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NIH predoctoral stipend for FY2009: $20,976 (source: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/notice-files/NOT-OD-09-07...)

Most other biomedical/chem funding levels are pegged to this level (since the NIH actually has odd restrictions on paying students more than the stipend level).

My stipend is only $17000. That's up from when I started four years ago at $13500. That covers rent and food, but obviously not books. Of course, Baltimore is far cheaper than New York, but it's still possible to live on.

What are you doing?

Political science (major: international relations, minor: comparative politics). I've talked to some of the students in hard sciences (e.g. bio) and they report stipends of $23000. It's probably just set department-by-department, and mine either happens to be poor or stingy.

That's exactly what I'm getting, and living on (though not in NY admittedly). Hardly the -$45,000 claimed by in the article, and either way, it's better than the $0 involved with doing the research independantly.

Except, I would imagine, doing the research independently leaves her more time for part-time work or even a full day job.