Per everyone's contract, GAs are committed to 20 hours of departmental service per week, in exchange for the vast fortunes heaped upon them. The weekly commitment is generally broken down as the following:
| Task (per week) |
Time (hours per week) |
|
1st Laboratory time |
3-4 |
|
2nd Laboratory time |
3-4 |
| Pre-/Post-Lab grading, preparations, etc. |
3-5 |
| Office Hours |
2 |
| Proctoring* |
1-2 |
| Prep work |
3-4 |
| Total |
20 |
* This is an estimate. Most weeks there will be no proctoring duties, while others may have 1-4 tests, so please sign up early for times and plan accordingly.
GA Attendance
Class meetings and laboratory prep meetings are mandatory for all GAs.On rare occasions, however, a student may have a conflict due to a conference, medical emergencies or extreme situations involving their research. Under these situations a GA can potentially get an “excused absence” from class or laboratory prep. If faced with an emergency situation, the student should contact both lab coordinator and grad coordinator as far in advance as possible. It is up to the lab coordinator and the graduate program director to determine if the conflict can be considered an excused absence. If a student is potentially missing a meeting of the laboratory class they have been assigned, they are responsible for finding another GA that is willing to cover their class on the proposed date. Missing any mandatory meetings that have not been excused can be grounds for losing a GA.
Office Hours
GAs are expected to conduct regular office hours during the semester. Typically, this entails one hour per lab, and thus two hours per week are typical. Your locations during these times should be clearly stated on your laboratory syllabus. Your office will be assigned at the Graduate Student Orientation.
Proctoring
Many of the courses necessitating GAs are rather large. Thus, all GAs are responsible for helping to proctor exams (handing out tests, watching for any potential cheating, collecting and alphabetizing tests, etc.). The office manager will collect the times and dates of large lecture classes, and post a list in the office. All GAs will select exam times from the list and are responsible for attending the exam times for which they signed-up.
GA Prep work
To run the labs in the department takes a tremendous amount of coordination and effort on everyone's part. Thus, a crucial component of GA responsibilities comes in the form of prep work for the upcoming week's labs. All GAs will be responsible for 3-4 hours of work, as designated by the respective lab coordinator.
GA Progress towards Degree
All GAs will meet with the graduate coordinator at the end of the semester to discuss academic standing and progress toward degree; examinations of course work (completed and remaining), thesis development and any general issues regarding progress toward degree.
GA Support
A full-time (9 credit hours per semester) graduate student who is making satisfactory progress and maintaining acceptable student evaluations will be guaranteed support for four consecutive (fall and spring) semesters. Maximum support as a Graduate Teachings Assistant (GA) is for six consecutive (fall and spring) semesters.
5th and 6th semester support requires:
- Letter of justification by student seeking continued support.
- Progress and recommendation from student’s graduate committee.
GA Semester End Assessments and Evaluations for Continued Funding
At the semester’s end, every student awarded a GA will have a meeting with the graduate coordinator to ensure excellence in graduate student scholarship, teaching and service and provide a mechanism for determining suitable progress for continued GA support. This meeting will draw upon the following forms to clearly delineate GA progress. The forms follow:
GA Progress Evaluation
This form will be completed by the graduate coordinator. It will draw upon the previous two documents, but also include a section on departmental citizenship, progress towards degree and academic performance. The following queries will be addressed:
- Is the student making satisfactory progress towards the completion of their degree, as outlined in the graduate student handbook?
- Is the student making satisfactory progress scholastically?
- Is the student an active, participating departmental member? This question relates to the following activities:
- Appearance at departmental functions (e.g., Thursday seminars)
- Availability for scheduled visiting scholars (e.g., lunches with invited speakers, job candidates, etc.)
- Assistance in departmental activities (e.g., helping faculty members with meetings, biology club, general participation in departmental functions
- Proctoring tests
- Prompt responses to departmental requests/concerns
This file will be integral in deciding whether a graduate student is fulfilling their contract and whether GA funding is appropriate after the typical 2 years. Further it will provide a mechanism for ensuring student compliance with rules and regulations requisite for continued funding. The graduate coordinator will construct a comprehensive document compiling all observations and assessments relating to these issues; this and all documents will be organized into a file and forwarded to the student, their mentor and the departmental chair. A typical file will have the following components:
- Summary of teaching letter
- Summary of service letter
- Scholastic, progress toward degree and citizenship aspect
- Recommendation to continue funding or not
GA Service Evaluation
This form will be completed by the laboratory coordinator to which the GA has been assigned (e.g. GBIO I, A&P I, Principles of Biology, etc.); the following queries will be addressed:
- Did the GA make all scheduled lab prep meetings?
- Did the GA carry out all prep duties?
- Was the GA available for office hours?
- Did the GA clean up after their labs?
- Did the GA fulfill all teaching responsibilities?
- Any additional comments or observations?
GA Teaching Evaluation
This will be a previously generated form that the lecture professor will utilize when they observe the graduate students at least once per semester. In addition, remarks pertaining to the promptness of grade submission will be included as comments.
