Graduate Assistantships

Overview

UW Oshkosh’s graduate assistantships provide graduate students the opportunity to get paid and earn benefits while working closely with faculty or university professionals in their academic field or in a related area. Graduate Assistant (GA) positions are designed to enhance what students learn in the classroom.

GAs may work up to 20 hours per week. Not all GA positions are 20 hour per week positions; students may work multiple GA contracts in different areas to reach the desired hours per week.

Please review our Graduate Assistant Handbook (June 2022) for a complete explanation of the program.

Hiring Status

There are several GA positions available across graduate programs for Fall 2024 and Spring 2025.  Programs are actively reviewing applications and extending offers to grad students who are enrolled for the Fall semester.  Please submit a GA application (linked below) to be considered for a GA position.  Note: if you are returning as a GA, you still need to submit an application for the new academic year.

Positions Within Degree Programs

Many (but not all) graduate programs offer graduate assistant positions. The college deans allocate funding among departments, and not all departments receive the same funding. Each department determines how to allocate their funding (e.g. how many GA positions, and how many hours each GA works).

Positions Outside Degree Programs

There are some GA positions available beyond those offered by graduate program departments. These jobs are described below. To be considered for a GA position outside your program, fill out the GA application just once. Then email GSO@uwosh.edu and indicate the position(s) of interest. Your GA application will then be routed to these hiring managers for consideration.

Center for Nursing Research

Assist faculty and graduate students with research, scholarly projects, and activities that help us evaluate our nursing program.

Skills You’ll Develop:

  • Data management
  • Quality assurance
  • Research
  • Leadership
  • Organizational skills

Desired Skills:

  • Quantitative or psychology research
  • Basic statistics skills
  • Data analysis experience
  • Advanced SPSS knowledge

Commitment:

  • Opportunity to work for two academic years and one summer

Click here to learn more about our department.

Dean's Office - College of Education and Human Services

Assist administration and support staff with projects, research, data collection and daily activities.

Job Duties:

  • Develop spreadsheets
  • Collect and analyze data (in Google Forms)
  • Assist administrative staff with projects
  • Assist with student records, files and questions
  • Complete forms and processes required by other departments

Skills You’ll Develop:

  • Research and data collection skill
  • Operational processes
  • Organizational skills and project prioritization
  • Calendar management
  • Familiarity with UW forms and submissions

Desired Skills:

  • Organizational skills
  • Self-initiative and self-motivation
  • Ability to work on multiple on-going projects
  • Ability to take direction from others
  • Ability to keep information confidential
Developmental Mathematics Lab

Be part of a tutoring program proven to increase the probability that undergraduate students earn degrees.

Job Duties

Tutors are paid to learn how to do the homework problems, then they work with students. This successful program has proven to improve liberal education learning outcomes, student retention, and graduation rates. Tutors improve their math skills, and have stronger performance in their graduate statistics courses.

Skills You’ll Develop

  • Tutoring skills (listening, teaching, motivating)
  • Refreshed Elementary Algebra I, II and Intermediate Algebra skills.

Desired Skills

  • Interest in helping others
  • You do not need to be a math whiz

Commitment

  • Flexible schedules, summer employment options are possible

Click here to learn more about our department.

ERIC Lab (Senior Laboratory Assistant)

Perform environmental testing and laboratory analysis on a variety of sample matrices as part of the comprehensive testing services offered through the Environmental Research and Innovation Center (ERIC). Provide guidance, encouragement and leadership for undergraduate Laboratory Assistants.

Job Duties

80% of your time will be spent carrying out research projects, developing methods under the guidance of Research Scientists or Laboratory Technicians, maintaining lab supply inventory, updating results spreadsheets and operating procedures. The remaining time, you’ll be providing guidance for undergraduate Laboratory Assistants.

Skills You’ll Develop

  • Lab skills
  • Mentoring skills
  • Process improvement experience

Desired Skills

  • High attention to detail
  • Good communication skills
  • Experience in a science lab (even just one lab class is sufficient)

Click here to learn more about our department.

Professional Development Office

Play a key role working with the College of Business Undergraduate Programs Director and Internship Coordinator to execute and enhance the professional development and internship program for 1,400+ undergraduate pre-business and business students and work directly with 400+ students via the Professional Skills in Business course.

Job Duties:

  • Assist with most aspects of the Professional Skills in Business course (grading, course materials, presenting, student communication, etc)
  • Advising students on resumes, cover letters, professional documents
  • Advise students on internship search strategies and completing internship requirements
  • Serve on the College to Career Conference planning committee
  • Identify and implement process improvement opportunities

Skills You’ll Develop:

  • Leadership
  • Coaching / mentoring
  • Communication
  • Event planning

Desired Skills:

  • Organizational skills
  • Self-initative; ability to work independently
  • Ability to work collaboratively with others

Commitment:

  • 2o hours per week
  • Flexible schedule within a 7:45 am – 4:30 pm work day

Click here to learn more about our department.

Reading & Study Skills Center

The Reading and Study Skills Center assists all UWO students in developing the reading and study strategies that are essential for academic success and life-long learning. We teach academic skills courses, provide individual learning strategy counseling, present at workshops and in classes, collaborate with faculty to enhance learning outcomes, and respond to the diverse academic needs of the UW Oshkosh community.

