Graduate Assistants

Please review the Graduate Assistant positions for the 2013-2014 academic year.  All positions are pending budget approval for the FY 2014.  The application process is listed below the position descriptions.

Select positions listed below for further information.  The positions will have a link to open when the position description is included. 

Graduate Assistant Positions:

Advising Services *

Athletics *

Career Services *

College of Education *

Counselor Education *

Access Services *

Education *

English *

English Learning Center (ELC) *

Fitness *

Health Promotion/Health Services *

Housing & Residence Life *

Institutional Planning, Assessment and Research (IPAR)

International Services Office *

Nursing (Includes Doctor of Nursing Practice - DNP) *

Outreach and Continuing Education (OCED) *

Recreation, Tourism, and Therapeutic Recreation (RTTR) *

Special Education *

Student Life & Development *

Teaching & Learning Technology *

University Communications *

WSU Rochester Campus *

Listed above are the areas that currently have, or have previously employed, Graduate Assistants annually.  Please review the position descriptions, contact information, and availability.  If you are interested in applying for the position, please follow these steps (Blind applications will not be considered!):

• Contact the department chairperson or program director and ask if there is currently a position available.
• If there is a position available, schedule an interview.
• Bring a current résumé with you to the interview.
• If approved for the position, download the

Graduate Assistant Application form.  Fill out the form and submit the completed paperwork to the department/program to which you are applying.

 

Graduate Assistant Information

Definition and Qualifications

A graduate assistant is a student admitted to a graduate program for the purpose of earning a master’s, specialist, or doctoral degree, and hired to serve as a teaching, research, or staff assistant. To maintain your role as a GA, a GPA of 3.0 or better must be maintained throughout the term of appointment. Termination of the assistantship may occur at the end of the semester where the GPA falls below 3.0.

Graduate teaching assistants with responsibility for teaching all or parts of a course for credit and/or assigning grades must be directly supervised by a faculty member experienced in the teaching discipline, receive regular in-service training, and be evaluated periodically.

Graduate Assistant (GA) refers generally to all graduate students enrolled at WSU who are employed to assist a faculty or staff member in the areas of administration and research or to serve in some instructional capacity.

Categories of Graduate Assistant

(1) Graduate staff assistants provide assistance to administrative staff or that of a specific department within the university by collecting, ordering, and interpreting various kinds of administrative data. A GSA may, for example, serve as an assistant athletic coach, assist at registration, help with departmental exhibitions, or work on various special projects.  Additional activities may include attending seminars, doing library research, and holding conferences.

(2) Graduate research assistants assume research-oriented responsibilities such as library research, computer programming and analysis, fieldwork, laboratory experiments, scientific investigations, writing and editing material, and averaging and assigning grades.

(3) Graduate teaching assistants (GTA) serve an instructional role in a class or laboratory within a specific department, performing pedagogical (teaching) functions such as preparing lectures, conducting classes, constructing and grading tests, holding student conferences, and assigning course grades.

Application and Activation Process

All Graduate Assistant positions will be listed on the Graduate Studies webpage http://www.winona.edu/gradstudies/assistants.asp.  If the position is available, please contact the supervisor listed to inquire about the position.  If you are asked to interview for the position, you will need to download the application form from the Graduate Studies forms page at http://www.winona.edu/gradstudies/forms.asp and return the form to the supervisor listed.  When the applicant is hired, the supervisor will complete an Appointment form and forward the form to the Office of Graduate Studies for additional signatures.  After the form is routed to Student Payroll, the payroll manager will create a contract and notify the student to make an appointment to sign the contract and complete any additional hiring documentation.

After the hiring documentation is completed, the student's contract will be entered in student payroll and a bi-weekly rate is calculated. The student does not have to complete time sheets. The payroll system will automatically generate a payment every two weeks, based on the bi-weekly rate.  Graduate assistants are required to use direct deposit for their payroll checks.

