Being a grad student is difficult - Avis employé Grad Student Researcher UC Riverside

Grad students do not get paid enough to get by, and instead have to pay back in to the school for parking (expensive, hard to get) and quarterly fees. A few years ago they added a new rec center to attract undergrads and currently make all of the grad students pay exhorbitant quarterly membership fees whether you use it or not. If you get a gold parking permit, you're out of luck. Try to park before it fills up, so you'll want to get there around 6. Still, finding a spot is not guaranteed, never mind the amount of time required to find a spot. I paid for a gold permit and never once parked in a legal spot in the gold lot. They're selling permits at high cost that still do not in practice allow you to park. Depending on your advisor, you may be completely on your own in research. The bulk of the work of keeping the school running is done by adjunct professors (paid part-time, no benefits) and grad student T.A.s (paid next to nothing). This is the case for most of academia. The school does not pay into unemployment insurance on behalf of grad students, so after you graduate, you're on your own.