GENERAL DUTIES AND QUALIFICATIONS OF ASEs (ACADEMIC STUDENT EMPLOYEES)


Teaching Titles:

TEACHING ASSISTANTS, TEACHING FELLOWS, ASSOCIATE INSTRUCTORS

A Teaching Assistant (TA) is a registered graduate student in full-time residence, chosen for excellent scholarship and for promise as a teacher. Various departments may have other criteria and these must be posted. A TA serves as an apprentice under the active tutelage and supervision of a regular faculty member. A 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 is not 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. A TA is responsible for holding discussion sections, labs, 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 his or her TAs, has been assigned. The instructor in charge of an undergraduate course shall be responsible for assigning the final grade in the course.

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. 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 Courses. Teaching Fellows should have at least two years of teaching experience.

An Associate In _______ is a registered graduate student who should be competent to work independently and without supervision to conduct the entire instruction of a lower division course. The minimal qualifications for appointment to the title Associate In _______ shall be possession of a Master's degree or equivalent training and at least one year of teaching experience. Instructors of record will normally receive a 50% appointment for a regular academic course.

The number of hours that a TA (or Teaching Fellow, or Associate In _______) works is determined by the percentage appointment. For example, a 25% appointment means the TA is not to be assigned more than an average of 10 hours worth of work per week. Most students are appointed 50% time (20 hours per week average). A 50% TA may expect to be assigned a workload of more than 20 hours in some weeks of the quarter. That TA may also be assigned fewer than 20 hours for some weeks. In no instance shall a TA be assigned more than 40 hours in any one week. The assigned workload of a 50% TA cannot exceed 220 hours for the quarter. The number of hours worked in excess of 20 hours per week may not total more than 50 hours per quarter. A TA or other ASE in a teaching title should not spend an inordinate amount of time serving as an instructor at the expense of his/her own studies.

General Duties for All Teaching Titles

To attend, to the extent required by the department, all meetings of the class in which s/he is doing laboratory work, section discussions, or grading of papers or exams.

To consult with the professor in charge of the course as to grading policies, course content, and procedures.

To attend all meetings of classes, sections, and laboratories for which s/he is personally responsible. Failure to meet regularly scheduled classes for which the TA is responsible constitutes a dereliction of duty and may be grounds for termination of employment. If there is a good reason for absence, the TA must inform the department and arrange for a substitute.

To make proper and thorough preparation for each class, lab, or section for which s/he is responsible.

To assign the amount of written work proper to the lab or section for which s/he is responsible, and to read and grade the written work thoroughly and as rapidly as possible.

To post at least one office hour per week per section or laboratory, depending on the course, and to hold those office hours without fail.

To report grades accurately and on time to the instructor in charge of the course.

To give grade books to the instructor in charge at the end of his/her term of appointmnt.

To maintain a professional attitude toward all students in his/her classes at all times. The ethical standards of behavior for faculty instructors apply equally to Teaching Assistants.

 
Minimum Qualifications of All Teaching Titles

Graduate students in teaching titles must meet the following minimum criteria:

3.00 GPA;

Fewer than 8 units of Incomplete grades;

Any student whose native language is not English must pass a test of spoken English (SPEAK Test) before performing duties as a TA;

Be advanced to candidacy within 12 quarters after entry if a PhD candidate;

Be making acceptable progress toward the degree (For these purposes, acceptable progress for a PhD student is represented by the normative time to degree for the particular program plus one year. For most Master's students, acceptable progress is represented by enrollment for not more than two years.)

A PhD student who has not advanced to candidacy within 12 quarters or is beyond time limits for acceptable progress must submit a "Report of Progress and Timetable" which will include a statement from the departmental graduate advisor stating that the student is continuing to make progress toward the degree.

Exceptions to the minimum qualifications may be sought by a department on behalf of a TA. Exceptions may be granted at the sole discretion of the Graduate Division and the Graduate Dean. Please note: Exceptions are granted to departments. ASEs should not petition the Graduate Division directly for exceptions.

Full-Time Enrollment

Once appointed as TAs students are expected to continue to adhere to the above requirements and to enroll and complete 12 units of course work or research.

Working More Than 50% Time: Graduate students may not be employed more than 50 percent time during the academic year in any combination of appointments. During quarter breaks and in the summer they may be employed full-time.

Length of Service: The length of service for a Teaching Assistant or Associate-In is limited to 12 quarters. However, exceptions can be made by the Graduate Dean upon written request by the department. No one may serve as a TA for more than 18 quarters of service.

READERS

The title Reader is given to a student employed for his/her ability to render diverse services as a "course assistant," which will normally include the grading of student papers and examinations. A Reader will not be given the responsibilities customarily accorded a Teaching Assistant.

Minimum Qualifications for Readers

Readers will usually be graduate students; but qualified undergraduate students may be so employed, especially when graduate students are not available. Professional readers, not enrolled as students, may be employed to meet special needs, but only on an hourly basis.

Readers should have maintained at least a 3.0 grade-point average in their previous academic work, and should have taken and received at least a "B" grade in the course or equivalent in which they are serving.

For students who have completed at least one full year of graduate work, the record of the year just past will be substituted for the undergraduate record. The appointing department will have the responsibility of ascertaining that these standards are maintained.

TUTORS

A Tutor is an individual who assists students in the understanding of subject matter independent of and supplementary to scheduled class instruction. Tutors may work on a one to one basis or in a group setting.

Minimum Qualifications for Tutors

Tutors hired by the Learning Center must be undergraduates who hold sophomore status, with a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0, and a B+ or higher in the subject to be tutored and strong interpersonal skills. For a position as a Tutor in the Learning Center please contact Dein McCoy, x23721 or Dein.McCoy@ucr.edu. Exceptions may be granted at the sole discretion of the Director of the Learning Center.

Nondiscrimination Policy

The University does not discriminate against any ASE on the basis of race, color, religion, marital status, national origin, ancestry, sex, sexual orientation, physical or mental disability, medical condition, HIV status, status as a covered veteran, age, citizenship, political affiliation or Union activity. Medical condition means any health impairment related to or associated with a diagnosis or cancer or health impairments related to genetic characteristics.