidized from Institute general funds for all graduate students registered ONLY for thesis or pre-thesis research credit. Because the summer tuition subsidy is applied automatically (via the MIT Student Information System, based on the student’s registration status) to eligible students, most summer Research Assistant appointments should include only the salary component.
TUITION BILLING CYCLES
When gathering data for students who are to be provided graduate awards and appointments, it is important to consider the deadlines for tuition billing and payment due dates. Student Financial Services bills tuition well in advance of the term. The billing cycles for Fall and Spring terms are noted below.
Term Bill presented Payment Due
Fall July 10 August 1
Spring December 10 January 1
Tuition bills that are unpaid after the payment due date will be assessed late fees. Processing graduate appointments and awards in advance of the tuition payment due date means the student’s account will be credited for the tuition, and late fees will not be assessed.
In order to process all appointments prior to the tuition payment due date, it is necessary to begin the data collection and data entry processes as early as the May-June timeframe and November-December timeframe for the fall and spring terms respectively.
Where cost object information is not available by the tuition payment due date, administrators may enter awards or appointments as “estimated.” This serves to notify Student Financial Services that the student will receive funding, and late fees will not be assessed. Once the relevant cost object information is available, administrators must change the status of the award from “Estimated” to “Actual.”
For departmental administrators who enter graduate appointments and awards one term at a time, the following table shows the recommended times to begin to gather data so that awards can be processed in time to avoid late fees.
Terms Dates
Summer April – May
Fall May – June
Spring November – December
GATHERING THE DATA
Data gathering is the necessary activity preliminary to creating graduate appointments and awards. This activity may take place up to three times per year, depending on the frequency with which appointments and awards are processed.
To perform the data gathering process, departmental and research area administrators work with their faculty to identify and confirm which students will be working as Research Assistants and Teaching Assistants, which are on fellowship, and to determine the time period for each appointment. It is also important to confirm that students are eligible to register for the term(s) for which they will receive appointments or awards.
BEST PRACTICE
Best practice suggests using some type of form to record needed information on Research and Teaching Assistantships and Fellowships. While faculty members generally know when their students are serving as RAs, TAs, or are on Fellowship, using such forms can serve as helpful reminders as to what support is currently being provided, and to determine whether support is needed in the coming academic year, and whether any type of supplemental support is needed.
DATA GATHERING FOR RESEARCH ASSISTANTSHIPS
For Research Assistantships, administrators must obtain information about which students will receive RA appointments, to which cost collectors the appointments will be allocated, and verify that the cost collectors are valid and have funds available. This may take extra time, which should be considered when planning to engage in the data gathering process.
DATA GATHERING FOR TEACHING ASSISTANTSHIPS
Typically a faculty member (Graduate or Executive Officer) or departmental faculty committee allocates and assigns TA appointments within the academic department. The administrator responsible for gathering data must identify and communicate with this person or group, to make sure that assignments are made and communicated well in advance of the start of the term, and that the final decisions are passed along to the administrators who perform the data entry. During the data gathering process, administrators should also get information about the subject number that the TA is supporting, and the faculty member’s home department.
Graduate students assigned as Teaching Assistants should be notified well in advance of the term, since they will need time to coordinate with the subject instructor. Advance notice also gives the graduate student TAs and their faculty advisors time to prepare for the teaching assignment, and make any necessary adjustments to the student’s academic and research program.
DATA GATHERING FOR FELLOWSHIPS
Administrators must identify those students on fellowship and determine who processes the particular fellowship awards (home department or a central office, such as the Office of the Dean for Graduate Education). Administrators must also determine whether funding will be allocated to supplement the fellowship, and if so, the source of supplemental funds.
MIT graduate students often receive many types of fellowships, which may be awarded through external and/or internal sponsors. Some fellowships cover the total costs of the tuition and provide a stipend, while others leave either stipend or tuition shortfalls. In the latter cases, supplemental support may be necessary. In establishing levels of supplemental support for Fellowship stipends, departments should follow the guidelines that apply to compensation rates for full-time graduate student staff (RA and TA) appointments. For detailed information on how supplemental support is processed, see Guidelines for Supplementing Fellowships, in the “Useful Links” section of the Web Grad Aid home page.
