Graduate students look for money, opportunities

Brains ache during this time in the semester, and with graduation only a semester away for some, it’s a wonder how students put themselves through even more work. However, students who decide to further their education can gain benefits if they choose to become a graduate assistant.

Graduate assistants are used in nearly all departments that offer graduate programs. A graduate assistant may be a teaching assistant or a research assistant, not to be confused with an undergraduate teacher’s assistant who earns internship credits within his or her discipline.

Graduate assistants are selected from the entire body of graduate students. To be a graduate student, he or she must be accepted into the Graduate College and maintain a GPA of 3.0 or higher. Graduate assistants are generally full-time students who get paid for their services, whether they carry out research, grade papers, or teach labs.

Payment varies across departments and depends on the funding source, but generally a master’s student receives a stipend of $7,000 to $12,000 per academic year while a doctoral student receives a stipend up to $22,000 per academic year.

A stipend is simply payment to the student for their services so they are supported financially while they finish their studies.

In addition, graduate students commonly receive a fee waiver. Sometimes a student will receive a fee waiver without a stipend, but it is more common to receive the full package.

Last year, BSU awarded $2,217,000 in support for graduate assistant programs, which paid for stipends and fee waivers.

Research assistants are generally awarded the stipend and fee waiver throughout the research grant as long as they show satisfactory progress. Teaching assistants, on the other hand, must reapply every year.

Currently, there are 174 graduate assistants on campus. The graduate, research, and teaching assistant annual report for 2000-2001 revealed a higher percentage of females in the program, nearly 66 percent. The departments with the most graduate assistants for the 2000-2001 academic year were Education, English, and Geosciences. Graduate assistants are only used in departments that offer graduate programs.

Graduate students are not required to participate in graduate assistance programs. “Becoming a graduate assistant is considered an honor,” said Jack Pelton, dean of the Graduate College. The application process is competitive, although some professors do recruit teaching assistants or research assistants. The purpose for the graduate assistance program, according to Pelton, is broken down into three key points. First, it provides financial support to the student so they may focus on full-time studies. Second, it assists the university, by helping the professors and achieving university research goals. Finally, it is part of the education program that provides good experience to benefit the students.

Tammy Sands

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