Graduate Assistantships

Spring and Fall 2025 Graduate Assistantship application is now live.

About

The College of Education and Human Development offers three types of graduate assistantships, providing financial support and career enhancing skills. An assistantship differs from a scholarship because you will engage in work related to your degree when you have an assistantship. At a minimum, you will work 20 hours per week in either a teaching, research or administrative capacity.

  • Graduate Research Assistants (GRA) – GRAs are responsible for performing all tasks related to research. When assisting faculty with research projects, activities should be beneficial in furthering the GRA’s knowledge of, and skills in, the research process, which will enhance their understanding of the content or object of the research. Activities such as library research on the availability of source material, data collection, statistical analysis and data processing tasks are examples of appropriate activities. For the preparation of publications or presentations of a scholarly nature, joint efforts between faculty and graduate students are encouraged. However, ethical standards of the discipline should govern the publication credits.
  • Graduate Service Assistants (GSA) – GSAs provide important support to faculty, staff and administrators working in university administrative offices and centers. These assistantships may include duties that are not necessarily related to the student’s area of academic study and interest. GSAs working in these offices should conduct themselves as professionals and are expected to observe standard office etiquette and operating procedures.
  • Graduate Teaching Assistants (GTA) – GTAs are primarily assigned to teaching functions or duties that advance the educational mission of the department. All activities directly related to the teaching function and to the satisfactory accomplishment of the teaching process are appropriate duties for the GTAs. These activities include research for lecture notes, grading student performance and other teaching-related activities for the class or classes assigned to the GTA.

Eligibility

Unconditionally admitted graduate students pursuing a graduate degree in full-time study are eligible for GA positions. Priority is given to graduate students pursuing a degree in the College of Education and Human Development, however, the application is open to all eligible graduate students regardless of race, color, national origin, sex, disability or age. The University does not provide GA positions or funding for students enrolled in 100% online graduate degree programs, but the stipend will cover online classes as long as you're enrolled in a traditional face-to-face on-campus graduate degree program.

Application Process

There is no deadline to submit an application. Based on start dates, it is recommended that applications be submitted no later than February 1 to be considered for positions that begin in the fall and by October 1 for the spring term beginning on January 1, if an opening occurs due to a December graduation or funding from research grants.

GA Stipend

Master's and doctoral stipends are $18,000 per year ($1,500 per month). GAs are automatically enrolled for the student health care plan and can add additional coverage for dependent family members. 

GA Contract Length

  • Fall term contract starts July 1 (returning hire) or August 1 (new hire) and ends December 15
  • Spring term contract starts: on the first work day in January (typically January 2 or 3 and runs through June 30th)

Enrollment Requirement

  • Must be enrolled in an on-campus graduate degree program (Online degree program enrollees are not eligible).
  • Must maintain good standing in his/her program with a 3.0 or higher on a 4-point scale.
  • Must carry a full-time (FT) course load during each semester. See below.
    • (FT) - A minimum of nine hours in the fall and a minimum of 9 hours in the spring semesters.
    • (FT) - A maximum of 12 hours in the fall and a maximum of 12 hours in the spring semesters.
    • (FT) - A maximum of six hours in the summer semester. 
      • GA/GTA’s must take six summer hours since these positions are 12-months positions. 
      • Any hours greater than six hours in summer are the financial responsibility of the student.
    • University fees, and any fees incurred due to late registration are the responsibility of the GA/GTA.
    • A doctoral student who reaches candidacy (completing qualifying examinations) and registers for his/her candidacy hours (two hours) is considered registered as a full-time student.
    • Full-time status is evaluated on a semester-by-semester basis only. Courses do not carry over from other semesters.
    • GA/GTA must report to the Graduate Student Success Office immediately with any change in course load.

Renewability of GA-ship

  • GA and GTA’s positions are eligible for one year. Renewability pending the availability of funding and satisfactory performance are as follows: 
    • A master’s degree candidate can receive a maximum of two years of support. 
    • A doctoral degree candidate can receive a maximum of three years of support. 

Training Requirements

  • All GAs are required to participate in a mandatory orientation led by the College of Education & Human Development (CEHD) which typically takes place in the first week of August, to coincide with the official start date of the GA contract. 
  • Graduate Teaching Assistants (GTA) must also participate in a GTA orientation , typically offered in the summer prior to the start of fall classes.
  • All GAs must complete the two (2) compliance trainings listed below:

Evaluation

GA evaluations are conducted annually by the supervisor of record and submitted to the Office of Graduate Student Success. Supervisors and GAs will receive the notification regarding the annual evaluation by March 1 of each school year.  Graduate Teaching Assistants (GTA) will be supervised and evaluated on their teaching assignments.

Other GA Availabilities on Campus

Graduate Assistant positions are located in a number of offices on campus. This list is not meant to be exhaustive, and it’s updated yearly as we learn about opportunities. 

Admissions Office:  Graduate Assistant

Resources for Academic Achievement (REACH):  – Graduate Teaching Assistants for Gen 103/104 and Gen 105; Computer Resource Center GSA

Student Involvement:  Recognized Student Organization Graduate Assistant; Student Activities Board Graduate Assistant

Study Aboard and International Travel:  Graduate Assistant

Also, reach out to your academic department within your college to inquire about available graduate assistantships.