University profile

Purdue University

Location: West Lafayette, IN

Minimum graduate stipend

$28,000/yr Official

Paid over 12 months · 2025-2026 · From Jul 1 2025; half-time (0.50 FTE) fiscal-year Graduate Staff minimum · West Lafayette Graduate Staff (TA/RA) annual minimums effective Jul 1 2025, fiscal year: $28,000 at 0.50 FTE, $56,000 at 1.0 FTE; academic year: $21,913 at 0.50 FTE, $43,826 at 1.0 FTE. The manual says the salary is intended for what is typically a half-time (.50 FTE) assistantship, about 20 hours a week, so the 0.50 FTE fiscal-year figure is the headline. Minimums, not set pay; departments may pay more. Fort Wayne and Northwest have lower minimums. No 2026-27 table found, so needs_recheck stays 1. · Flagged for re-verification: treat as provisional until we re-check the source

Official: published by the university · Source: Purdue Graduate Student Employment Manual (updated Feb 2026), Appendix B · Verified 2026-10-13

Cost of living in West Lafayette, IN

City-median rent is a city-level figure, not a near-campus price; university graduate housing lines are the university's own published rates. Each line is labeled with its own source.

Rent, 1-bedroom (city median) $1,240/mo Estimated City median 1BR. 1BR ($1,240) and 2BR medians ($1,300) are nearly identical; noisy student-season data. Source: Zumper city median asking rent (Sept 2026) · Verified 2026-09-27
Rent, 2-bedroom split two ways (city median) $650/mo Estimated City median 2BR, split two ways. 1BR ($1,240) and 2BR medians ($1,300) are nearly identical; noisy student-season data. Source: Zumper city median asking rent (Sept 2026) · Verified 2026-09-27
Utilities Not yet available
Public transit $99/semester Official CityBus semester pass (about $25/mo). Purdue no longer subsidizes it (fall 2025 subsidized price was $49); fare increases planned for 2026. Purdue Campus Transit is free. Source: Purdue Administrative Operations; Purdue Exponent · Verified 2026-09-27
Parking $75 to $250/yr Official Value permit $75, "C" permit $100, Student Garage permit $250 (lottery). 2025-26 options for graduate and professional students who live outside the campus boundary. Purdue announced that annual permit costs are unchanged for 2026-27. The Student Garage permit is allocated by lottery. Source: Purdue Operations: graduate and professional student parking permits (2025-26) · Verified 2026-09-28
Groceries Not yet available

Master's tuition

Published tuition (before any aid). PhD students usually have tuition waived; their offer letter confirms. This is not part of the stipend-versus-cost-of-living comparison.

General Graduate (regular fall/spring flat rate) (in-state) $4,996/semester Official 2026-2027. flat rate 8+ credit hours. Includes mandatory fees Source: Purdue Bursar Graduate Tuition and Fees 2026-2027 · Verified 2026-09-30
General Graduate (regular fall/spring flat rate) (out-of-state) $14,397/semester Official 2026-2027. flat rate 8+ credit hours. Includes mandatory fees Source: Purdue Bursar Graduate Tuition and Fees 2026-2027 · Verified 2026-09-30
Computer Science & Engineering and Agricultural & Biological Engineering rate (in-state) $5,558/semester Official 2026-2027. flat rate 8+ credit hours. Includes mandatory fees. Figure is being rechecked. Source: Purdue Bursar Graduate Tuition and Fees 2026-2027 · Verified 2026-09-30
Computer Science & Engineering and Agricultural & Biological Engineering rate (out-of-state) $14,959/semester Official 2026-2027. flat rate 8+ credit hours. Includes mandatory fees. Figure is being rechecked. Source: Purdue Bursar Graduate Tuition and Fees 2026-2027 · Verified 2026-09-30
MBA (Daniels School of Business differential) (in-state) $11,204/semester Official 2026-2027. flat rate 8+ credit hours. Includes mandatory fees Source: Purdue Bursar Graduate Tuition and Fees 2026-2027 · Verified 2026-09-30
MBA (Daniels School of Business differential) (out-of-state) $20,605/semester Official 2026-2027. flat rate 8+ credit hours. Includes mandatory fees Source: Purdue Bursar Graduate Tuition and Fees 2026-2027 · Verified 2026-09-30

PhD program profiles at Purdue University

Mechanical Engineering PhD · Mechanical Engineering

Master’s program profiles at Purdue University

Master’s tuition at this university →