The following table provides a list of the graduate fellowships most commonly awarded to MIT graduate students, indicates whether supplemental support is needed, and lists the administrators who may be contacted for each type of fellowship.
Fellowship Who Processes Needs
Name the Award? Supplement? Contact
Presidential Department No Scott Tirrell, 35-336
NSF Department Yes Scott Tirrell, 35-336
Hertz ODGE Yes Scott Tirrell, 35-336
GEM ODGE Yes Scott Tirrell, 35-336
DOE/Sci Grad Department Yes Scott Tirrell, 35-336
NDSEG Department Stipend / medical ins. Scott Tirrell, 35-336
NIH T-Grant Department Yes Training Grant Administrator
BEST PRACTICES
COMMUNICATION
Successful data gathering requires ongoing, clear communication among administrators, faculty, and graduate students. Email can be useful in collecting information as well as providing written documentation as part of a formal record. Verbal communications should be confirmed in writing.
BACKUP
It is often the case that only one person in each department has the responsibility, knowledge and authorization to process graduate student appointments. A team approach is highly recommended for data gathering and data entry. Develop a backup plan in case the primary contact is unavailable for any period of time.
DATA ENTRY
ACADEMIC YEAR
Graduate appointments and awards are recorded by Academic Year and all appointments and awards must fall within that time frame. The Institute’s Academic Year begins with the Fall Term, and therefore follows the Fall-Spring-Summer time frame. For example, the Academic Year 2014 runs from September 1, 2013 through August 31, 2014.
FINANCIAL AID YEAR
The Financial Aid Year, however, begins with the Summer Term, and follows the Summer-Fall-Spring time frame. This means the summer term in the Academic Year is not in sync with the summer term in the Financial Aid Year. For example, the Financial Aid Year 2014 runs from June 1, 2013 through May 31, 2014. It is important to keep this in mind when viewing Financial Aid screens in the Web Grad Aid data entry application.
Each spring as of May 1, Web Grad Aid is set with the new Aid Year, and appointments and awards for the new Aid Year may be entered. Note that the new RA and TA salary rates and the new tuition rates go into effect with the new Financial Aid Year, which begins on June 1st. See the Web Grad Aid User’s Manual for guidelines on using this application.
SYSTEM OF RECORD – MITSIS and Web Grad Aid
The MIT Student Information System (MITSIS) is an administrative system that supports all of the student services at MIT, including registration and academic records, student financial services, housing, medical and academic departments. It is the system of record for all graduate appointments and awards. It is maintained by Education Systems, a directorate within Information Services & Technology.
Web Grad Aid is a web-based data entry tool for processing graduate appointments and awards. It has been developed by Education Systems in collaboration with staff from the Provost’s Office and other areas of Information Services & Technology.
WEB GRAD AID – AUTHORIZATIONS AND ACCESS
The Primary Financial Authorizer for the academic department or research lab or center must contact business-help@mit.edu to request authorization and access to the Web Grad Aid data entry application. When requesting access, the following information must be provided:
• Name
• Department and Office Location
• Email Address
• Type of authorization:
o View – For viewing graduate appointments and awards. Not restricted, therefore users can view and report by department, research lab or center, by School.
o Insert and Update – To create and update graduate appointments and awards. This function is qualified according the students’ home departments.
• Note: If a new user is replacing someone, it is helpful to provide this information as well.
HOME DEPARTMENT PROCESSES THE APPOINTMENT
Only the graduate student’s home or academic department administrator may process an appointment or award for that student. In the instance where a student from one department is to be supported by a faculty member from a different department, the administrator from the student’s home department will process the appointment or award.
