Graduate Assistantships

Fund your education while gaining valuable professional experience.

The primary purpose of our graduate assistantships provide opportunities to gain professional experience, academic training, and to help relieve some of the financial burden of graduate school.   

Assistantships are offered in both academic and administrative roles.  Responsibilities and eligibility for assistantships may vary among departments.  

Graduate assistantships pay a stipend of $8,860 for the academic year and cover the tuition for up to 9 credits of graduate level coursework in both the fall and spring semesters and up to 6 credits during the summer semester. 

GA Handbook Summary

The graduate assistantship is designed to provide support for a student during full-time graduate study. Technically, the assistantship is a scholarship for which service is required. The assistantship provides an opportunity for a graduate student to serve in a professional role and to establish a professional relationship with faculty, professional staff, and/or administrators.

Southeast has two primary types of assistantships - Teaching and Administrative.

Teaching. The graduate teaching assistant (TA) is expected to participate directly in the teaching of a course, tutoring, or to fulfill duties pertaining to teaching support activities assigned to specific course sections. Support activities may include laboratory or clinical preparation, grading, tutoring, or library research to help prepare class presentations, etc. TA's are required to take GR603 (0 credit hour) course which is an in-depth study of, and intensive practical training in effective classroom teaching. Nursing, MBA, and English TA’s do not have to take GR603. They will complete a department specific orientation. 

Administrative. The graduate administrative assistant (AA) is expected to develop competencies in and assist in the daily operations of a university administrative unit. It is expected that such an AA appointment provide more than routine student clerical support that would typically be performed by student workers on campus.

Appointment recommendations are initiated in the department/unit and require the approval of the College Dean and the Vice Provost/Dean of Graduate Studies. Once approved, the appointment or reappointment forms are finalized and approved by the Office of the Graduate Studies, they are forwarded to Human Resources in order for a contract to be issued. The GA will receive e-mail notification to his/her Southeast student e-mail address regarding the issuance of the contract, along with detailed instructions related to the process of reviewing and accepting the contract.

TAs are expected to work 20 hours per week in completing the equivalent of six credit hours of instruction per semester. GAs are expected to work 20 hours per week. In no instance should workload related to the job expectations interfere with the GA’s program of study (e.g., time away from class, missing examinations).

All GAs must be directly supervised by a graduate faculty member within an academic department or by a designated professional staff member within other units. The person responsible for this supervision must be indicated on the job description provided to the GA when the appointment is initiated.

GAs are required to complete a minimum of six (6) hours of graduate level work per semester. However, in order to meet full-time graduate enrollment for FAFSA, SEVIS, or other purposes, a minimum of nine (9) hours is required. The fee waiver included in the assistantship covers up to nine (9) graduate hours of course- work applicable to the student’s degree program per semester for the fall and spring semesters, and up to six (6) hours of graduate coursework during the summer semester.

Since the assistantship is essentially a scholarship, GAs are expected to maintain a satisfactory academic record. At all times, the GA must maintain at least a 3.0 cumulative G.P.A. A student who receives a failing grade (F) in a graduate program will be suspended until obtaining the written approval from the appropriate college/department/program official(s) & the Vice Provost/Dean of Graduate Studies.

Graduate Assistant Forms

Approval & Reappointment 

  • Used when a new Graduate Assistants is hired 
  • Used when a Graduate Assistant is going to continue to work the next academic year 

Approval to Work Additional On-Campus

  • Used if a Graduate Assistant will be working during Winter/ Summer Break 
  • Used to obtain approval from the Graduate Studies Department 

GA Semester Evaluation Form

  • Used to evaluate Graduate Assistants. This form is to be submitted by the Assistantship Supervisor each semester before finals week 

GA Annual Evaluation Form

  • Used to evaluate the Assistantship. This form is to be submitted by the Graduate Assistant each year after working as a GA

GA Checkout Form

  • Used when the Graduate Assistant contract expires. Completion of this form is required to receive full clearance from the University.

Allocations and Openings

In academic year 2020-2021, Graduate Studies had 129 Graduate Assistant (GA) positions to allocate. 

Academic departments and administrative units funded additional positions through their own budgets. 

Academic Departments

Department  No. of Graduate Assistant Allocated  Graduate Assistant 
Availability  		 Graduate 
Coordinator's 
Name and Email
 Application
Biology  9          
Center for Writing Excellence  1          
Chemistry and Physics  6          
College of Education, Health, and Human Studies  8         
Communication Disorders  5          
Computer Science  6          
Criminal Justice, Social Work, and Sociology  1          
Engineering and Technology  5 (Information about positions)
      Application Form
English and TESOL  14          
Environmental Science  2          
Graduate Business Studies  7          
History and Anthropology  3          
Kinesiology, Nutrition, and Recreation  6          
Mathematics  7          
Nursing  6          
Political Science, Philosophy, and Religion  1          
Psychology and Counseling  1          

Total in Academic Departments: 88

Non-academic Departments

Department  No. of Graduate Assistant Allocated  Graduate Assistant 
Availability 		 Department Contact Name  Department Email 
Academic Support Centers  2          
Admissions-Graduate  1          
Admissions-Tours  1          
Athletics  14          
Campus Life/Event Services  1          
Career Services  3          
Center for Academic Advising  2          
Counseling and Disability Support Services  2          
Institutional Equity and Diversity  1          
Office of International Education & Services  1          
Kent Library/Special Collections  1          
LGBTQ Resource Center  1          
Military and Veteran Services  1          
New Student Programs  2          
Office of Instructional Technology (CSTL)  1          
Office of Student Conduct  1          
Office of the President  1          
Office of the Provost  2          
Southeast Online  1          
University Communications  1          
University Marketing  1          

Total in Non-academic Departments: 41 

Total Allocations: 129 

Office of Graduate Studies
Contact Us
Phone
(573) 651-2192
Location
Office
Academic Hall 132
Mailing Address
One University Plaza, MS 3400
Cape Girardeau, MO 63701

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