TA-GA Assignment Procedure

The Department of Chemistry (“Chemistry”) assigns teaching assistants (TAs) three times each year. The terms under which first-year graduate students are assigned TAs are outlined in the offer letters that Chemistry sends to them upon their admission to the program, and which they must sign their acceptance thereof prior to matriculation. Chemistry typically does not appoint any graduate assistants (GAs), so no policy on GA appointment is provided herein. Assignments of research assistants (RAs) in Chemistry are controlled by the principal investigators on the grants or accounts from which those RAs are paid. A 50% TA or RA are paid $2610.44/month (AY23-24).

The majority of Ph.D. students receive a TA or RA for every semester - including the summer - for their first five years in the Ph.D. program, but this support is not guaranteed beyond the first year and is stipulated on the student being in good academic standing. Furthermore, it is common for Ph.D. students to receive RA or TA support for several years beyond their fifth year, but their priority for support is reduced compared to students within five years of matriculation. Graduate students who have been accepted into the MS program are typically not promised to receive TAs.

The following describes the procedure for assigning Chemistry TAs and RAs. All PhD students must join a Chemistry faculty members’ research group in their first year to remain in good standing. Several months before the start of each semester’s appointment, in order to meet the 45-day advance appointment deadline, the Assistant to the Head sends a form to each Chemistry faculty member requesting information on how they wish that each of their students will be supported (i.e., as TA or RA) and at what level (ideally 50%, but much less frequently at 25% or 35%). Each faculty form must be returned to the Assistant Head with TA/RA requests by a specified deadline.

The priority for assigning TAs is as follows, from highest to lowest priority:

1. First-year Ph.D. students, even if not listed on a faculty form (as per their offer letters).
2. Continuing Ph.D. students with less than five years in the program, if TA support isrequested by a graduate advisor BEFORE the deadline designated by the department.
3. Continuing Ph.D. students with less than five years in the program if TA support isrequested by a graduate advisor AFTER the designated deadline.
4. Continuing Ph.D. students with more than five years in the program who are in goodstanding, have had a committee meeting, or have a scheduled defense date. Within thisgroup, higher priority will be given to requests made BEFORE the requested deadline.
5. First-year M.S. students, even if not listed on a faculty form.
6. Continuing M.S. students, if TA support is requested by a graduate advisor BEFORE thedesignated deadline.
7. Continuing M.S. students, if TA support is requested by a graduate advisor AFTER thedesignated deadline.
8. Unaffiliated continuing students after their first year of support, including Chemistry Ph.D.students pursuing their degrees under the supervision of faculty outside of Chemistry.
9. Other graduate students with no affiliation with Chemistry, but who have requested a TA.

The Department Head determines the maximum number of graduate students in a given faculty member’s group that can be assigned a TA, based upon uniform performance criteria and whether the faculty member is a pre-tenure assistant or tenured associate/full professor.

TAs are assigned to specific courses based on the schedules they provide, their prior experience and performance as TAs, and their academic expertise. For example, organic chemistry PhD students are often assigned to teach organic chemistry laboratories.