WEB GRAD AID TERMS AND CONCEPTS
| |
|Advisor |An advisor can be assigned in MITSIS by the home department administrator. Only one advisor entry is allowed|
| |per student. For those graduate students performing research, it is recommended that the advisor link be |
| |made to the primary faculty research advisor most closely associated with the research funding that supports |
| |the student. |
| | |
| |To make the advisor link, use MITSIS form SRAADVIS, enter the code for your department, page down, and all |
| |the students (grad and undergrad) will be listed. You then have the opportunity to fill in a mnemonic that |
| |corresponds to a faculty member. When you are done, you commit what you have entered, and this updates |
| |MITSIS. |
| | |
| |If you need authorization to use MITSIS, you may request MITSIS access by submitting the web form, available |
| |at this link: |
| | |
| | |
| | |
|Award |A graduate award refers to a fellowship. |
|Or |An appointment to the graduate student staff refers to an RA or TA. |
|Appointment |The two terms are often used interchangeably. |
| | |
|Cancel |This action cancels an appointment or award completely. |
| | |
|Distribution |Standard distribution is where salary is distributed to just one cost object across the period of the |
| |appointment. Applies to about 80% of all RA’s and TA’s. |
| | |
| |Non-standard distribution is where salary is distributed to more than one cost object, or where different |
| |cost objects are used to cover different times during the appointment period. |
| | |
| |Important NOTE: If a TA appointment is processed using the non-standard distribution where different cost |
| |objects are used to cover different times during the appointment period, the tuition will be charged in one |
| |lump sum to all the cost objects entered – they will not be charged within the time periods as entered for |
| |the appointment. |
| | |
| |Recommendation: Where TA tuition costs must be charged to different cost objects over different times for |
| |the period of the appointment, process the non-standard TA appointment as separate “Partial Term” TA |
| |appointments. This way you can set the dates for when the tuition may be charged to the different cost |
| |objects. |
| | |
|Dollars |Do not use dollar signs or commas in the number fields. The system will not read them. |
| |For example: |
| |$19,470 is entered as 19470 |
|Email |Email Notification of a graduate award or appointment is sent to the following groups: |
| |Student (by default) |
| |Administrator performing transaction (by default) |
| |Advisor (if entered as mnemonic) |
| |Additional default CC: entered as an email address, which will carry over for the entire session. |
| | |
| |Up to three other email addresses can be added to the list of recipients for the Email Notification. |
| | |
|Mnemonics |Within MITSIS, a mnemonic is a shorthand form for a faculty advisor, supervisor or instructor’s name, and |
| |it is tied to a faculty member’s full name and email address. Mnemonics consist of the first letter of the|
| |first name, the first four letters of the last name and the course number. |
| | |
| |For example: |
| |Robert Smith, Chemical Engineering rsmit10 |
| |Jane Jones, Biology jjone7 |
| | |
| |Within Web Grad Aid, entering a faculty supervisor’s mnemonic with a student’s appointment will result in |
| |that faculty member receiving an email notification of that appointment. |
| | |
| | |
|Partial Term |An appointment period that is less than a full term. RA, TA, and Fellowship appointments and awards can |
| |be processed for part of a term by selecting “Partial Term” for the Appointment Period. |
| | |
| |For example: |
| |September 1 to October 15 |
| | |
| |In Web Grad Aid, selecting “Partial Term” for the Appointment Period results in data entry fields for the |
| |start and end dates being displayed. The user must enter the start and end date for the Partial Term |
| |appointment period. |
| |NOTE: The start and end date must fall within the start and end dates of a standard term. |
| | |
|Termination |When a student leaves prior to the end of the appointment or award period, usually for early completion of|
| |thesis, the status of the appointment or award is changed to “Termination.” |
| | |
| |Termination for early completion of thesis will result in a re-assessment of the tuition assessed for the |
| |student, and any appointment or award must be adjusted accordingly. |
| | |
|Text |When using the Student Search, do not use apostrophes in last names. |
| | |
| |For example: |
| |O’Brien is entered as Obrien |
| | |
| |Note that the system is not case sensitive. |
GETTING HELP WITH WEB GRAD AID
TECHNICAL HELP
Certificates – Contact the Help Desk, either through email or by telephone.
