All PhD students starting Fall 2023 and forward, including fellowship holders, are required to complete service as a teaching assistant (TA) by satisfying both of the following conditions for courses offered in the Department of Chemical Engineering:
It is expected that PhD students will complete this requirement during their 2nd and 3rd years, however, they have until their 6th year to complete TA requirements. Courses taught outside the Department of Chemical Engineering and courses not paid for through the department TA funding do not count for the TA Requirements, unless student received prior approval from the Graduate Adviser.
Students do NOT receive any additional financial compensation as TAs while meeting this requirement. When students are supported through a GRA, part of their 20-hour semester appointment will be a TA appointment paid by the Department. Students on 10 hour or greater assignments are eligible for the Tuition Reduction Benefit. Students who have completed their TA requirement may continue to work periodically as a TA as permitted by their supervisor and allowed by their visa status for international students.
All PhD students starting prior to Fall 2019, including fellowship holders, are required to complete service as a teaching assistant (TA) by satisfying both of the following conditions for courses offered in the McKetta Department of Chemical Engineering:
It is expected that PhD students will begin this requirement during their 2nd and 3rd semesters and will complete the requirement by the end of their 4th year. Students do NOT receive any additional financial compensation as TAs while meeting this requirement. Courses taught outside the Department of Chemical Engineering and courses not paid for through the department TA funding do not count for the TA Requirements, unless student received prior approval from the Graduate Adviser.
Non-resident students who are employed at least half-time (20 hours per week) as a TA or GRA, or a combination of the two appointments, are eligible to receive a waiver of the non-resident portion of their tuition and will be charged in-state tuition—a provision known as the Resident Tuition Entitlement. Students employed as teaching assistants, assistant instructors and graduate research assistants are eligible for the Tuition Reduction Benefit. Students who have completed their TA requirement may continue to work periodically as a TA as permitted by their supervisor and allowed by their visa status for international students.
Some fellowships have stipulations regarding appointment as a TA while on fellowship. In such cases, the department will try to appoint students as TAs if and when permitted by the fellowship. If a student was or is on a fellowship that did not allow the completion of the TA requirements, the remaining required TA hours will be waived.
If a student is on a fellowship that prohibits TAing but the student still wishes to TA for professional development reasons, the student may register for ME 698T Teaching Practicum. The students must prepare for this option to make sure that 1) the Practicum course will be offered during the semester planned; 2) they have completed any prerequisites determined by the course instructor; 3) they have a faculty willing to mentor them in ME 698T; 4) that the faculty mentor will be teaching an appropriate course during the semester planned; and 5) that the faculty mentor agrees to the mentoring feedback process of ME 698T, which typically includes allowing the student to teach 5 lectures and attending and giving feedback for all 5 lectures. Students electing to follow this path will not be appointed as a TA, and will not receive additional financial compensation for their TA work since they are using the role for an experiential learning opportunity.
For international students on a fellowship who are TAing: a TA position may entitle a student to UT Select, but most CHE TA positions are for 10 hours, international students on a fellowship who are TAing must be careful to submit an insurance waiver prior to the 12th class day (or 4th class day for summer terms). If a student does not submit an insurance waiver to the international office (Texas Global), prior to the deadline, the student will owe the cost of SHIP, regardless if the student is also receiving UTSelect insurance.
If you are a 20-Hour TA in the spring semester, your out-of-pocket insurance expenses (not the premiums) for the entire summer will be taken out of your June paycheck (for working the month of May), regardless of your summer employment status. If you do not want this to happen, and if you will be employed in a benefits-eligible position over the summer, you will need to complete a Cancellation of Pre-Payment for Summer Insurance Coverage form sometime in early May (scroll to almost the bottom of the page).
Many students have additional considerations when planning the completion of their TA requirements. Some of the most common issues are summarized in the following table and discussed below.
ITA Certification | CSE TA Certification | |
Year 1 | Exam in Jan.; repeat in June if necessary | |
Year 2 | ESL course in Fall if necessary | Complete pre-certification (minimally) in Fall |
Year 3 | ||
Year 4 | ||
Year 5 |
TA positions will be assigned by early summer for the upcoming fall semesters and late Fall for upcoming spring semesters. All graduate students who have not completed their TA obligation will complete a survey of courses they prefer to TA. The students should prepare these preferences in consultation with their supervisors so that students can request TA assignments with their supervising professor, if desired, and manage their research obligations. Students who have already met their TA obligation may also complete the survey. After students have submitted their list of preferred courses, the departmental graduate advisor and associate chair will make the TA assignments. Faculty requesting one or more of their students to TA their course will be given top priority, although TA appointments are always assigned based on the needs of the department.
Summer TAs are appointed on an ad-hoc basis by faculty. The Graduate Office is not responsible for selecting summer TAs, but TA effort for a summer course counts toward the TA requirement on a pro-rated basis (e.g. a 20 hour summer assignment for first session counts as 7 hours towards the requirement). Maymester courses do not count towards the degree requirement.