Assistantships {See also Graduate Assistantship Administration}
A number of departments offer graduate assistantships to carefully selected students. The primary goal of an assistantship is to facilitate progress toward the graduate degree by providing work experience in a profession under the supervision of a faculty mentor, thus, as a graduate assistant, you are both a student and employee.

Types of Graduate Assistantships
Depending upon the needs of the academic units, available funds, and the qualifications of the individual graduate student, three types of master's and doctoral assistantships may be offered. The duties of a particular assistantship can be and most often are a combination of the types of duties listed below.

• Teaching Assistantship - A T.A. Works with students in a specific course or laboratory to provide support for the faculty member in charge, and, in some cases, to teach the course as the primary instructor.
• Research Assistantship - A R.A. normally is employed by the principal investigator of a funded research project or may be employed by an academic department in the pursuit of its broader research mission. The R.A. will be assigned a range of duties, such as library searches, fieldwork, laboratory experiments, and preparation of reports. Work on a research project often leads to a thesis or dissertation or a professional presentation or publication, and provides long-range direction for the student's development as a scholar.
• Administrative Assistantship - A G.A. works with the administrative staff of a department, college, or campus office primarily in gathering, organizing, and analyzing information.

Stipends, Assistantship Duration, and Insurance
The stipends vary according to the major and extent of the assignment. Graduate assistants assigned at 50% FTE (50% FTE = a full graduate assistantship) are expected to serve 20 hours per week in the department to which they are assigned. Those assigned to other percentages are expected to work a proportionate number of hours per week. Graduate assistantships are usually limited to four semesters (except for the Ph.D., Ed.D., and M.F.A. programs). Graduate Assistants appointed at the 50% FTE are eligible for medical insurance coverage by paying one-half of the premium for employee only coverage or a proportionate rate for optional coverage, such as employee and family. See the Office of Human Resources for additional details.

Payment Schedule for Graduate Assistantship Stipends

Fall Semester - Four (4) equal installments to be released on the first University workday of October, November, December and January.

Spring Semester - Five (5) installments, the first and the fifth each covering 1/8th of the spring stipend to be released on the first University workday of February and June and three (3) equal installments each covering 2/8th of the spring stipend to be released on the first workday of March, April and May.

Questions - If you have any questions regarding the gross amount of your stipend, contact the Graduate Office at (936) 468-2807. If you have any questions regarding net pay or deductions, contact Payroll at (936) 468-2303.

How To Apply for an Assistantship
If you are interested in a graduate assistantship, you should contact the appropriate academic department well in advance of the semester in which you are interested in the assistantship.

Employment
In addition to graduate assistantships, numerous other jobs are available to graduate students both on and off campus. Jobs are posted on the bulletin board located in the Student Employment Center and online.

Student Employment Center
Location: Rusk Building, Room 301
PO Box 13032, SFA Station
Nacogdoches, Texas 75965
Phone: 936.468.6637

Federal Work Study
Many students take advantage of the Federal Work Study Program, in which students are awarded money as part of their financial aid package that they can earn through an on-campus job. In order to qualify for the program you must demonstrate financial need (See Financial Aid and Scholarships), maintain satisfactory performance in your studies, and meet varied time and work load requirements in departments and divisions across the campus. Both the Financial Aid Office and the Student Employment Center can provide initial information about the program.

Payroll Information
If you are receiving an official salary from the university as a graduate assistant or student worker, it is very important that you sign all of the necessary payroll papers in your department. Necessary information and forms for payroll and insurance must be completed and forwarded to Human Resources and business offices in a timely fashion to ensure payment on schedule. All work payments are electronically transferred to your bank of choice through the business office.