E-mail: computing-help@mit.edu
Phone: 617.253.1101
The Help Desk also maintains a web site, with links to finding general help with IS&T applications and services, and getting support –
Web Grad Aid application error messages – For any of the following error messages contact ssit-wga@mit.edu for immediate assistance.
o Failure of Apache Bridge
o Internal Service Error
o ...EJB Exception...
o Servlet exception
o Compilation ... failed
o Parsing ....... failed
Janet Sahlstrom, Senior Business Analyst in Education Systems, also serves as a resource for Web Grad Aid users and graduate administrators, and may be contacted at (617) 258-6486, or by email at janets@mit.edu .
BUSINESS HELP
The homepage of Web Grad Aid has a Useful Links section that provides documentation of the graduate aid business process, lists of resources and contacts, tuition tables, and more. The Web Grad Aid Useful Links section includes the following:
o Central Office Resources List– an alphabetical listing of central administrative offices important to the graduate aid process, with names and contact information of key staff members in those offices.
o Graduate Aid Encyclopedia – a comprehensive information resource and reference for all those who touch the graduate aid process.
o Guidelines for Supplementing Fellowships– a guide for those who process supplements to graduate student fellowship awards and training grants.
o Listing of Graduate Administrators – a list of MIT graduate administrators, maintained by the Office of the Dean for Graduate Education. Graduate administrators serve as the key departmental representatives responsible for a broad array of services and resources for graduate students.
o Quick Reference for Making Changes – A quick reference with step-by-step instructions for making changes to existing graduate appointments and awards.
o Reasonable Compensation Guidelines – MIT’s policy on reasonable compensation for graduate research assistants and teaching assistants.
o Salary and Stipend Rates – A copy of the annual memo from Claude Canizares, Associate Provost, and Steve Lerman, Dean for Graduate Education and Vice Chancellor, that provides the established RA and TA salary rates.
o Student Extended Insurance Plan (SEIP) Benefit – A copy of Provost Bob Brown’s proposal for handling graduate student medical insurance, with eligibility criteria, and frequently asked questions for administrators and students.
o Summer Tuition Subsidy and Internship Rates for Graduate Students – a summary of the Summer Tuition Subsidy policy and the eligibility requirements for graduate students.
o Tuition Proration Tables – a link to the Registrar’s on-line list of tuition rates, maintained by the Registrar’s Office.
o Web Grad Aid Users – a list of authorized Web Grad Aid users.
o Web Grad Aid Users Manual – An instruction manual on how to create and process graduate appointments and awards using Web Grad Aid.
o Graduate Appointments Interface – This document provides basic information about the SAP Graduate Appointments Interface program, with information useful to Web Grad Aid users.
BEST PRACTICES
ORGANIZE THE DATA
Organization of data is important both to the data gathering and data entry processes. Since there are many data elements required to process properly the awards and appointments for a single student for a term, it is important to organize the material prior to beginning data entry. Many academic departments use shadow systems, in the form of spreadsheets and/or databases, to maintain their non-centralized student data, including the details of the financial arrangements.
ONE TERM AT A TIME
It is best to process appointments and awards one term at a time. Students are likely to have different types of appointments or awards during the financial aid year (for example, a student could be a fellow in the Summer, an RA in the Fall, and a TA in the Spring), and each type of appointment must be processed separately.
Processing changes, such as a change in salary rate for an RA, are simplified if the change can be applied to the appointment by term. Adjusting salary and tuition amounts for a terminated appointment are also simplified if the termination is within a term, rather than for an appointment that extends for the entire Financial Aid Year.
COMMENTS FIELD
The “Comments” field in the data entry screen may be used to provide details specific to the award or appointment. This information will be included on the email notification.
