College of Education Policies

Policies Pertaining to Graduate Assistant Appointments

Graduate assistantships in the College of Education are intended to provide graduate students with experiences that add breadth and depth to their graduate education. These appointments typically involve duties in teaching, research, or service, and help fulfill the College's mission. They also provide a valuable educational experience for graduate student as well as a source of support during their graduate studies.

The following policies apply to all teaching assistantships, research assistantships, and fellowships administered through the College of Education.

1. Students enrolled in advanced degree programs in the College of Education are eligible for appointment as graduate assistants. (Under exceptional circumstances, students outside the College are eligible; a DEO and the Dean of the College of Education must approve such exceptions.) In an effort to support as many graduate students as possible, students are routinely awarded no more than a half-time appointment in the College of Education. Typically, students with appointments in other colleges will be awarded assistantships through our College only when the total University appointment is equal to or less than a 50% appointment (20 hours per week.) Any exceptions to this 50% rule must conform to Graduate College policies. Following Graduate College policy, the adviser and the DEO will submit, prior to the offer of an appointment that results in a total appointment greater than .50, a request for exemption from the 50% rule. The request is made directly to the Graduate College and copied to the Dean's Office.
   
   

2. Students holding graduate assistantships through the College of Education are expected to make regular progress toward the completion of an advanced degree program. Graduate College regulations allow students holding half-time appointments to register for a maximum of 12 credits each semester. The College of Education requires graduate students holding graduate assistantships to register for a minimum of 6 credits each semester. Graduate students who are studying for their comprehensive examinations or who have completed their plans of study may request an exception to this minimum requirement. The student's advisor and the DEO must approve all such reductions in advance and notify the Dean's Office. In the case of Special Graduate Assistantships funded by the Iowa Testing Programs, the Director of the Iowa Testing Program must also give approval. Students who have completed their comprehensive examinations may select special post-comprehensive registrations approved by the Graduate College. Currently, students who have passed their comprehensive examinations and have completed their programs of study may choose a post-comp registration with the approval of their advisor.
   
   
3. For a half-time appointment, approximately 20 clock hours per week are expected in performing assistantship duties. The 20-hour limitation policy covers all duties required of a graduate assistant including scheduled times in classrooms, laboratories, or studios, as well as time required for preparation of assigned duties, grading students' work, scheduled office hours, and additional time required for meeting with and advising students. For appointments that are less than 50%, the time is proportional (for example, 10 hours a week for quarter-time).
   
   The limitation on hours is intended to apply to graduate students who are adequately prepared to assume their assistantship duties. Graduate assistants who need to review material or to master techniques ordinarily expected of persons assuming TA or RA duties would, in general, pursue such extra work outside of the normal hour limitation. In addition, the limitation on workload is intended as an average to be applied over an entire semester or an academic year.

   All policies concerning vacation, time-off, health insurance, and the like are addressed in the current collective bargaining agreement, copies of which are available.

   Teaching Assistants
   As a general "rule of thumb", 5 clock hours of preparation time are allotted for each hour of class time when a new course is being taught; 3 hours of "preparation time" are allowed if the assistant has taught the course before.

   The following are general guidelines. Variations to accommodate different enrollments and other College and course-specific factors are to be expected.

   

   General Guidelines

   1. A one-half time teaching assistant should teach 9 semester hours across an academic year.
      
   2. A one-half time teaching assistant should teach no more than 6 semester hours in any given semester.
      
   3. The teaching load should be no more than 3 semester hours in any semester in which the teaching assistant is teaching a course he/she has not taught before.
      
   4. If it becomes necessary to have a teaching assistant teach courses he/she has not taught before in both semesters of an academic year, the total teaching load in "Item a" above would be reduced from 9 to 6 semester hours.
      
   5. One-quarter time assistants should teach 3 semester hours each semester with some adjustment to be made if it is the first time he/she is teaching a course.

   It is important to stress that these are guidelines, not absolute rules; they can be adapted to accommodate special cases that might arise as a function of class size or special instructional needs. What accommodations can be made, however, will of necessity depend not only on what might be judged to be the "ideal" instruction but also on the reality of limited resources in the College. For example, contact hours for discussion leaders as compared to teaching assistants having full responsibility for a course are expected to be heavier.

4. Each graduate assistant's performance must be reviewed annually, no later than April 15th, by the faculty or staff supervisor and the departmental chairperson or appropriate administrator prior to a decision on renewal of the assistantship. This review should consider competence in performing the responsibilities of the assistantship. The substance of the review should be conveyed to the graduate assistant in a face-to-face meeting or in writing.

   In addition, the supervisor and administrator should consider the programmatic needs that the assistantship fills in the area. Although every attempt will be made to help eligible graduate assistants find support, funds are usually committed on an annual basis only, with no presumption of renewal. Being eligible for an assistantship does not guarantee that a student will receive an assistantship or an assistantship renewal.
   
   Usually, eligibility for renewal of College of Education graduate assistantships will conform to the following guidelines:
   

   1. Graduate students in a master's degree program will be eligible for two years total of College of Education Assistantship support.
      
   2. Graduate students in a doctoral degree program will be eligible for four years of College of Education assistantship support. However, students completing a masters and Ph.D. degree in the same program of study will be eligible for no more than five years of College of Education support from start to finish.
      
   3. Support received from other colleges does not affect eligibility for College of Education support.
      
   4. Where it is evident and is certified by the faculty advisor and the DEO that the recipient of a graduate assistantship has made acceptable progress toward an advanced degree, but circumstances beyond the immediate control of the student have created an extended completion date, and where it is in the student's and the College's best interest, the Administrative Council will review and advise and the Dean will decide whether to grant a one-year extension of eligibility.
      
      
5. To ensure that the conditions of the assistantship are followed, the DEO and the Office of the Dean monitor graduate assistantships. Offers of assistantships are to be made in writing to the student and should contain:
   
   1. Starting and termination dates
      
   2. A job description
      
   3. The amount of the stipend
      
   4. Designation of the supervisor
      
   5. The status of the graduate student with regard to the number of assistantship award renewals remaining, if specified
      
   6. Any contingencies affecting the award, for example, second semester of a teaching assistantship contingent on satisfactory performance in the first semester
      
   7. A copy of this policy and policies describing graduate student benefits
      
   8. Reference to the collective bargaining agreement as the governing agreement for assistantships.
      
      The student's written acceptance of the offer should indicate agreement with these conditions. The appropriate administrator and the Office of the Dean file appointment forms. They also file termination forms when the appointment is completed.
      
      
6. The stipend for graduate assistantships is established annually and is followed consistently. The stipends received by graduate assistants in the College of Education are generally not tax exempt.
   
   
7. Questions about these policies may be addressed to students' advisers, Departmental Executive Officers, or departmental and Dean's Office staff.