3356-9-03.1. Appointment of graduate assistants, graduate research assistants, graduate assistant interns, and teaching assistants

(A) Policy statement. While the president has overall responsibility for the management of the university, the responsibility for employment decisions of personnel is delegated to the provost and vice presidents. Each divisional executive officer is responsible for making personnel decisions within the described university procedures.

(B) Purpose. The graduate assistantship program is predicated upon the concept that given an opportunity to assist the faculty, graduate students provide a service to the university and gain valuable academic experience, which is appropriately supported through the annual institutional budget process. Academics must drive our cost structure. How the assistantship enhances the student's education must be apparent.

(C) Parameters.

(1) A graduate assistant ("GA") will normally be assigned duties primarily focused on the conduct of research/scholarly activity. A GA may be assigned teaching duties, but should not be the instructor of record. A graduate research assistant ("GRA") will only be assigned duties focused on the conduct of research/scholarly activity and will typically receive a twelvemonth appointment. All other assistantships are typically two-semester appointments. A graduate assistant/intern ("GA/I") is a special category of graduate assistant designated to provide opportunities for university offices or departments, community companies or agencies, or other appropriate external sponsors to involve graduate students as academic assistants/interns in real life experiences related to their fields of study. A teaching assistant ("TA") will only be assigned duties focused on instruction and may be the instructor of record for a regularly scheduled class.

(2) Additional academic services to the academic program in which the student is enrolled may be appropriate for all assistantship appointments. GA, GRA, GA/I, and TA appointments are covered by this policy. A student appointed as a graduate assistant (GA, GRA, GA/I, and TA) will be paid a stipend and instructional fees required to complete a single degree program (up to eighteen semester hours per semester and up to twelve semester hours for the summer term), student transportation fee, out-of-state surcharge, and music performance fees (if applicable) will be remitted.

Assistantship appointments previously providing only a stipend and remission of the transportation fee, and students awarded only the graduate college "Premiere Scholarship" may be renewed until the assistantship/scholarship is terminated.

(3) The graduate dean is responsible for the administration of the program and appointment of graduate assistants, graduate research assistants, graduate assistant interns, and teaching assistants.

(4) The graduate dean may make available the "Graduate College Premiere Scholarship." The scholarship shall include up to thirty-six semester hours of instructional fees (for graduate courses required to complete a single degree program) for an academic year up to eighteen semester hours for each fall and spring semester. Scholarship awards may be provided for up to twelve semester hours of instructional fees for the summer term. The "Premiere Scholarship" shall include instructional fees, nonresident tuition surcharge, and applicable music performance fees.

(5) The total number of graduate assistantships and teaching assistantships shall be allocated annually as a part of the institutional budget development process and will take into account the needs of new graduate programs as they are developed and implemented and the opportunities to increase enrollment and research through the growth of existing graduate programs. Colleges, departments, or external sources can also provide funds to support additional assistantships.

(6) Additional assistantship positions may be created by the graduate dean when external funding has been obtained . In such cases, payment for assistantships may be made at rates higher than normal university rates if the external funding agency has a predetermined payment schedule or allows higher rates of payment. Remission of fees may be funded by the graduate college in cases where external funds have been obtained to fund the assistantship stipend.

(D) Procedures.

(1) The dean of the college of graduate studies shall allocate graduate assistants approved within the university budget across the institution. Appropriate standing committees of the graduate council shall be consulted as part of the allocation process.

(2) An academic department may recommend only full-time graduate students with regular (not provisional) status for an assistantship. Exceptions to this requirement may be granted only prior to appointment by the graduate dean with sufficient justification from the recommending department. A GA or TA with a teaching assignment may not have any undergraduate academic course deficiencies in any area that will be included in the assistant's teaching assignments.

(3) Recommendation to appoint a GA, GRA, GA/I and/or TA, and recommendations to award a "Graduate College Premiere Scholarship," must be obtained from the academic dean. Applications with the appropriate recommendations for appointment are forwarded to the graduate dean, who makes the official appointment. Until the appointment has been made by the graduate dean, no department is authorized to communicate to any applicant for a graduate or teaching assistantship that an award will be made. A department is authorized to communicate that they are recommending a student for appointment as a GA, GRA, GA/I, or TA. The college of graduate studies supports the "April 15^th Resolution" regarding graduate scholars, fellows, trainees and assistants of the council of graduate schools ("CGS"). Appointments and communications regarding appointments will adhere to said resolution as described on the CGS webpage.

(4) Appointment as a GA, GRA, GA/I, or TA will normally occur for the fall or spring semester and be made prior to the beginning of the fall semester. Graduate research assistant appointments may begin in the summer term . In cases in which an appointment becomes available in the middle of a semester due to the availability of external funding, the stipend will be prorated to accommodate the period of time covered. Regardless of funding source, the stipend may be prorated to accommodate situations where students fail to begin or complete their assistantship as scheduled. Transportation fees, instructional fees, out-of-state surcharge and applicable music performance fees are remitted for the full semester.

(5) Graduate assistants (GA, GRA, GA/I, or TA) shall not hold fulltime outside employment. Additional employment within the university is not permitted without the approval of the graduate dean.

(6) A faculty member within the department to which the graduate assistant is assigned will be designated to be directly responsible for the supervision of the assistant. A mentor from an academic department who will ensure the appropriate educational experience of the assistantship or internship must be designated. This applies to GA, GRA, GA/I, and TA positions.

(7) All teaching assistants must participate in a formal mentoring program in the department of instruction prior to being assigned independent teaching activities in that department.

(8) Additional information about graduate assistants, graduate research assistants, graduate assistant interns, teaching assistants, and the "Graduate College Premiere Scholarship" may be found in the "Graduate Catalog," the "College of Graduate Studies Policy Book," and the "Handbook for Graduate Assistants."

Effective: 6/22/2020
Promulgated Under: 111.15
Statutory Authority: 3356
Rule Amplifies: 3356
Prior Effective Dates: 01/31/2000, 06/16/2003, 08/23/2010, 08/31/2015, 08/05/2016, 11/03/2017