The complete handbook of Teaching Assistant employment guidelines may be found here: https://policies.utexas.edu/policies/teaching-assistants.
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.
Exceptions
Contact your department if you do not meet all of the requirements. Exception requests should be submitted in writing to the Graduate School by your program’s graduate adviser.
Exceptions may be granted in extenuating circumstances, but none are allowed for some policies, such as the 3.0 GPA requirement for teaching assistants and the registration requirement for a minimum of nine hours in the long semester.
20/30 Hour Limit
Assignments in a student job title at the university, including academic as well as non-academic positions, may not exceed 20 hours per week during the first two long semesters (fall/spring) of graduate study at UT Austin, and no more than 30 hours per week during the subsequent semesters, including summer.
The following exceptions apply: up to 40 hours per week during:
- Spring Break (5 weekdays, plus the Saturday and Sunday before and after);
- Summer (day after May graduation through day before August classes start, but no more than an average of 30 hours per week between 6/1 and 8/31; and
- Winter Break (day after December graduation through day before January classes start).
Limits for International Students
International students may work as many as 20 hours per week during the fall and spring semesters. Full-time employment (21-40 hours per week) is allowed only during the following times for enrolled and continuing students:
- Spring Break (5 weekdays, plus the Saturday and Sunday before and after);
- Summer (day after May graduation through day before August classes start);
- Winter Break (day after December graduation through day before January classes start).
International students who will be employed as teaching assistants or assistant instructors must obtain the International Teaching Assistant English Certification.
