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Selection - Qualifications and Work - Compensation - Reappointment - Additional Information
Graduate Assistantships are designed for university purposes of recruitment, retention, and assisting departmental needs. Students benefit by close association with professors, financial assistance, and heightened application of their fields.
Graduate assistants at Abilene Christian University fall into three broad categories according to their major responsibilities in (1) academic support, including clerical work, (2) research, and (3) teaching. Upon employment, they are given letters clearly stating their responsibilities, their remuneration, and the expectations of their department and of the professor to whom they are assigned.
Graduate assistants are chosen on a competitive basis. Students apply through the Graduate School and are approved by the dean of the Graduate School upon recommendation by the head of the department for which they wish to work. The Graduate Assistantship Application is now available online; it may also be picked up in the Graduate School, ACU Box 29140, Abilene, Texas, 79699-9140. Students may also inquire by calling 325-674-2354 or 1-800-395-4723. Fax us at 325-674-6717, or e-mail us at gradinfo@acu.edu.
All graduate assistants are expected to be responsible and successful students who can make a positive contribution to their department and to the campus community. They each must have completed a baccalaureate degree before beginning their work as graduate assistants and be admitted to a graduate degree program. Those who teach or have other job-related contact with undergraduates should be good role models in scholarship, integrity, helpfulness and commitment to Christian values. Those who teach must have at least eighteen graduate hours in the discipline taught and must be proficient in the use of the English language.
Each graduate student is assigned to an instructor, who is responsible for training, supervising, and evaluating the assistant in his or her work. Teaching assistants also receive regular in-service training and are evaluated by their students each semester.
Graduate assistants are assigned work space or offices, telephones, and mailboxes, as available, usually on a shared basis. Teaching assistants are expected to attend departmental faculty meetings and to keep regular office hours.
Compensation for graduate assistants varies by department and assignment. The tables below reflect the stipends and tuition discount according to appointment.
|
Category |
Work Hours |
Amount per Year (Fall-Spring) |
Tuition Discount |
Required Hours Enrolled |
|
Full Assistantship |
20 |
$5,800.00 |
80% of 12 hours (6 hours per semester) |
9 |
|
3/4 Assistantship |
15 |
$4,350.00 |
80% of 9 hours (4.5 hours per semester) |
9 |
|
1/2 Assistantship |
10 |
$2,900.00 |
80% of 6 hours (3 hours per semester) |
6 |
|
1/4 Assistantship |
5 |
$1,450.00 |
No discount |
6 |
|
GST / MFT |
8 |
$1,692.00 |
No discount |
6 |
Reappointment of graduate assistants depends upon (1) departmental needs, (2) the graduate assistant's making satisfactory academic progress toward a graduate degree, and (3) evaluations from mentors and, in the case of teaching assistants, from students.
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To be eligible for an assistantship, a student must: (1) Be fully admitted - 'non-degree' or 'special' students are not eligible; (2) Enroll in required hours - See above chart; (3) Sign a commitment letter - Each student must sign and return to the department a copy of the GA commitment letter.
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Graduate Assistants must attend an orientation session on Saturday morning prior to the first day of the fall semester.
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All employment paperwork must be complete in the Human Resources Office before pay will be issued; all pay is issued by direct deposit.
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The Graduate School will verify the admission and registration status of each GA each fall and spring semester. Payroll forms are not processed until students are actually enrolled for the number of hours required for their category of graduate assistantship as indicated in the table above.
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Graduate Assistants must maintain a 3.0 GPA to retain the assistantship.
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Graduate Assistants are paid monthly according to the above table (direct deposit on the first banking day of the month).
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Additional Benefit - All GAs receive a 10% bookstore discount.
Download the Graduate Assistantship Application Form now!
