Graduate Assistantship Types

Students may be appointed to the following Graduate Assistant positions:

1. Graduate Assistant (GAS): The GAS works in direct support of instruction. The GAS is paid from the Faculty Salaries budget line. The department must provide the GAS with a workload report showing 0 assigned work units. Work units are assigned as a sub-administrative assignment and cannot be paid from course fees or distance education accounts.
2. Graduate Assistant (GAW):  The GAW assists with administrative duties. The GAW is paid from the Wages budget line. All tutors are paid from wages and must be used for course fees and distance education instructional support.
3. Graduate Research Assistant (GRA): The GRA is involved in designated research and must be used on 19 accounts. The GRA is paid from the Wages budget line in the grant.
4. Graduate Teaching Assistant (GTA): The GTA serves as the teacher of record and assigns final grades. The GTA is Paid from the Faculty Salaries budget line. The hiring department must specify the course(s) taught by the student. 
   1. Special criteria for Graduate Teaching Assistants (GTAs) assigned primary responsibility for teaching a course for credit and assigning final grades to include the following:
      1. The student must have completed at least 18 semester hours of graduate credit in the teaching field. The hiring department must digitally complete the Certification of Graduate Teaching Assistant Academic Preparation, listing the University, Course Prefix and Number, Course Title, Semester Credit Hours, Date, and Grade. Please note that the hiring department must digitally complete and submit the Certification of Graduate Teaching Assistant Academic Preparation form, listing the coursework that qualifies the student to teach the course/s they are assigned. This form must be submitted to the Graduate School before the student's graduate assistantship assignment as a GTA can be approved and processed.
      2. In order to hold a graduate teaching assistantship, international students must present a TOEFL iBT Speaking score of 26 or higher, an IELTS Speaking Test score of 7.5 or higher, a Pearson Test of English (PTE)-Academic score of 53 or above, or a MELAB Speaking Test score of 4 or higher. Visit the International Student and Scholar Services website for a list of English-speaking countries and exemptions.
      3. The component leader (chair, dean, associate dean, director) must complete the Certification of Graduate Teaching Assistant Academic Preparation form and send it to the Graduate School at the time of appointment.
      4. Preferably, the student will have had teaching experience in the specialty area. 
      5. The student whose primary language is not English should have demonstrated proficiency in English as described below and as mandated by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board.
      6. Each GTA must be assigned a mentor. The mentor is responsible for guiding the GTA in their assigned teaching duties and assessing the GTA's teaching performance each semester. Component leaders should ensure that each GTA is evaluated by the mentor each semester. 

Finding & Applying for a Graduate Assistantship

To find an available Assistantship, students should contact their department, a department related to their field of study, or a university support services office. Students may also visit Career Connections to search for assistantship opportunities. Students apply for a graduate assistantship through TWU Connect and Handshake.

Graduate Assistantship Appointment Criteria

1. Admission to the Graduate School and enrollment in graduate courses must precede an appointment to a graduate assistantship.
2. The department will verify the following qualifications for graduate assistants:
   1. The student must be admitted to the Graduate School as a degree-seeking student.
   2. The student must be enrolled in the minimum semester credit hours (SCH) required for a graduate assistantship.
   3. The student must be in good academic standing at TWU. A student who is on academic probation may not hold a graduate assistantship.
3. A student is not permitted to work more than .50 FTE (20 hours per week) at TWU in any combination of graduate assistantship (wages or salary), graduate teaching assistantship, or graduate research assistantship.
4. A student may not hold a graduate assistantship at TWU concurrently with an assistantship at any other college or university.
5. Graduate Assistants may not hold a full-time job at TWU.
6. Graduate Assistants may not be appointed concurrently as adjunct faculty.
7. Graduate Assistants may not be appointed concurrently as student assistants/student workers. In rare cases, the Dean of the Graduate School may approve an exception with a request in writing via email from the academic component leader with a detailed rationale for the exception.

Graduate Assistantship Enrollment Requirements

Semester Enrollment Requirement - The minimum course load for which graduate assistants must be enrolled during long semesters is 5 semester credit hours for both a .25 or .50 FTE. Departments may require a greater minimum number of hours. For enrollment of less than 5 semester credit hours, the component leader must officially request approval in writing from the Graduate School with a rationale explaining the reasons why the request for enrollment in less than 5 semester credit hours is required. Students in thesis, dissertation, student teaching, practicum, or internship hours may register for a minimum of 3 semester credit hours. (Note: Students enrolled for less than 5 semester credit hours must pay FICA tax unless enrolled in their last semester.)

