Letters: Republican tax bill will harm grad students

Re “Grad students are right to protest GOP tax cut bill” (Viewpoints, Nov. 28): Among other losers from the Republican tax bill will be graduate students, who pursue advances in science and technology. Typical grad students in science or engineering work on research projects in some new arena. These grad students work long hours that include evenings and weekends. In compensation, the university or college give them a waiver on the institution’s tuition plus stipends for living expenses. The tax bill now before the Congress wages war on research institutions and underpaid graduate students. By requiring grad students to pay taxes on the full amount of the tuition waiver plus the stipend, the bill would increase their tax bracket. As the average student stipend is $16,000 annually, this will make graduate research work untenable for many.

This story was originally published November 29, 2017 at 3:10 PM with the headline "Letters: Republican tax bill will harm grad students."