Assistantships

Graduate Teaching Associate (GTA)

The GTA is a graduate student, enrolled in accordance with their plan of study, who serves as Instructor of Record for an undergraduate course in the discipline.  This student has full responsibility for a course, including leading the class and assigning grades.  Teaching Associates may also lead discussion sections, grade papers and exams, or supervise laboratory sections. GRAs must have completed a minimum of 18 graduate credit hours in the instructional discipline. Graduate Teaching Associates may NOT teach graduate-level courses. Teaching Associates are supervised by a faculty member experienced in the teaching discipline, participate in pre-service training, and receives regular in-service training as well as planned, periodic evaluations. All GTAs must complete GTA training at the beginning of August in their first year of teaching.

Graduate Instructional Assistant (GIA)

The GIA is a graduate student, enrolled in accordance with their plan of study, who may assist with grading and other administrative responsibilities related to a course. GIAs may be listed in the schedule for labs, recitations, tutorials, etc. that are linked to a course with a credentialed Instructor of Record. These courses are designated with an R, L, or T and the linkage to the Lecture course is clearly noted. This may include lab assistance and set-up, serving as a lab supervisor, meeting students in office hours or group settings to provide tutorial assistance, lead recitation sections; but does not deliver new course content. GIAs serve under the direct supervision of the faculty member who is instructor of record and a member of the graduate faculty, participates in pre-service training, and receives regular in-service training as well as planned, periodic evaluations.

Graduate Research Assistant (GRA)

The GRA is a graduate student, enrolled in accordance with their plan of study and are assigned to work in a faculty member’s lab or provide fundamental support for a faculty member’s research. The supervising faculty member may or may not be the student’s main advisor. Duties of research assistants vary by discipline and lab but include all tasks needed to pursue research in a given area, such as: data collection, entry, and analysis; reviewing the literature and other library work; writing reports; copying, filing, and collating; organizing and/or cleaning the lab or office.

Graduate Clinical Assistant (GCA)

The GCA is a graduate student, enrolled in accordance with their plan of study and engaged in clinical teaching, research, or clinical practice under the supervision of or in collaboration with a member of the graduate faculty. These students may be assigned case-loads, group counseling, crisis intervention, outreach programming, personality assessments, maintaining clinical records, or other clinical duties as assigned.

Graduate Office Assistant (GOA)

The GOA is the title given to graduate assistants when there are no expectations of classroom teaching or grading. This individual may staff an open laboratory, studio, or workshop, where students complete assignments or work on projects; provide non-graded, individual instruction or tutoring, or help faculty prepare and manage classroom materials. The office assistant may also perform academic duties such as assisting in non-central roles of faculty research.  An office assistant may also be assigned to a wide variety of other responsibilities that are not related to instructional or research processes but support the mission of the University. Graduate students who have appointments in non-academic units are always classified as office assistants.

To hold a graduate assistantship, a student must be:

• Admitted to a program as a master’s or doctoral student.
• Full-time enrollment, maintain a 3.0 GPA and otherwise making satisfactory academic progress toward degree attainment during the period of the assistantship.

Each department or unit establishes its own documented procedures for recruitment, selection, retention, and dismissal of graduate assistants in accordance with UNCG policy and Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity guidelines.

Renewing Assistantships

An assistantship without a fixed term specified in the initial letter of offer may, at the discretion of the academic program, be renewed if the following criteria are met:

• Funding is available.
• The student is making satisfactory academic progress, with a GPA not less than 3.0.
• The student’s assistantship performance is evaluated in writing by their supervisor to be satisfactory.
• The student’s professional and ethical behavior in all tasks and duties — including in courses in which they are enrolled and in research and creative work — is judged by the academic program to be satisfactory.

I-9 Instructions for Graduate Students:

Most Graduate Assistants are contracted to start work on August 1. On or before the contract begin date on your official offer letter from the Graduate School, you must complete an I-9 verifying your identity and employment authorization to work in the United States. Failure to do so will delay your ability to start work and your first paycheck will be delayed to the end of September. Regardless, you MAY NOT begin your work assignment until you have filed your I-9 with the Graduate School.

Section 1 of the I-9 is completed electronically through the Guardian LawLogix I-9 system. The Graduate School will send you a link to the Guardian LawLogix I-9 system upon receipt of your hiring proposal. This link will be sent to your UNCG email address. Section 1 of the I-9 is completed electronically through the Guardian LawLogix I-9 system. Once Section 1 is complete, you will need to visit the Graduate School in person in 270 Mossman Building, to complete Section 2 of the I-9. Both section 1 and section 2 of the I-9 must be completed on or before your contract begin date.

Section 2 of the I-9 requires that you present your identity documents to the Graduate School. The documents presented must be originals (no copies) and must comply with the requirements outlined on the USCIS website – Form I-9 Acceptable Documents.

Only once Section 1 and Section 2 of the I-9 are fully complete and the I-9 has been approved by the federal E-Verify system, will you be eligible to begin working on campus. Failure to comply may result in loss of your assistantship.

Remote I-9 Completion:

If you are unable to visit the Graduate School to complete Section 2 of the I-9 on or before your contract begin date, a remote option exists. You must contact the Graduate School prior to starting Section 1 of the I-9 so that you are sent the correct link.

Section 1 of the I-9 must still be completed electronically. To complete Section 2, you must present your original documents to a notary who resides within the United States. The notary will review your original documents and then complete section 2 of the I-9 form. The notary will upload copies of your identity documents.

Special Notes for International Students:

International students who do not have a social security number can still complete Section 1 of their I-9. You can also visit the Graduate School to present the originals of your identity documents for Section 2. This allows you to start work without having your Social Security Number. However, your I-9 cannot be submitted to the federal E-Verify system until you receive your actual social security number. You will receive a receipt at your meeting with the Social Security Administration to apply for your Social Security Number. Email this receipt to the Director of Budget, Personnel, and Planning after your meeting. As soon as you receive your social security number, you should contact the Graduate School for next steps.

International students must also meet with the Payroll Department to complete a tax assessment prior to being placed on payroll.

The International Programs Center is available to help international students with the various processes and applications needed both before and upon entry into the US.