Handbook of Operating Procedures 9-2020

Teaching Assistants



Effective July 13, 2006
Executive Sponsor: Senior Vice Provost and Dean of the Graduate School
Policy Owner: Assistant Dean of the Graduate School
 

  1. Policy Statement

It is the policy of The University of Texas at Austin that individuals appointed as teaching assistants at UT Austin abide by the policies stated below.
 

  1. Reason for Policy

This policy provides for the administration of employment of individuals appointed to the position of teaching assistant.
 

  1. Scope & Audience

This policy applies to all individuals appointed as teaching assistants at UT Austin.

 

  1. Definitions (specific to this policy)

Administrative Unit:

An academic department or an academic program that exists outside of the department structure.

Teaching Assistant:

Teaching assistants are graduate students who help faculty with the conduct and delivery of courses. Services provided by teaching assistants include, but are not limited to, grading, monitoring, leading lab and/or discussion sessions, offering office hour assistance to students, and performing clerical tasks associated with course instruction. Teaching assistants are supervised by the course instructor of record and are subject to academic employment policies of the hiring unit.

Unit Administrator:

Refers to the head of an administrative unit, which could be the department chair for a department or the director of an academic program that exists outside of the department structure. Also referred to as the administrative supervisor.

 

  1. Website (for policy)

https://secure4.compliancebridge.com/utexas/public/getdoc.php?file=9-2020
 

  1. Contacts

CONTACT

DETAILS

WEB

Office of the Senior Vice Provost and Dean of the Graduate School

Phone: 512-471-4511

Website:

https://gradschool.utexas.edu/

Email: graduatedean@austin.utexas.edu
 
  1. Responsibilities & Procedures

 

  1. Qualifications

To be eligible for appointment as a teaching assistant a nominee must:
  1. Be a degree-seeking graduate student without existing admissions conditions imposed by the senior vice provost and dean of the Graduate School;
  1. Be in good academic standing and making satisfactory progress toward a graduate degree;
  1. Remain registered in courses that count toward the graduate degree for at least nine semester hours during each  spring and fall long term; and
  1. If holding an appointment for any summer term (first summer term, second summer term, nine-week summer term or summer term), must remain registered in courses that count toward the graduate degree for at least three summer hours during any term of the summer semester.

 

  1. Selection and Appointment

 

  1. Administrative units should establish a faculty committee to screen, rank, and make recommendations concerning the appointment or reappointment of teaching assistants.

 

  1. Notification to candidates for appointment/reappointment should be provided.

 

  1. All appointments of teaching assistants are subject to approval of the dean of the college or school and the senior vice provost and dean of the Graduate School.

 

  1. Each administrative unit within a college or school shall annually provide the dean with a report which sets forth the range of stipends, within the established salary scales, to be offered to new appointees and to persons being considered for reappointment as well as the basic logistical framework within which teaching assistants are employed by the administrative unit.

 

 

  1. Terms of Appointment
  1. Appointments of teaching assistants must be made on the basis of percent-time employment and only from teaching assistant accounts and other approved accounts. Appointments shall be made in accordance with the titles and definitions and within salary scales.
  1. Appointments should, in general, be made on a term-by-term basis and in accordance with the percentage of the full-time equivalent base. The period of appointment shall not exceed one academic year and shall terminate at the expiration of the stated period of appointment without notification of non-renewal. If an administrative unit determines that it is to the benefit of the institution, it may nominate a teaching assistant for reappointment.

 

  1. Duties of Teaching Assistants
  1. Teaching assistants may only be assigned duties that are adjunct to regular classroom instruction.
  1. All duties performed by teaching assistants shall be under the supervision and direction of a designated member of the faculty.
  1. Such duties may include hosting student practice sessions, leading discussion sessions, assisting in laboratories, leading recitation sessions, leading review sessions and similar activities
  1. In addition, teaching assistants may be assigned to hold office hours, hold student conferences, evaluate student work, and to perform similar common academic duties.
  1. Teaching assistants may not be assigned regular classroom instruction duties, nor may they serve as an instructor of record for any instructional activity.
  1. The dean of the college, in consultation with the administrative supervisors of units in which teaching assistants are employed, shall set the basic workload policy for teaching assistants within the college.
 