For cancellations and terminations of appointments or awards, users are required to enter comments in the comments field, to provide the reason or the action to cancel or terminate an appointment or award. For example, the user might note that an award is being terminated prior to the end of the award period because of early completion of thesis.
PRINTING EMAIL NOTIFICATIONS
Email Notifications of appointments and awards should be printed and kept in the student’s file.
RECONCILIATION
THE SYSTEMS
Graduate appointments and awards are processed using three systems which are not fully integrated. The appointment and award data are entered and saved in Web Grad Aid. Salary and stipend data (and RA tuition data) for all new graduate student appointments and awards are then passed directly to the SAP Payroll system via the Graduate Appointments Interface program. Tuition data for TAs and Fellows passes directly to the SAP financial system.
Cost distribution changes made in SAP’s electronic Salary Distribution Schedule (eSDS) for graduate appointments and awards do not pass back to Web Grad Aid/MITSIS.
UNDERSTAND RESPONSIBILITIES and ROLES WITHIN THE DEPARTMENT
Within an academic department there may be several individuals responsible for processing appointments, making corrections and/or cost distribution changes, and reconciling cost objects. For example, data gathering may be handled by the Graduate Administrator or another staff member in the department’s headquarters office. The Graduate Administrator may be responsible for processing graduate appointments and making changes to those appointments in Web Grad Aid. Within this same department, area Administrative Assistants may have responsibility to reconcile cost objects with graduate student charges, while the Fiscal or Administrative Officer has responsibility and authorization to make cost distribution changes to appointments in SAP Payroll’s monthly electronic Salary Distribution Schedule (eSDS) reports.
This example illustrates that the first step in the reconciliation process is to identify the process flow within the Department and to understand the division of labor and responsibilities.
DOCUMENTATION
In the current process, which engages multiple systems, reconciliation is performed with paper documents that originate from several sources and should be assembled for the reconciliation process.
DEPARTMENT
Administrators should maintain any departmental records and correspondence requesting the graduate appointments to be made and/or changed. These may be forms retained from the data gathering process, department spreadsheets, forms completed by the students, and e-mail messages from faculty. A departmental summary may be created from these records, and may include documents and data as determined by departmental procedure.
WEB GRAD AID / MITSIS
Administrators should keep on file printed copies of the Email Notifications of Appointments or Awards, which are generated by Web Grad Aid at the time the appointments or awards are made.
SAP PAYROLL SYSTEM
The Payroll Office generates monthly and quarterly printed and electronic DACCAs (Salary Distribution Report System). These documents are available to authorized DLC staff, and distributed to cost object supervisors for review and approval according to standard department, lab or center procedures. The Institute’s policy on salary certification can be found at:
Administrators and Principle Investigators review and certify salary distribution using the eDACCA Salary Distribution Report System. Administrators can make salary distribution changes using the electronic Salary Distribution System (eSDS). To access the salary distribution and certification applications, go to, and click on the Employees tab.
The Quarterly Certification Schedule: For each quarter, the certification month is the third month after the end of the quarter. For example, for the quarter ended March 31, certifications should be completed by June 30. Email reminders of certification deadlines are sent to certifiers who have subscribed to the mailing list. Certifiers may subscribe to the mailing list through this web site:
SAP FINANCIAL SYSTEM
The SAP Financial system generates the printed and electronic Cost Object Summary Statements and Detail Transaction Reports (DTR). The Summary Statement is a monthly summary of all charges to a cost object, and the Detail Transaction Report provides the detail information for charges to cost objects. These reports are in the SAP financial system, and are produced by the Office of the Vice President for Finance. Hard copies are sent to cost object supervisors and addressees; these reports may also be viewed on-line by individuals with the appropriate authorizations in the SAP financial system.
RECONCILIATION
WHAT IS RECONCILIATION?
Administrators in departments, research labs and centers are responsible for reconciling graduate appointments and awards. They must insure that all graduate student appointments and the associated costs have been processed correctly in the Web Grad Aid/MITSIS, SAP Payroll and SAP Financial systems. This includes verification of the type of appointment (RA, TA, Fellowship), the period of appointment, the salary, stipend and tuition rates, and the cost object(s) to which all costs are distributed. Administrators must also verify whether the award includes medical insurance, and verify that such charges are distributed to the appropriate cost object(s).