If the GA is to receive tuition reimbursement as part of his or her compensation, a waiver will be processed after the drop-add period is completed for the semester.  If the assistantship is a staff position (GSA), as opposed to teaching or research, the amount of the reimbursement is considered taxable income. In these cases, once the waiver has been applied, this amount will be entered into student payroll and divided proportionately over the remaining pay periods in the semester and added to the student's wage as a taxable benefit. The student is not paid the waiver amount, but will be taxed on it over several pay periods. This will reduce the tax burden the student may incur at the end of the year if the waiver had to be added as one lump sum on the student's W-2 form.

Work Assignment and Compensation

When you serve as a GA, you must be enrolled as a degree seeking graduate student.  You must be enrolled for a minimum of 6 graduate credits per term if you have a full-time GA position and a minimum of 3 graduate credits per term if you are a part-time GA.  If you are paid an additional stipend to work as a GA in the summer term, these enrollments requirements will remain the same for the summer term.

(1) Full-time GA: 640 total hours -- $10,000/year compensation (or $5,000/semester) plus full tuition for up to 12 graduate credits/term.  Must be enrolled in a minimum of 6 graduate credits per semester.
(2) Half-time GA: 320 total hours -- $5,000/year compensation (or $2,500/semester) plus full tuition for up to 6 graduate credits/term.  Must be enrolled in a minimum of 3 graduate credits per semester.
* The GA must pay all student fees
** The graduate catalog states that permission must be given by the Director of Graduate Studies to exceed 12 graduate credits per semester and 9 graduate credits during summer.

If you have an assistantship for fall and/or spring terms only and wish to have tuition reimbursed for graduate credits taken the summer following your assistantship, you must choose to be paid over 12 months.  By selecting this 12-month pay option, your bi-weekly stipend payments will be spread out to include the summer term and your summer tuition will be reimbursed.  If you do not plan on taking summer graduate courses, please do not select the 12-month pay option.

Concurrent employment as a student help employee on campus, an adjunct faculty position, or other WSU classification will not be allowed during the period of the assistantship. Any exception must be pre-authorized, in writing, by your supervisor, your academic advisor and the Director of Graduate Studies. 

Appointment/Reappointment and Duration of Appointment

Graduate assistants are appointed annually and usually for two years.  A third year may be allowed with approval of the hiring department and the Director of Graduate Studies.

Any appointment may be curtailed, diminished, or terminated at any time for lack of funds; failure of the student to maintain satisfactory student status or to make appropriate progress toward the degree; no further need for the functions to be performed; incompetence or misconduct of the graduate assistant or fellow; or failure to complete the degree requirements.

A termination of appointment action is initiated by the chair of the department to which the graduate assistant is assigned. The chair meets with the graduate assistant and explains the causes of termination.

The chair forwards a letter of recommendation for termination of appointment to the Director of Graduate Studies. The letter explains the basis of the recommendation for termination. The Director of Graduate Studies reviews the recommendation for termination of appointment and may investigate the circumstances of the termination. After the review, the Director of Graduate Studies sends a recommendation regarding the termination to the Graduate Council.

Grievances in regard to termination shall follow the Appeals Procedure (see below).

A termination for budgetary considerations is not subject to the Official Handling of Complaints.

Supervision

Graduate assistants in academic departments must be assigned to and supervised by a full status member of the graduate faculty. Graduate staff assistants must be assigned to and supervised by a full-time professional employee with at least a master's degree or equivalent experience and expertise in the area of the assignment.

Health Insurance

Graduate assistants are not covered by the employee health insurance. Health insurance may be arranged through the WSU Student Health Services, which is available to all students.

Appeals Procedure

Winona State University graduate students have the right to appeal academic decisions. An unfavorable ruling at one level can be appealed to the next successive level. Wherever the student enters the appeals process, the direction of the communication line must be followed. At each level, the student must write a letter of appeal outlining the conflict and what process has been followed up to that point.

Following is the communication flow chart for appeals:
(1) Student's advisor
(2) Department chair
(3) Dean of the college
(4) Director of Graduate Studies
(5) Graduate Council
(6) Vice President for Academic Affairs