  1. Teaching Load
 
A teaching assistant holding a half-time appointment in any college or school of UT Austin will be expected to devote an average of twenty hours per week to their assigned duties. Appointments may not exceed an average of twenty hours per week during the first two long terms of graduate study at the  university and an average of thirty hours per week during subsequent long-terms.
 
 
  1. Supervision and Instruction of Teaching Assistant
  1. All teaching assistants shall be under direct and assigned supervision of a regular member of the faculty and shall regularly report on the conduct and performance of their duties to the supervising faculty. The supervising faculty shall, at the end of each  term, file with the administrative supervisor of the employing unit a written evaluation of the performance of teaching assistants under the supervising faculty’s direction. The evaluation shall become a permanent part of the teaching assistant’s personnel file.
  1. Instruction of teaching assistants shall be provided by the administrative unit, school or college employing them to prepare teaching assistants to carry out their assigned duties. Administrative units may require a special graduate course, 398T, or may design instruction that consists of ongoing meetings or individual faculty instruction. Instruction shall be designed to fit the nature of the assigned duties.

 

  1. Other Employment Information
  1. Teaching assistants are subject to the Rules and Regulations of The University of Texas System Board of Regents, the University, the Graduate School, the college/school, and administrative unit in which they hold employment. In the performance of their duties, they must abide by and adhere to the academic and instructional criteria and policies established by the administrative unit in which they render service.
  1. The Responsibilities, Rights, and Welfare of Graduate Student Academic Employees Committee (a standing committee of the General Faculty) serves in an advisory capacity for institutional policy and governance relating to the affairs of teaching assistants
  1. Teaching assistants, as student academic employees, are eligible:

 

  1. to participate in the University Group Insurance Program in accordance with the current eligibility criteria for the Program,

 

  1. to purchase parking permits in designated areas,

 

  1. to participate in certain other benefits in accordance with existing policy criteria,

 

  1. and may be eligible for tuition reduction benefits (see HOP 9-1120 - "Request for Exemption From Non-resident Tuition on the Basis of Employment or Military Assignment").

 

  1. Although they are not members of the faculty, teaching assistants are expected to conform to the same standards of conduct in the performance of their academic duties as are members of the faculty and shall respect the rights and opinions of students and uphold the academic standards of the University.
  1. Teaching assistant appointments do not provide for accrued vacation or sick leave entitlements or Teacher Retirement System membership. Time off due to illness or during academic breaks will be arranged in accordance with established practices of the hiring administrative unit, school or college.
 
  1. Reappointment

An administrative unit, school or college may reappoint a teaching assistant if it is determined that reappointment is to the benefit of the institution. Prior service does not guarantee availability of a teaching assistant position.

 

  1. Teaching assistants may be considered for reappointment if:

 

  1. they have, in the opinion of the administrative supervisor of the employing unit, provided satisfactory service; and

 

  1. they have met the scholastic requirements for eligibility set by the Graduate School and are certified as being in good academic standing and making satisfactory progress toward a graduate degree.


 

  1. Termination of Appointment
  1. Termination of a teaching assistant before the expiration date of the stated period of appointment will be only for good cause shown.
  1. A teaching assistant may seek redress of any grievance related to the terms and conditions of employment as provided for in the "Teaching Assistant and Assistant Instructor Grievance Procedures" (HOP 9-2050).
 
  1. Forms & Tools

http://www.utexas.edu/ogs/

http://www.utexas.edu/hr/student/compensation.html
 

  1. Frequently Asked Questions

None
 

  1. Related Information

None
 

  1. History

Modified: July 13, 2006
     Editorial revisions: January 17, 2024 
Next scheduled review date: January 2027


Previously HOP 8.01 and HOP 12.C.1