Reconciliation includes insuring that changes to awards and appointments are made in a timely fashion and that proper documentation is retained by the Department.
Because new appointments and changes to appointments may be processed at any time over the course of each semester, reconciliation is an on-going process throughout the fiscal year.
VERIFYING APPOINTMENTS AND AWARDS
The best practice is to compare the back-up documentation generated by the data-gathering process (this may include, for examples, department spreadsheets, a form completed by the students, e-mail messages from faculty), with the printed copies of the Email Notifications of Awards as processed in Web Grad Aid.
These documents should then be compared with the appointment as it appears on the SAP Payroll system’s electronic Salary Distribution Schedule (eSDS). The SAP Detail Transaction Report is the document of record for tuition costs associated with Teaching Assistant appointments and Fellowship awards, and the SEIP benefit payments.
Verify that the appointment as it appears in the SAP payroll system is correct. This includes verification of the type of appointment (RA, TA, Fellowship), the period of appointment, the salary, stipend and tuition rates, and cost object(s) to which all costs are distributed.
Verify that the appointment as it appears in the SAP financial system is correct. Compare the back-up documentation with the cost object Summary Statements and Detail Transaction Reports from the SAP financials.
For all students who qualify for the Student Extended Insurance Plan benefit, verify that the correct SEIP benefit amount has been awarded for the term. Students may waive the medical insurance because they have other coverage. Where a student has been awarded the SEIP benefit for a term and has subsequently waived the insurance, administrators should also make sure that the insurance award is reversed, which is done using the Web Grad Aid application.
Note: Graduate Research Assistant and Teaching Assistant salaries are paid and distributed to cost objects monthly. Fellowship stipends are also paid and distributed to cost objects monthly throughout the period of the appointment.
PROCESSING CHANGES
Tuition payments for all graduate appointments and awards are applied to student accounts (maintained in Student Financial Services) in a lump sum each term. Tuition costs associated with TA appointments and Fellowship awards are charged to cost objects in a lump sum. However, costs associated with tuition payments for RA appointments only are distributed to cost objects monthly.
Web Grad Aid does not prevent the user from processing appointments using cost objects that may be closed at the time of data entry; users simply get a warning. Such appointments may be processed in the SAP Payroll system, and the costs distributed to the Departmental Payroll Suspense account. The reconciliation process includes the requirement to review the monthly Departmental Payroll Suspense account (generally under the control of the Administrative or Fiscal Officer), and to clear any charges distributed to it.
ROUTING AND MAKING CHANGES
The following types of corrections must be entered in Web Grad Aid to effect a change:
1. Appointment type (for example, change an RA to TA appointment)
2. Period of appointment
3. Medical insurance
4. Amounts as a result of any of the above changes
5. Cost object allocation on the TUITION PORTION of a TA appointment or Fellowship award. For changing cost objects on RA tuition see the following section.
CHANGING COST DISTRIBUTIONS
Cost distribution changes may be made in either the Web Grad Aid or Payroll System, or both. Users who want accurate reports from the MITSIS data should enter cost object distribution changes in Web Grad Aid. This data is fed to the Data Warehouse, and can then be reflected in subsequent reports.
To make cost distribution changes in the SAP payroll system, users may enter the changes on the electronic Salary Distribution Schedule (eSDS).
The following corrections must be entered on the eSDS to effect a change to:
1. Cost object on RA salary and corresponding RA tuition allocations
2. Cost object on TA salary allocation
3. Cost object on Fellowship stipend allocation.
Detailed information on the Institute’s policy on salary certification can be found at:
Administrators can make salary distribution changes using the electronic Salary Distribution System (eSDS) application. To access the salary distribution and certification applications, go to, and click on the Employees tab.
