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VIII. Graduate Student Employment Appointments

Information on Graduate Student Employment Appointments

Graduate student employment provides the single most common source of UCSC graduate student support. It also constitutes an important aspect of graduate training under the supervision of UCSC faculty, researchers, lecturers, and/or other academic professionals. All graduate students who receive academic employment positions must be enrolled graduate students.

Eligibility

To be eligible for any academic employment, graduate students must be:

• Currently registered and in good academic standing. Students on Filing Fee status are not eligible for academic employment appointments.

• Chosen for academic employment on the basis of high scholastic standing.

• Certified as having language proficiency in spoken English if their native language is not English.

Terms and Conditions

Appointment or reappointment as student employees may be for a period of one year or less. Graduate students holding academic employment appointments should be under the supervision of a UCSC faculty member or researcher. Graduate students in teaching appointments may not supervise or evaluate other graduate students.

Students who are appointed to Associate In_, Teaching Fellow and Teaching Assistant titles fall under an agreement between The Regents of the University of California and the Association of Student Employees, International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace and Agricultural Implement Workers of America (UAW), and AFL-CIO pursuant to the provisions of the Higher Education Employer-Employee Relations Act (HEERA). Departments are required to post on the campus web site vacancies in these titles.

50% Employment

During academic sessions, graduate students may not be employed in any capacity by the University above 50% service time. The purpose of the University-wide policy is to limit the amount of time graduate students spend on University activities that do not lead directly to the successful completion of their academic programs. Exceptions are carefully granted; experience has shown that service obligations in excess of 20 hours per week, on average, generally have an adverse effect on a student's academic progress. Federal regulations prohibit the employment of International Graduate Students in excess of 50% time during the academic year.

Four Year Rule

The total length of time a student may hold any one or a combination of the following titles may not exceed four years (12 academic quarters): Reader, Teaching Fellow, Teaching Assistant, Associate In__. System-wide regulation does not permit graduate student appointment in the titles above beyond 18 academic quarters.

The Training of Teaching Assistants

The Graduate Division encourages all departments to train graduate students to teach and serve as Teaching Assistants (TAs). Departments may promote professional preparation of their students by offering classes, colloquia, and workshops to ensure effective teaching and professional development. All departments should ensure that students are well-prepared to assume the responsibilities for teaching undergraduates. In addition, first-time TAs are required to attend orientations held prior to the start of the fall quarter.

Graduate Student Health Insurance Program (GSHIP)

All graduate students are assessed a quarterly fee for mandatory Graduate Student Health Insurance Program (GSHIP) unless the student has opted out of the program with the Cowell Health Center. Students obtain waivers by demonstrating to Cowell Health Center that they have comparable coverage under another health insurance policy. Teaching Assistants, Teaching Fellows, Associates In, and Graduate Student Researchers who have appointments of 25% time or greater will have the fee covered for them either by UCSC or by their hiring grant/PI for each quarter of their appointment. GSHIP provides worldwide coverage and applies in summer if a graduate student is enrolled in the program during the previous spring quarter. 

Graduate Student Researcher (GSR) Appointment Title

A Graduate Student Researcher (GSR) is a full-time registered UCSC graduate student appointed to conduct  research under the direction of a faculty member, researcher, or other authorized Principal Investigator. GSR appointments are typically made at ≤50% time during the academic year, and up to 100% during summer quarter.

Terms and Conditions (GSR)

Students who are appointed as GSRs fall under an agreement between The Regents of the University of California and the Association of Student Employees, International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace and Agricultural Implement Workers of America (UAW), and AFL-CIO pursuant to the provisions of the Higher Education Employer-Employee Relations Act (HEERA).

GSRs may not be assigned teaching, administrative, or general assistance duties. No GSR may be employed in any capacity by the University beyond a maximum of fifty percent service time during an academic quarter without permission from the Graduate Division. Graduate Student Researchers may work more than half time between quarters (including summer) without an exception provided they do not exceed 100% for the payroll term. A continuing graduate student must be registered in the previous spring quarter to be eligible for a summer GSR appointment. The Dean of Graduate Studies must approve all exceptions to appointment criteria.