Summer Enrollment Requirement - The minimum course load for which graduate assistants must be enrolled for summer is 5 semester credit hours for .50 FTE and 3 semester credit hours for a .25 FTE. Summer enrollment includes enrollment any time during summer I, summer II, and/or summer III terms (6/1-8/31).

Preparing and Processing Graduate Assistant Appointment Assignments

1. The department will contact the student with an employment offer after checking the student's qualifications. (If the graduate student holds an F-1 visa student, the hiring department should contact the International Student and Scholar Services so that the assistantship may be used to factor in the student’s financial support. The hiring department should send a copy of the graduate assistantship award letter to International Student and Scholar Services so that it may be included with the student’s I-20.)
2. The department will verify they have available funds for appointing a graduate assistant. If funds are not available in the appropriate budget line, a budget transfer should be processed.
3. The department will process graduate assistant appointment assignments through Oracle. 
4. The graduate assistant appointment assignment must include the student's ID number and a description of the graduate assistant’s specific duties.
5. To ensure a graduate assistant is paid, hiring departments should follow the payroll deadline dates published on the Payroll website in the office of Human Resources. To approve the graduate assistant appointment assignment, the Graduate School must determine that the student is registered for the appropriate number of semester credit hours. Students are encouraged to register as soon as they have been hired by the department. Graduate assistant appointment assignments sent to the Graduate School for approval for assistants not yet registered for coursework will be returned to the department.
6. Hiring departments must use the pay scales on the Graduate School website when completing the graduate assistant appointment assignment. Please note that the appointment salary on graduate assistant appointment assignments for Fall, Spring, and Academic year is always the 9-month salary, although the actual length of employment may be for a different period of time. On summer graduate assistant appointment assignments, the 3-month salary is the base.
7. If the student is hired as a GTA, the specific courses taught must be listed. The hiring department must digitally complete and submit the Certification of Graduate Teaching Assistant Academic Preparation form, listing the coursework that qualifies the student to teach the course/s they are assigned: University, Course Prefix & No., Course Title, Semester Credit Hours, Date & Grade, and Field. This form must be submitted to the Graduate School before the student's graduate assistantship assignment as a GTA can be approved and processed. Please note that the Certification of Graduate Teaching Assistant Academic Preparation form should be submitted only once. If the student continues to teach in subsequent semesters, the department does not need to resubmit the Certification of Graduate Teaching Assistant Academic Preparation form.
8. The component leader must send an official communication via e-mail to the Graduate School explaining the rationale for requesting exception approval if any of the following apply:
   1. The student will be enrolled for less than the required semester credit hours.
   2. The student will be employed more than half-time.
   3. The Student will be employed in a department other than her/his major.
9. The component leader will approve the graduate assistant appointment assignment and send it to the Graduate School for approval. The Graduate School will verify the following requirements:
   1. Admission to a graduate program 
   2. The student is in good academic standing
   3. The student is registered for the required number of hours 
   4. Whether the student is international or a permanent resident 
10. The Graduate School will approve the graduate assistant appointment assignment in Oracle and forward it to the Director of Academic Financial Services.

After Appointment

Human Resources

Departments should send newly hired graduate assistants to the Office of Human Resources to complete the necessary forms to assure payment and insurance coverage, if applicable. By federal law, the student must complete Human Resources paperwork prior to or within the first three days of employment.

Request for In-State Tuition

 An out-of-state graduate assistant is entitled to register by paying the tuition and other fees or charges required for Texas residents without regard to the length of time the assistant has resided in Texas if the following criteria are met:

1. The graduate assistant is enrolled in a minimum of 5 semester credit hours.
2. The graduate assistant is employed at least one-half time (.50 FTE).
3. The graduate assistant is working in a position that relates to their degree program.

The student should digitally complete the Request for In-State Tuition Form for Graduate Assistants, signed by the component leader, and forward it to the Graduate School as an e-mail attachment. The form must be submitted by the 12th class day of long semesters, the 4th class day of summer sessions, and the 2nd class day of the 13-week, 3-week, and 7-week sessions. The Graduate School will verify the student meets the requirements for in-state tuition, approve the request for in-state tuition, and forward the request for in-state tuition form to the Registrar’s Office.

Graduate Assistant Orientation

All Graduate Assistants are required to complete Graduate Assistant Orientation/Training annually. Students will be notified to complete this training when the department submits an assignment change through Oracle, hiring the student as a graduate assistant.  

All newly hired GTAs (students teaching for the first time) must complete an information training presentation by representatives of the Graduate School and Academic Support Services. New GTAs will complete this training through Canvas and the TWU Bridge training platform. Each GTA must have a mentor who evaluates her/his teaching during the semester.