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Graduate Student Assistantships and Fellowships

 

Academic Assistantships

Academic Assistantships employ graduate students to assist professors with academic work. Duties could include grading assignments, preparing academic materials or assisting with an academic journal. To qualify for a graduate assistantship position, students must maintain a minimum GPA of 3.0.

 

Academic Assistantship Role

  • Graduate Academic Assistant (GAA): The GAAship is an assistantship given to a master’s or doctoral student that assists a faculty member or department with academic-related assignments that do not consist of instruction or research.
    • Compensation: All GAAs receive a monthly salary. GAAs may receive an additional monthly stipend and/or tuition coverage at the department’s discretion.

 

Minimum Compensation Levels 

Full Time Equivalent (FTE):

  • FTE 0.5 = 20 hours per week
  • FTE 0.375 = 15 hours per week
  • FTE 0.25 = 10 hours per week
  • FTE 0.125 = 5 hours per week
Graduate Academic Assistant (GAA)

Compensation: All GAAs receive a monthly salary. GAAs may receive an additional monthly stipend and/or tuition coverage at the department’s discretion.

Please note: For all appointments, the total pay listed below is divided into even monthly payments. Fall semester has four payments (September, October, November, and December). Spring semester has five payments (January, February, March, April, and May). Summer semester has three payments (June, July and August). Any irregular assistantship terms (e.g. six months) will have a salary prorated based on the number of months.

Minimum Salaries: 

Effort (FTE)Hours per WeekSemester AppointmentAcademic Year AppointmentSummer Appointment12-month Appointment
0.520$4,750$9,500$3,167$12,667
0.37515$3,563$7,125$2,375$9,500
0.2510$2,375$4,750$1,583$6,333
0.1255$1,188$2,375$792$3,167

How Can I Become a Graduate Academic Assistant?

All Graduate Assistantships are offered directly by departments, usually at the time of admission. Graduate assistantships are limited and some departments may not have GA positions. Graduate students are encouraged to inquire with their department about Graduate Assistantship position availability. Students may also apply for assistantships outside of their respective department. The Office of Graduate Student Assistantships and Fellowships does not offer graduate assistantships and cannot provide students with information about a department's current availability.