Fee and Tuition Remission for GSRs

Graduate Student Researchers (GSRs) qualify for full fee and tuition remission if they are appointed for at least 25%, in all GSR appointments combined, over the three months of the quarter. Full fee and tuition remission includes the payment of fees, health insurance for eligible students, and nonresident tuition if applicable. Fee remission for Professional Degree Supplemental Tuition (PDST) is not covered by this policy.

These benefits must be paid from the same funding source that pays the student’s GSR salary. Fellowship funds may not be used for this purpose when a student is supported as a GSR. The cost of these benefits will be charged to the funding source quarterly. Please note, if a student’s fees/health insurance/nonresident tuition are being paid by an external funding agency (e.g., foreign government, private agency), they are not eligible for additional fee remission benefits as part of a GSR appointment.

Teaching Assistant (TA) Appointment Title

A Teaching Assistant (TA) 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. Students on Filing Fee or In-Absentia status are not eligible for TA appointments.

Terms and Conditions for TAs

Divisional Deans, acting upon nominations made by department chairs, are authorized to appoint TAs. The Dean of Graduate Studies must approve all exceptions to TA appointment criteria.

The selection, supervision, and training of all TAs are important responsibilities of the department. All candidates for appointment and reappointment should be subjected to careful review and recommendation.

The TA is not responsible for the instructional content of a course, for selection of student assignments, for planning of examinations, or for determining the term grade for students. A TA should not be assigned responsibility for instructing the entire enrollment of a course or for providing the entire instruction of a group of students enrolled in a course. The TA is, instead, responsible for the conduct of recitation, laboratory, or quiz sections under the active direction and supervision of a regular member of the faculty to whom final responsibility for the course’s entire instruction, including the performance of TAs, has been assigned.

Fee and Tuition Remission for TAs

Teaching Assistants whose appointments are at least 25% time qualify for full fee remission and payment of health insurance.

Financial Aid Emergency Advance

The Financial Aid Emergency Advance is a resource available to assist UCSC students experiencing temporary difficulties meeting their financial obligations due to a delay in the disbursement of their financial aid. The Financial Aid Emergency Advance is made against yet-to-be disbursed current quarter institutional, state and federal funds. Approved advances are typically for small amounts- usually less than $500- and are expected to normally be repaid within 20 days. Funds are meant to be used for educational expenses included in the cost of attendance (such as tuition, fees, food, housing, etc.). See more information at the UCSC Financial Aid office website.

The Associate In__ Title

An Associate In__ is a registered graduate student who has been chosen because of competence to conduct the entire instruction of a group of students in a lower division course under the general supervision of a regular faculty member. Students on Filing Fee or In-Absentia status are not eligible for Associate In__ appointments.

Terms and Conditions for Associates In__

Minimum qualifications for this position require the possession of a master’s degree or equivalent training and at least one year of teaching experience. All Associate In__ appointments require the review and approval of the Graduate Dean.

Fee and Tuition Remission for Associates In ______

Associates In__ whose appointments are at least 25% time qualify for full fee remission and payment of health insurance.

The Teaching Fellow Title

A Teaching Fellow is a registered graduate student in full-time residence who has advanced to candidacy for the doctorate, or otherwise has achieved appropriate professional maturity, and who has been chosen because of competence to conduct the entire instruction of a group of students in a lower division course under the general supervision of a regular faculty member. All Teaching Fellow appointments require the review and approval of the Graduate Dean.

Terms and Conditions for Teaching Fellows

(1) Advancement to candidacy for the doctorate, and

(2) At least two years of teaching experience (including that of a teaching assistantship) in or outside the University.

(3) If the appointment is to a teaching fellowship in a professional school, the following conditions may be substituted for those stated in (1) and (2) above:

(a) A Master’s degree in the field offered by the professional school, and

(b) At least two years of teaching or appropriate professional experience.

Subject to the general supervision of a faculty member designated in catalog and published schedules as “in charge” of the course, a Teaching Fellow should be competent to provide the entire instruction of a lower division course to a group of students, and normally should be given such assignments. Assignment to conduct instruction in an upper division or graduate course or course section may not be made except with the approval of the Committee on Educational Policy or Graduate Council.

Fee and Tuition Remission for Teaching Fellows

Teaching Fellows whose appointments are at least 25% time qualify for full fee remission and payment of health insurance.