The Quarterly Certification Schedule: For each quarter, the certification month is the third month after the end of the quarter. For example, for the quarter ended March 31, certifications should be completed by June 30. Email reminders of certification deadlines are sent to certifiers who have subscribed to the mailing list. Certifiers may subscribe to the mailing list through this web site:
VERIFYING CHANGES
The results of changes requested through the routes identified above will appear in the SAP financial system. Providing there are no further corrections the process is complete. If further corrections are required, the user must repeat the appropriate steps as listed above.
CANCELLATIONS
All cancellations of graduate student appointments and awards must be made in Web Grad Aid. Web Grad Aid feeds daily to SAP, and the SAP cut-off date is near the end of the month. This means it is best to make such changes as early as possible, but no later than the end of the third week in a month, in order for those changes to be reflected on the month’s Detail Transaction Report.
RECORD RETENTION
Most departments find it helpful to retain a copy of the award (by student) for the duration of that individual student’s degree program. It is best to keep it filed with the student’s master record. This information can be produced from Web Grad Aid.
Alternatively, administrators may generate the Student Support History report from the Data Warehouse. This report shows support by term and includes information such as cost object, GL/account, level of effort and awarding department. However, it is important to note that this report is helpful only if a department administrator is persistent about keeping MITSIS data up-to-date.
REPORTING
SYSTEM OF RECORD – MITSIS and Web Grad Aid
The MIT Student Information System (MITSIS) is the system of record for all graduate appointments and awards. It is an administrative system that serves all of the student services at MIT, including Registrar’s Office for registration and academic records, Student Financial Services for student billing and accounts, Housing, Medical, Card Office, and academic departments. It is maintained by Education Systems (ES) in Information Services and Technology (IS&T).
Web Grad Aid is a web-based data entry tool for processing graduate appointments and awards. It has been developed by Education Systems in collaboration with staff from the Provost’s Office and other areas of IS&T.
AUTHORIZATIONS AND ACCESS
WEB GRAD AID
The Primary Financial Authorizer for the academic department or research lab or center must contact business-help@mit.edu to request authorization and access to the Web Grad Aid data entry application. When requesting access, the following information must be provided:
• Name
• Department
• Email Address
• Office Location
• Type of authorization:
o View – For viewing graduate appointments and awards. Not restricted, therefore users can view and report by department, research lab or center, by School.
o Create and Update – To create and update graduate appointments and awards. This function is qualified according the students’ home departments.
o GSO Approval –This “global” authorization level is specifically for staff in the Graduate Students Office who work with the Dean for Graduate Students.
Note: If you are replacing someone, it is helpful to provide this information as well.
MITSIS
Administrators may obtain authorization and access to the MIT Student Information System (MITSIS) by completing and submitting the MITSIS user account request form, available at this url:
SAP FINANCIAL
The Primary Financial Authorizer for the academic department or research lab or center must contact business-help@mit.edu to request authorization and access to the SAP Financial system. The Primary Authorizer also determines the type and extent of authorizations an SAP user may have.
UNDERSTANDING THE DATA SOURCES FOR REPORTING
There are a variety of reports available through the Data Warehouse and MITSIS. Administrators with reporting responsibilities should understand the reporting options and what data each report provides. It is important to understand the source of the data being used in the report. For example, Data Warehouse reports are using data from MITSIS, not from the Payroll system. This means that if cost distribution changes have been made only in the Payroll system, because the two systems (MITSIS and Payroll) are not fully integrated, the DW report may not be accurate for cost distributions on graduate appointments and awards. For accurate reporting from the Data Warehouse, changes in cost distributions should be entered into both the MITSIS and Payroll systems.
CREATING REPORTS
DATAWAREHOUSE REPORTS
Standard reports are available from the Data Warehouse (DW) website. Running Data Warehouse reports requires the BrioQuery software application. Complete documentation and authorization information is available on the DW web site, which is also accessible through the Web Grad Aid “Useful Links” section. All requests for access to graduate student data are reviewed and approved by the Dean for Graduate Students.
