In early April, Penn instituted Technology Grants to meet some of the immediate needs of graduate students and to ensure that you can continue making academic progress. Several new initiatives have been implemented to address broader issues affecting graduate and professional students and to provide you with support both immediately and in the longer term.

  1. COVID-19 Emergency Funding:
    The GAPSA-Provost COVID-19 Emergency Fund supports full- and part-time graduate and professional students who have incurred unexpected expenses directly related to the COVID-19 disruptions of this semester, including moving expenses, travel, insurance, covering multiple rents, and other urgent needs as appropriate. The application for these funds will be open April 24–May 15; more information will be available on the Graduate Student Center website.
  1. Enhanced Summer Funding and Professionalization Opportunities:
    The University is developing teaching, professional development, and other competitive opportunities to enable graduate and professional students not only to continue to advance your skills and build your resumes but also to earn additional summer funding. There are robust summer programs for incoming first-year undergraduates and Philadelphia high school students that will be delivered online this summer and will have roles for graduate student mentors, TAs and/or instructors. If you are interested in being considered for these programs, please fill out the form provided by the Vice Provost for Education.
     
  2. Special Health Insurance Enrollment Period for Uninsured Graduate and Professional Students:
    The Penn Student Insurance Plan is offering a special enrollment period for uninsured Penn students and their dependents. This special enrollment period opened on April 13 and will remain open until April 30, with coverage provided for 4/1/2020 – 7/31/2020 at a reduced rate of $1,195 for a student, spouse or child (and $2,390 for two or more children). To enroll or ask any additional questions, please contact Deborah Olson.
     
  3. Extended Health Insurance Coverage for Recent Graduates:
    All graduate and professional students who are graduating in May or August of this year will be eligible to remain on the Penn Student Insurance Plan through December 2020. Penn is currently working with Aetna (our health insurance provider) and state regulators to finalize the details, which will be shared by e-mail as soon as they are available in an email, on the Graduate Student Center website, and via the Vice Provost for Education’s newsletter.

Further details about these initiatives will be available in the coming days. In the meantime, please review the Graduate Student Center’s list of resources available to graduate and professional students during these challenging times. Penn remains strongly committed to your health and well-being, and appreciate that many of you may have additional concerns related to health and wellness, visa compliance, travel restrictions, and career opportunities, among others. Please make use of the many units at Penn – including Penn WellnessPenn Global, and Career Services – that are here to help you.