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Everything You Need to Know About Graduate Assistantships
Graduate assistantships are exciting opportunities to earn money in college while making connections and obtaining skills in your field. Students with graduate assistantships form close relationships with professors and meet other professionals in their line of study. You may even graduate as a published author in your field.
Here is everything you need to know about graduate assistantships. We’ll start by comparing the different types of assistantships. Then we’ll go over all of their benefits and drawbacks. Finally, we’ll guide you in the right direction to get hired.
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Types of graduate assistantships
Graduate assistantships can take several different forms. Depending on your intended profession, some positions will be a better fit than others. Here, we’ll contrast the responsibilities and benefits of each position.
Teaching assistant
Teaching assistants help professors with the day-to-day operation of an undergraduate course. This can include:
- Giving lectures to supplement the main course lectures
- Grading papers
- Assisting with curriculum design
- Holding office hours where students in a course can ask questions
Teaching assistantships are a great fit for students who are considering continuing in academia. Students who graduate with teaching experience under their belt will have a huge advantage in pursuing a teaching position. But teaching assistantships also have further-reaching applications. Teaching a course requires a diverse skill set, and students can apply their experience to a wide variety of professions.
If you are considering a teaching assistantship, it’s a good idea to look into the responsibilities of the specific position.
Related: Top scholarships for teachers
Research assistant
Research assistants help professors with research projects they are undertaking. Professors have limited time to pursue their own research, which makes research assistants so crucial. As a research assistant, you won’t have any facetime with your professor’s students. You’ll only be in contact with your professor and anyone else they are working on the research with. Research assistantships vary in their duties based on the field of study; general duties may include:
- Combing and summarizing relevant articles and firsthand studies
- May help write the actual paper that the professor will publish
- May assist in field studies or experiments
Research assistantships can be a huge asset on your resume after graduation. Research assistants demonstrate exceptional writing, research, and collaboration skills. In collaborative studies, they also have the opportunity to network with people in their field. This can include other professors, researchers, publishers, and more.
Other assistantships
Some schools offer other graduate assistantships that serve a more general function. Other graduate assistants may help coordinate campus life or help with clerical work. These assistantships vary more widely than teaching and research assistantships. However, they often still help form close relationships with school officials.
Students interested in logistical, planning, or office work may pursue other graduate assistantships. They can be a great opportunity to accrue work experience at a respected institution. Students who are interested in working for their college after graduation should definitely look into a graduate assistantship.
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Benefits of graduate assistantships
Graduate assistantships come with a host of benefits. They are a great opportunity to:
- Establish relationships with professors and network with other professionals in your desired field
- Earn money while also being in school to help keep the cost of grad school down and avoid taking out loans
- Deepen your understanding of your field and gain valuable experience that you can use in future jobs
There are more benefits than just the ones listed above, but these are just a few that we wanted to highlight. If a graduate assistantship sounds like something you might be interested in, you should look into them and assess what other benefits they may offer you! No matter what type of assistantship you take, graduate assistantships look great on resumes and will tell a lot about who you are!
Read more: How to complete the FAFSA for graduate school
Drawbacks of graduate assistantships
Although graduate assistantships are a great opportunity for many students, they are not always the right fit. Graduate assistantships can vary widely based on the professor and school that offer them.
A potential drawback is the possibility of working for an unhelpful professor. If your professor is unavailable to their graduate assistants, you’ll lose one of the biggest benefits of the position. In addition to making it difficult to perform your duties, you won’t be able to consult your professor. This could render some of the networking benefits of the position ineffective. So before you decide to work for a professor, try speaking to some of their previous assistants. Try to find out if they are a helpful professor to work for.
Additionally, some schools pay lower wages than others for graduate assistantships. In these cases, a student could make more money by working another job while they take classes. So, you’ll need to decide for yourself what is most worthwhile.
Related: Top scholarships for graduate students
How to get hired
Now that you’ve heard all about graduate assistantships, you may be wondering how to pursue one yourself. The best way to start the process is to identify a professor you would like to work for. Whether it’s because of their helpful personality, their field of study, or both, you’ll want to find the right match.
Once you’ve found someone you’d like to work for, try to build a relationship with them. If they hold office hours or appear at any public events, show up and strike up conversation. When the time comes to apply, make sure to tailor your resume to the position. Brush up on your interview skills, and prepare to discuss the subject matter that you’d be working with.
And if it doesn’t work out with the first professor you apply to, don’t worry! You can ask around about positions with other professors. You can also maintain the relationship with your first choice professor in case they offer more positions in the future. Good luck in pursuing your graduate assistantship!
Learn more: Graduate school financial aid options
Frequently asked questions about graduate assistantships
What is the difference between graduate fellowships and graduate assistantships?
An assistantship will require you to serve a certain number of hours and will be paid out much like a job. Be sure you know the difference between the two before agreeing to either. Check out Oregon State University’s requirements as an example, or check out some examples of graduate fellowships on our website, such as the Graduate Fellowship in the History of Science.