Job Duties:

  • Meet individually with students to provide personalized assistance and support with study skills and learning strategies
  • Facilitate study skills workshops (generally after the first semester of employment only)
  • Participate in other activities as needed. These may include: mentoring ACAD 125 students; facilitating study support groups; or creating content for the Center

Skills You’ll Develop:

  • Practice your interpersonal skills as you meet individually with university students of all GPAs and backgrounds, including non-traditional students
  • Hone your communication and leadership skills as you facilitate small groups
  • Become trained in the fields of learning strategies and learning assistance, applicable to many careers

Desired Skills:

  • Demonstrated ability to conduct small groups. Experience teaching in any capacity a plus.
  • Excellent oral, written, and interpersonal communication skills
  • Experience providing learning support of any kind to students, e.g. tutoring
  • Experience working one-on-one, especially with young adults
  • Undergraduate GPA of 3.0 or higher
  • Willingness to be trained in learning strategy theories and techniques
  • Must be admitted to a UWO graduate program and registered for a minimum of 6 credits each semester (possible exception for final semester in program)

Commitment:

  • Days and times will be determined by your schedule and our needs. Our office hours are generally between 8 am and 5 pm. Some preparation time can be accomplished after hours, off-site.

Click here to learn more about our department.

Special and Early Childhood Education

Job Duties:

  • Work with Clinical Programs to screen and process student application materials, and work with schools to develop placements
  • Maintain cooperating teacher databases, program assessment databases
  • Maintain record-keeping systems, policy handbooks, presentations
  • Work with faculty on research and development projects (literary research, data collection, data analysis, reporting)
  • Other tasks/projects as assigned

Skills You’ll Develop:

  • Operational processes
  • Database maintenance
  • Data collection and analysis
  • Report writing
  • Research and development

Desired Skills:

  • Project management
  • Organizational skills
  • Ability to work on multiple projects
  • Self-initiative and ability to work independently
  • Research skills

Commitment:

  • Prefer a 2-year commitment, assuming this is a good fit for the GA and the department
  • Prefer someone who can work 20 hours per week
  • Flexible to work around your school schedule

How to Apply

Please fill out the Graduate Assistant Application. The application takes 10 minutes to complete and requires a current resume.

Most hiring decisions are made April through June, although positions are filled throughout the year. Completed applications remain in an applicant pool throughout an academic year or until the applicant accepts a position.

Hiring decisions depend upon the availability of funding and the number of positions available in a department.

Salary

Salary details

Graduate Assistants are unclassified, salaried, exempt employees hired under a fixed-term terminal contract. GAs can work a maximum of 20 hours per week.  GAs usually work during fall and spring semesters including interims; however, other arrangements are available.

Salaries are taxable, and depend on the number of hours worked each week, and the number of weeks in the contract. Salaries are determined by multiplying the contracted number of weeks times the number of hours per week, dividing by 1,360 to determine what percent of a full-time employee the contract covers, and multiplying by a full-time employee salary of $20,844.

Here are common academic year GA salaries for before tax:

  • $10,422:  20 hours/week @ 34 weeks. .5 FTE, benefit-eligible.
  •   $7,816:  15 hours/week @ 34 weeks. .375 FTE, benefit-eligible.
  •   $7,035:  13.5 hours/week @ 34 weeks. .3375 FTE, benefit-eligible.
  •   $5,211:  10 hours/week @ 34 weeks. .25 FTE, not eligible for benefits.

Benefits

Insurance, time off, and tuition remission details

Insurance

Health, vision and dental insurance are available for Graduate Assistants if the GA is expected to work at least 13.5 hours per week for an academic year appointment. Coverage is effective the first of the month following the eligibility date or hire date. Premiums are deducted from the paycheck. HR provides information about the premiums and enrollment to GAs at the beginning of each contract.

Time Off
Graduate Assistants are not eligible for vacation, personal holiday, sick leave (including family leave), or unemployment benefits.  GAs observe the same official holidays as other non-faculty University staff. 

Tuition Remission

Nonresident Graduate Assistants qualify for a waiver of nonresident tuition if their contract is for at least .3375 FTE (13.5 hours/week for 34 weeks). Nonresident tuition waivers are contingent upon available funding. These waivers are technically tuition scholarships and are also taxable income. All students are still responsible for paying the resident portion of tuition for which they are billed; there is no waiver of resident tuition and fees. This is in addition to all other fees and expenses charged.

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Eligibility

Eligibility requirements for new and returning Graduate Assistants

Here’s a summary of the most frequently asked eligibility questions. Please see the Graduate Assistant Handbook for the complete eligibility requirements for becoming a GA and retaining the position once hired.

  • Financial need is not a consideration in the hiring process.
  • Employment as a GA is contingent upon successfully passing a criminal background check. A Graduate Assistant may not begin working until the background check is complete. This background check is paid for by the University. In compliance with the Wisconsin Fair Employment Act, the University does not discriminate on the basis of arrest or conviction record.
  • All students who have been admitted in full standing to a UWO graduate degree-producing program are eligible to apply
  • Students must enroll in 6-12 graduate credits each semester and must remain in full academic standing.

Graduate Assistant Handbook

A complete guide to the Graduate Assistant program

Please read the Graduate Assistant Handbook for a complete explanation about Graduate Assistant program objectives, student and faculty responsibilities, processes, procedures, and more.

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For more information

If the Graduate Assistantship program isn’t a fit for you, this link provides additional on-campus employment opportunities.

If you have questions after reading the Graduate Assistant Handbook, contact GSO@uwosh.edu.

UW Oshkosh Graduate Studies

800 Algoma Blvd.
Oshkosh, WI 54901-8621

Email: gradschool@uwosh.edu

Connect with Grad Studies on social media!

 

   

Dempsey Hall,  Room 345

Office hours Monday–Friday
7:45 a.m.–4:30 p.m

Phone: (920) 424-1223
Fax: (920) 424-0247

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