We prioritize funding for our doctoral students during the first three years of study, but these depend on department funding and satisfactory academic progress and are thus not guaranteed from year to year. In future years, research assistantships (RAs) or teaching assistantship (TA) might be available. RAs vary from year to year and are assigned by individual faculty members from their funded grants.
Student employment
Appointment as a teaching assistant (TA) or assistant instructor (AI) may involve assisting in academic or laboratory class preparation, in grading and lecture presentation, or in clinical supervision.
Appointment as a graduate research assistant (GRA) may involve research design, data collection and analysis, and manuscript preparation. The specific duties will be determined by the supervising faculty member based on the student's level of expertise. These assignments will partially meet the requirements for participation in teaching and research.
Conditions for Student Employment
To be employed as a teaching assistant, assistant instructor, graduate research assistant, tutor, academic assistant or assistant, graduate students at The University of Texas at Austin must:
- Be making satisfactory progress toward a graduate degree without existing conditional admission requirements;
- Remain registered for at least nine semester hours of coursework in long semesters.( Enrollment in three semester hours of coursework is required for students holding summer appointments);
- Maintain at least a 3.0 grade-point average; and
- Must not have more than two grades of X, I, NC, D, or F in any combination.
Special Requirements for Assistant Instructors
Students seeking an appointment as an assistant instructor must also meet the following requirements:
- Possess a master’s degree or an equivalent level of achievement in professional accomplishment and graduate study (30 hours, including 18 hours of credit in the subject to be taught); and
- Have credit for 398T plus one semester of employment as a teaching assistant; or
- Have one year of teaching experience at an accredited college or school. (A letter of verification from the former employer must be submitted to the Graduate School.)
Assistant instructors are employed to meet instructional needs at the undergraduate level, primarily in lower-division areas. Approval for an assistant to teach an upper-division course may be requested by petition to the Associate Dean of the Graduate School and must be approved before the assistant is assigned to the upper-division course.
OTHER FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES
Fellowships
The Graduate School at The University of Texas at Austin provides a number of fellowships and editorial assistantships in addition to coordinating many externally funded fellowships and awarding college and departmental fellowships based on nominations from departments.
Professional Development Awards
Professional Development Awards provide support for students to attend major professional meetings at which they present an original paper based on their research. The Graduate School allocates travel funds to each program at the beginning of each academic year.
Travel Awards
These awards provide partial support for students to attend professional meetings to present their research. Priority is given to doctoral students who are in candidacy and who can used attendance at the meetings to explore career opportunities. The recommended minimum award is $250 and the maximum awards allowed per trip is $1,000.
Awards not submitted by the appropriate deadlines will not be accepted. Students can be nominated for an award as soon as they have an accepted abstract.
Non-Resident Tuition Waiver
One half-time appointment (or 20 hours a week) as a TA, AI, or Graduate Research Assistant qualifies out-of-state residents and their spouses for resident tuition as long as their appointment is current. Under this provision, the tuition is the same as for a Texas resident.
Tuition Reduction Benefit
Students employed as teaching assistants (TAs), assistant instructors (AIs), and graduate research assistants (GRAs) are eligible for a tax-exempt Tuition Reduction Benefit related to their student academic employment. Please note: The Tuition Reduction Benefit REDUCES your tuition bill; it does not pay this amount to you. If you have a Zero balance tuition bill, you will not receive a tuition reduction benefit.
The assistance amount varies based on the number of hours of the appointment and the availability of funding, and the benefit is not always available to GRAs.
Student Employment Insurance & Benefits
Graduate students assigned to work in a student academic title for at least 20 hours a week for at least 4.5 months (135 calendar days) are eligible for the university’s employee group insurance benefits.
