PhD Application Fee Waivers

PhD Application fee waivers are available to US citizens, permanent residents, or undocumented applicants who have demonstrated financial hardship or participated in specific pipeline programs described below.

Financial Hardship: In cases where the application fee presents a financial hardship for an applicant, WCGS will consider a request for a fee waiver. Financial hardship must be established via documentation of need such as:

• An unemployment benefits statement or signed and dated caseworker statement verifying receipt of unemployment benefits within the previous three months
• A copy of part one of your FAFSA Student Aid Report (SAR) or letter signed by a financial aid representative at the college/university you are currently attending, which indicates your Expected Family Contribution (EFC)
• A copy of your 2020 Federal Income Tax return, either your Form 1040 if listed as an independent, or your parent’s/guardian’s 2020 Federal Income Tax return if listed as a dependent

Pipeline Programs: WCGS is pleased to offer application fee waivers to qualified participants of programs designed to provide educational and/or career support to students from underrepresented and disadvantaged identities. Applicable programs are listed below:

• Annual Biomedical Research Conference for Minority Students (ABRCMS)
• Annual Ivy Plus University of Puerto Rico Event
• Atlanta University Center Consortium (AUCC)
• Black Doctoral Network (BDN)
• Building Infrastructure Leading to Diversity (BUILD)
• California Forum for Diversity in Graduate Education
• Columbia University Bridge to the PhD Program
• Fisk-Vanderbilt Bridge Program
• Gates Millennium Scholars
• GSMI Scholars/Cientifico Latino
• The Leadership Alliance
• Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation Summer Undergraduates (LSAMP)
• McNair Scholars
• Minority Access to Research Careers (MARC)
• MIT Laureates & Leaders
• NIH-MBRS
• NIH-NIGMS
• PREP
• Project SHORT
• Society for Advancement of Chicanos and Native Americans in Science (SACNAS)
• WCM Tri-I Mentorship Initiative (TIMI)

If you are an administrator or a participant of a program not listed above, you may request that we consider adding the program to our list of programs eligible for an application fee waiver for its participants by writing to WCGS-Admissions@med.cornell.edu.

Other Extenuating Circumstances: WCGS will consider fee waiver requests for personal hardship or other circumstances. Please include a detailed rationale and supporting documentation.

Requesting a Fee Waiver

Applicants may request a fee waiver by completing the PhD Fee Waiver Application linked here.

Fee waivers must be requested before submitting an application forn admissions. Make sure all sensitive data (e.g., Social Security Numbers) are redacted from supporting documentation before submitting. Allow up to seven business days for your request to be processed. Upon review and approval, you will be issued a fee waiver code via email and instructions for how to use it. Incomplete waiver requests will not be reviewed. If the application deadline arrives before you receive a fee waiver code, you will be responsible for paying the application fee and you will not be issued a refund. A fee waiver will not be retroactively applied to an application that has already been paid for and submitted.