Academic Student Employees (TAs/CAs, GSIs, Readers/Tutors)

Teaching Assistants, Course Assistants, Graduate Student Instructors, Readers, and Tutors are covered by the UAW collective bargaining contract.

Teaching Assistants/Course Assistants

Teaching Assistant (TA)

A Teaching Assistant is a registered graduate student, chosen for excellent scholarship and for promise as a teacher, and serving an apprenticeship under the active tutelage and supervision of a regular faculty member.

• Undergraduate students who perform TA work are also covered by the ASE union contract, and therefore must be appointed as TA’s (not Course Assistants). They are paid at the TA salary rate and are eligible for tuition/fee remission, but are not eligible for GSHIP (Graduate Student Health Insurance Program).
• Departments need to get the Graduate Division and CEP’s approval to hire an undergraduate TA.

Course Assistant (CA)

Non-students performing TA work are appointed as Course Assistants. Departments need to get the Graduate Division’s approval to hire a CA. CA’s may be appointed only when there is not a qualified graduate student available. A “more qualified” CA is not a reason.

TAs/CAs must be paid at the salary point associated with their experience level, which is reassessed every quarter. 

Note: ASEs with eligible appointments totaling 25% or more are entitled to tuition and fee remission.

Procedures

By delegation of the dean’s authority, department chairs/program directors hold authority for approving and providing “written notice of appointment” to TA/CA.

1. PERSONNEL ANALYST notifies the department that the InfoReady TA form and the TA/CA Support List are available about two months prior to the start of the quarter.
2. DEPARTMENT submits InfoReady form to send students an offer letter. In addition to the offer letter the following forms need to be provided to the TA/CA:
1. InfoReady TA Appointment Guide
2. TA/CA Description of Duties (DOD)
3. DEPARTMENT completes the TA/CA Support List by downloading the report from InfoReady and adding the TAs/CAs to the Support List spreadsheets. Instructions can be found here. 
1. Approvals: In addition to completing the TA/CA Support List, if you are hiring anyone who falls into any of the below categories please email your Personnel Specialist with the appropriate approval.
1. Graduate Students: when exceeding 50% time – Graduate Division
2. Undergraduate Students: CEP and Graduate Division
3. Course Assistants: Graduate Division

Note: Summer TA requests are processed through Summer Session.

Graduate Student Instructors

“Graduate student instructor” (GSI) refers to a graduate student having primary responsibility for the teaching of a course, either a Teaching Fellow or Associate Instructor. They are not just the Teaching Assistant for the course. 

GSIs are normally hired at 50% if teaching a regular 5-unit course. May be appointed for less than 50% (e.g., when co-teaching) or for more than 50% when the course carries a heavier workload (e.g., has a lab component). Departments must obtain Graduate Division approval for appointments that exceed 50%.

GSIs must be paid at the salary point associated with their experience level, which is reassessed every quarter. 

Note: ASEs with eligible appointments totaling 25% or more are entitled to tuition and fee remission.

Procedures

• DEPARTMENT submits the GSI Request Form via CARS to the Committee on Courses of Instruction (CCI) for undergraduate courses or submits the GSI Request Form to the Graduate Council (GC) for graduate courses. 

1. DEPARTMENT receives final decision email from CCI/GC and forwards approval to their Personnel Analyst with the following information. 
1. FOAPAL
2. Percent time of appointment 
3. Salary point (for Associate Instructors)
4. Building and room number for office hours
2. PERSONNEL ANALYST sends the GSI an appointment letter from the Dean.

Note: Summer GSI requests are processed through Summer Session.

Readers/Tutors

Readers and Tutors can be a student or non-student.

Reader

A Reader provides diverse course-related services, which will normally include the grading of student papers and examinations. A Reader shall not be given the responsibilities customarily accorded a Teaching Assistant.

View the Reader Description of Duties Form

Tutor

A Tutor works with individual students or small groups of students to assist them in understanding course concepts, discovering solutions to problems, modeling study strategies, developing methods for independent work and preparing for upcoming exams. A Tutor shall not be given the responsibilities customarily accorded a Teaching Assistant.

View the Tutor Description of Duties Form

Procedures

The Division will provide departments with a template appointment letter quarterly, which can be found in the Academic Student Systems Google Drive.

1. DEPARTMENT sends the reader/tutor an appointment letter. In addition to the appointment letter the following forms need to be provided to the Reader/Tutor:
• Description of Duties (DOD): Faculty supervisors should be copied on the appointment letter and Description of Duties form so that they know what the appointees are being told regarding their duties.
2. DEPARTMENT completes a Reader/Tutor Application form for each reader or tutor. Please follow these instructions for completing the application form via DocuSign. The form will automatically be routed to the reader/tutor, department, and academic personnel representative.
3. READER/TUTOR should contact the academic personnel representative listed on the application form, who will determine what additional information may be needed (e.g., employment forms to be completed, instructions on how to use CruzPay, work-study information, etc.).

Reader/Tutor Timesheets

It is the Reader/Tutor’s responsibility to submit timesheets on a bi-weekly basis via CruzPay. Readers/Tutors will receive email notifications from CruzPay prompting them to submit timesheets at the end of the bi-weekly pay period. 

• Biweekly Student CruzPay Quick Start Guide

Note: Summer Reader/Tutor requests are processed through Summer Session.

Salary Rates

Check out the salary scales to find the current salary rates for Academic Student Employees.

Percent Time

During academic sessions, graduate students may not be employed in any capacity by the University beyond a maximum of 50% time. Exceptions to this are carefully granted. Federal regulations prohibit the employment of International Graduate Students in excess of 50% time during the academic year.

• 50% Work Overage Request

Leave Policy

Salaried ASEs (Teaching Assistants/Course Assistants and Graduate Student Instructors) are eligible for leave in accordance with the collective bargaining agreement. Leave should be requested and approved by the supervisor in advance of use. For more information about the types of leave, please refer to the Leave Reporting Overview. 

Leaves of one full day or more will be reported in CruzPay and/or on the Non-CruzPay Leave Reporting Form. Salaried ASEs will receive email notifications from CruzPay, prompting them to submit timesheets at the end of each month. They will submit a blank timesheet if they did not take any leave that month.

• Monthly Employees CruzPay Quick Start Guide

New Hires

Please inform all employees that they cannot work until employment forms have been signed, and verify that this has happened before scheduling them to work.

We cannot emphasize this enough. Not completing employment forms prior to beginning work creates additional paperwork and expense for the University to issue a special “damage payment” check, may affect when the employee receives his/her first paycheck, and results in inaccurate reporting of earnings for tax purposes (work performed prior to signing employment forms will not be reported as wages.