Graduate Assistantships - Information For Students

Graduate Assistants (GAs) are involved in work assignments that further the missions of the university, particularly its teaching and research missions, and provide opportunities to advance students’ academic experience in the discipline of their graduate program. GAs receive a modest term-based stipend as well as course tuition waiver(s) commensurate with the average weekly time commitment of their assistantship. GA appointments are highly competitive and vary by department/hiring unit. NEIU’s graduate assistant program is administered through the College of Graduate Studies and Research (CGSR).

There are three basic types of graduate assistantship:

• Graduate Research Assistant (GRA): GRAs are responsible for working on research or creative activities projects in collaboration with or under the direction of a faculty member. The Research and Creative Activities Graduate Assistantships (RCA-GAs) are all classified as GRAs, but are sponsored by the College of Graduate Studies and Research.

• Graduate Teaching Assistant (GTA): A Graduate Teaching Assistant (GTA) provides learning support in classrooms under the supervision of a university faculty member. Their primary duties are to enhance the quality of learning delivered to students in a specific class, and they are selected for their discipline-specific content knowledge, specialized skills, professional experience, and ability to provide instructional support to students.

• Pre-Professional Graduate Assistant (PPGA): Pre-professional Graduate Assistantships are disciplinary-specific apprenticeships during which the student becomes more effective as a member of their disciplinary field through formal mentorship. GA Tutors are classified as a specific type of PPGA.

Graduate Assistantships: who is eligible?

• Students must be admitted to a degree-seeking graduate program

(Graduate Students-at-Large and students in certificate, licensure or endorsement program are not eligible)

• Students are eligible for an assistantship upon admission to the College of Graduate Studies and Research (via Full or Conditional program admission). Continued employment as a GA requires that the student maintains good academic standing with at least a 3.0 cumulative graduate grade point average. 

• Students must be enrolled during the semester of the assistantship (for at least 1 credit hour).

• The length of assistantship awards may vary based on department and program needs. Hiring must be renewed each semester. Most assistantship appointments are either for one semester or for fall and spring semesters. A smaller number of summer assistantships are also available.

How to apply for a Graduate Assistantship?

Most GA positions are filled based on either program advisors or hiring supervisors hiring students who they selected directly. However, some GA hiring supervisors seek candidates for their positions from a list of applicants that is maintained by the College of Graduate Studies and Research. To be considered for open GA positions, eligible graduate students may submit an online application for Graduate Assistantship. Students on this list may be contacted by the hiring department when an opening that matches your skills, experience, and field of study becomes available.

Students may also contact their advisor to find out if there is an open graduate assistantship in their program.

Please note: The College of Graduate Studies and Research administers the hiring paperwork but does not make hiring decisions.

Graduate Assistantship Compensation 

Graduate Assistants may work either 10, 15, or 20 hours per week.

Please note: Graduate tuition waivers cover all tuition components (the resident portion, the non-resident portion, and differential tuition (if charged). They do NOT cover fees.