The following standard Data Warehouse reports for students can be downloaded from the Data Warehouse web site, and processed using the BrioQuery software application.
• Financial Aid
• Graduate Award
• Instructors
• Student Degree
• Subject Enrollment
Individual Student Financial Support History
This report shows financial support (tuition, stipend, insurance) history for one student. The limit criterion is the student's MIT ID.
Two views:
1) Student Support History - shows the individual student financial support history by academic term, includes information such as appointment type, level of effort, awarding department, and cost collector.
2) History by Cost Collector - summary of amount awarded to the student by cost collector and academic term.
McNeil Report
This provides a list of all students in a selected term enrolled in a selected department, grouped by program and amount of assessed tuition.
Two views:
1) Summary of the number of students at each level of assessed tuition.
2) Detailed report listing each student.
Student Financial Support for Graduate Home Department
For a graduate home department, this report shows student financial support by academic term. Limit criteria: Graduate Home Department, term code
Five views:
1) Detail by Cost Collector - shows the detail funding information (including appointment type, level of effort, awarding department) for each student in the selected home department and academic term, grouped by cost collector and GL account.
2) Detail by Student - shows the funding information of all students in the selected home department and academic term, including appointment type, level of effort, awarding department, and cost collector. Records are sorted by student's name.
3) Summary by Cost Collector - summarizes the amounts of tuition, stipend and insurance awarded for the academic term by cost collector.
4) Summary by Student - summarizes the amounts of tuition, stipend and insurance awarded to each student for the academic term by appointment type (Fellowship, Reseach Assistant, Teaching Assistant, etc.)
5) Different Departments - shows the funding information of students in the selected home department who are supported by another department, in other words, students whose home departments are different from their awarding departments.
Student Financial Support for Awarding Department
For an awarding department, shows student financial support by academic term.
Limit criteria: Awarding Department, term code
Five views:
1) Detail by Cost Collector - shows the detail funding information (including appointment type, level of effort, home department) for each student in the selected awarding department and academic term, grouped by cost collector and GL account.
2) Detail by Student - shows the funding information (including appointment type, level of effort, home department, and cost collector) of all students in the selected awarding department and academic term. Records are sorted by student's name.
3) Summary by Cost Collector - summarizes the amounts of tuition, stipend and insurance awarded for the academic term by cost collector.
4) Summary by Student - summarizes the amount of tuition, stipend and insurance awarded to each student for the academic term by appointment type (Fellowship, Research Assistant, Teaching Assistant, etc.)
5) Different Departments - shows the funding information of students in the selected awarding department who are enrolled in another department, in other words, students whose awarding departments are different from their home departments.
Student Financial Support by Sponsor
For an awarding department, shows an overview of student financial support by sponsor. Limit criteria: Awarding department, term code
Three views:
1) Detail by Sponsor - shows the detail funding information (including appointment type, level of effort, home department, award status) for each student in the selected awarding department and academic term, grouped by sponsor name (with sponsor code) and cost collector.
2) Summary by Sponsor & Cost Collector - summarizes the amounts of tuition and stipend awarded for the academic terms by sponsor and cost collector.
3) Summary by Sponsor & Student -- summarizes the amounts of tuition and stipend awarded for the academic terms by sponsor and student.
Student Payroll Variance
Limit criteria: Awarding department, term code
Two views:
Stipend Variance and Tuition Variance.
1) Stipend variance = stipend amount awarded - stipend amount paid
2) Tuition variance = tuition amount awarded - tuition amount paid
Each report shows, by student name, the stipend and tuition variances respectively between MITSIS and the Payroll System. Only students with a variance are displayed on the report. Information displayed on the report includes appointment type, level of support, status of award, home department and cost collector.
MITSIS REPORTS
Several financial reports can be run using MITSIS. For example, from the Graduate Awards Menu (*GAWARDS), one can select from a list of options for reporting on Graduate Aid awarded for a specific term, for a specific department.
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