In 2006, the Graduate School began offering incoming DEEPS doctoral students five years of guaranteed financial support from Brown. Therefore, full tuition and health insurance payments with competitive monthly stipends to cover living expenses are provided for all admitted Ph.D. students. A few highly selective fellowships are also available for Ph.D. applicants with exceptional academic records.

It is important to note that the Graduate School has not made a policy decision that doctoral students must complete their degrees within five years. In fact, the Graduate School has never prohibited funding students who are beyond their fifth year. Some students in this type of situation may receive teaching assistantships, others may receive tuition scholarships, and others may be funded by their advisor's research grant(s).

There are several types of funding available to graduate students, and support types can change from semester to semester, or year to year. The major source of funds for DEEPS graduate students are listed below:

1. University Fellowship
2. Teaching Assistant (TA)
3. Research Assistant (RA)
4. External Funding Sources (NASA, NSF, etc.)

As is the case at all universities, faculty vary from year to year in their need for additional students, and in the resources they have available to support them (lab space, research funding, etc.). Applicants are encouraged to start a dialog with the faculty they are most interested in working with even before the application process begins. This is most easily accomplished via email. Applicants should simply introduce themselves, describe their academic background, and explain why their own interests seem a good match to the research being done within the department. Another way applicants can get a feel for the department and its culture is to contact the graduate students who are advised by the faculty member(s) they'd most like to work with.

Applicants who receive an acceptance letter from the Graduate School should feel free to make arrangements to come visit the Department of Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences. This is done informally, and arranged between the faculty advisor and the accepted student. Frequently, visiting prospective students stay with graduate students working in their area of interest. Visiting prospective students generally have a chance to speak with other DEEPS faculty, enjoy a meal (or two) with potential student peers, and get a tour of the department itself – all of which can be accomplished in a day. There is funding available to help defray the cost of these visits.