Conditions of Service

1. Satisfactory progress, as defined by the college or department, must be made toward the degree.
2. The minimum full-time course load per semester is nine semester hours for master's students and nine semester hours for doctoral students. (See "Course Load" for summer requirements.)
3. For summer, the student must be registered for a minimum of six credit hours during any combination of summer sessions.
4. Tuition for any additional credit hours over the minimum of nine (or six) will be charged to the student, who will be responsible for payment.
5. Graduate assistant employment must be substantively related to the student's major field of study.
6. Graduate student assistants must maintain a cumulative grade point average of 3.00 (A=4.00).
7. Graduate student assistants are normally not allowed to teach courses which carry graduate credit and are not permitted to enroll in courses for which they are assigned assistantship responsibilities.
8. International graduate student assistants must successfully complete a speaking test of English before assuming actual teaching duties. The graduate student assistant must achieve a satisfactory score on such a test before assignment of teaching duties. (See section on “Qualifications for Appointment.”)
9. The normal appointment for a graduate student assistant is a full-time Equivalency (FTE) work load of 50%. This entails a work load which may not, on the average, exceed 20 hours per week, including time spent in preparation, in the classroom or laboratory, in reading papers and examinations, or any combination of these or other assigned activities.
10. In rare instances, assistants may receive up to 67 percent appointment with the stipend increased
    proportionately and the required course load decreased proportionately. This will be acceptable if justified on an individual basis, if understood to involve an exceptional set of circumstances, and with the pre-approval of the college dean and the Dean of Graduate & Professional Studies. [Note: An overload appointment (> .50 FTE) may jeopardize the Graduate Assistant Tuition Fellowship (GATF).] PLEASE NOTE: International Students are NOT allowed to carry an overload during the fall/spring semesters.
11. Upon audit, full-time graduate students who are found to hold unauthorized overload appointments greater than .50 FTE will have their GATF revoked retroactively.
12. Generally, students will be approved for overload appointment if the appointment is for a short duration and does not result in a total employment FTE over .67 FTE.
13. International students on F-1 or J-1 visas may not hold overload appointments during fall or spring semesters while classes are in session.
14. All requests for overloads must be made before the overload activity begins, or a memo of justification will be required from the college dean.
15. Requests for an overload must be made on a Graduate Assistant Overload Request Form.
16. Exceptions to overload procedure when an overload request form is not required include all one-time, single payments less than $301; activities include proctoring an exam, payment for participation at an athletic function, participation in a research study, and participation in a special event.
17. Other exceptions to overload procedure not requiring the form include all Instructional Television (ITV) or Online course delivery (DE) assignments.
18. Graduate student assistants will not be assigned as instructors of record (i.e., having full responsibility for a course) until they have earned a master's degree or its equivalent, have completed 18 graduate semester credit hours in their teaching field, or are enrolled in a doctoral program. Exceptions must have the approval of the Dean of Graduate and Professional Studies.
19. While graduate student assistants need to have access to space and facilities to carry out their assignments effectively, it must be recognized that from department to department, there will be constraints that limit these privileges. The following privileges, however, can be listed:
    1. In addition to the services and facilities available to them as students, graduate student assistants will be issued specific documentation or a faculty/staff identification card entitling them to appropriate parking, library and computer privileges, bookstore discounts, and access to any other privileges that might accrue in the future, and
    2. graduate student assistants will have access to a desk and chair, file space, mailbox, and appropriate supplies for the duties assigned. Department conditions allowing, they should have access to a computer, duplicating equipment, and a telephone.
20. Students who drop classes or otherwise fail to maintain the minimum registration requirements, or who do not meet all of the criteria for eligibility throughout the duration of the semester will have their GATF revoked retroactively and will be billed for designated tuition.