Students in our program are typically supported as Teaching Assistants, Research Assistants, or Fellows, or some combination of those designations. TAs are supported financially for 50% of their weekly effort by assisting in teaching of Chemistry courses and are expected to spend the other half of their weekly time being students (taking classes, carrying out research, reading the literature in their field, etc.); RAs are supported financially for 50% of their effort to work on their thesis research and are expected to spend the other half of their weekly time being students (taking classes, carrying out research, reading the literature in their field, etc.); fellows are supported financially by a fellowship for 50% of their effort to work on their thesis research and are expected to spend the other half of their weekly time being students (taking classes, carrying out research, reading the literature in their field, etc.).
Following the January 2025 increase upon ratification of the GLU-UE contract, the 2024-2025 rate of pay for Graduate Assistants in the Department of Chemistry is $30.29 per hour.
In the first two years, most graduate students will be appointed as Teaching Assistants. No restrictions on the type of assignment should be inferred from the title. The graduate student may be assigned to grading, developing written solutions to problem sets, instructing laboratory or recitation sections, developing new laboratory experiments, other duties, or a combination of any or all of these. Students should note that an appointment as Teaching Assistant during the Fall or Spring semesters covers a 19-week period (and not just the 15-week instructional period). Teaching Assistants need to be available during the entire 19-week period. For a policy governing any absences during this period, please see the "Teaching Assistant Leave of Absence" policy in the same section of this Handbook.
Graduate Teaching Assistants play a vital role in the department’s teaching mission. In an effort to reward outstanding Graduate Teaching Assistants and to provide feedback, the department performs formal performance evaluations. Instructors are asked to rate the performance of teaching assistants as outstanding (to be considered for Outstanding TA award), satisfactory (recommended for the same course in subsequent terms), and not satisfactory (not recommended for the same course in subsequent terms). A first performance evaluation with an unsatisfactory grade will be followed up by an e-mail to the student, advisor, Associate Department Head, and DGS. A second performance evaluation with an unsatisfactory grade will be followed up by a meeting of the student, advisor, Associate Department Head, and DGS. This second unsatisfactory grade will result in low priority for TA assignments in subsequent terms.
All Teaching Assistants for whom English is a second language are required to take the two- week CSE TALK teaching course in English before the start of the August orientation. The cost of this mandatory course is covered by the University. A test of spoken English proficiency is given at the ends required to take an English language course in each term until they are able to demonstrate a sufficient mastery of language skills. Students who have not passed the ESL exam by demonstrating level 1 or 2 proficiency by the end of their first academic year in residence will not be eligible for further Department of Chemistry support. If further training is required in the ESL program, additional costs will be the responsibility of the student.
TERM OF SERVICE
Appointments on the teaching staff are normally offered on an academic year basis. In making its plans for the succeeding year, the department infers from the acceptance of such offers that graduate students accept the commitment to remain for the full academic year. Some summer teaching appointments are available for the limited offering of chemistry courses in the summer.
Graduate Assistants on the teaching staff should expect to devote a total of about 20 hours per week to a 50% appointment or 10 hours per week to a 25% assignment. This time requirement may vary considerably from week to week. Assignments that miss this estimate significantly should be brought to the attention of the faculty in charge of the course or the Associate Department Head.
Appointments as Research Assistants are made from funds granted by government agencies, non-profit foundations, or other sources for specific research projects proposed by members of the faculty. Such appointments are normally arranged between the graduate advisor and the student. The research performed under these appointments may be used to satisfy dissertation requirements. Research Assistantships are nearly always made at the 50% time level (i.e., full tuition benefit is provided), and the stipend level is set by the research advisor.
The continuity of a Research Assistantship is subject to the continued availability of funds. The Department of Chemistry does, however, attempt to find alternative support in case of an unexpected termination/interruption of a research grant or program. To ensure reappointment in subsequent periods as an RA, it is expected that Research Assistants will remain on duty during periods between terms, and that they will devote all their time, except that preempted by studies, to the research program providing their appointment.
Support for the summer is independent of academic year support and may come from some combination of three different sources: Teaching Assistantships, Research Assistantships, and Departmental Fellowships. The sources of support for students will normally be communicated to them by their advisors. Research Assistants will also be paid according to regular payroll dates but appointments may begin and end at different times during the summer and stipend amounts may differ from the academic year. You should check with your research advisor and/or Chemistry Accounting to learn the schedule of payroll dates for individual situations.
To hold a Teaching or Research Assistantship, students must be registered for 6 credits each Fall and Spring term.
Students with a standard assistantship of 50% or more for an entire semester will receive a 100% tuition benefit. Graduate assistants with an appointment of at least 25% will receive half of the full tuition benefit (based on resident tuition rates).
If a student does not register in a semester or cancels all credits, the assistantship will automatically be terminated retroactively to the beginning of the semester, the job classification will change to a non- student title, and the student will be billed for a proportional amount of for any tuition benefit received that term. Health insurance benefits will be cancelled, and social security taxes will be withheld from wages.
All graduate students employed at the University must meet two conditions for exclusion from FICA tax withholding:
students must enroll for a minimum of 6 credits per semester, or 1 credit per semester for Ph.D. students who have passed the oral prelim exam and are working on a dissertation;
appointments must not exceed a combined total of 50% or 20 hours per week.
This applies to all University employment, including assistantships, during the summer as well as the academic year.
Nonresident students holding an assistantship of at least 25% for an entire semester will be assessed tuition at the resident rates. This is a semester-specific privilege that does not change your basic nonresident classification.
Permission from the Director of Graduate Studies must be obtained before any student can register for GRAD 999 ―Graduate School Active Status during any semester.
Notices regarding a student's tuition and will be sent to the students’ central University e-mail account. This is the only way that students will be contacted regarding their fee statement.
All students taking six or more credits are required to carry hospitalization insurance. Graduate students can obtain health and dental care benefits by purchasing the University-sponsored health insurance for students, or, if they are employed as graduate assistants (GAs) with at least a 25% appointment, by enrolling in the health care coverage available to them.
The University pays twice the appointment percentage as a benefit. For example, GAs with a 50% appointment receive full Graduate School tuition and benefit coverage. The University also contributes part of the cost of dependent coverage. Dental benefits are provided separately from the medical care plan, through the University's School of Dentistry.
GAs eligible for coverage must enroll in the GA Health Care Plan to obtain coverage. Enrollment forms can be obtained from the payroll officer in your department or at the GA Insurance Office in N323 Boynton Health Service, and they must be completed and returned by the specified enrollment deadline.
If you don't qualify for the Graduate Assistant Health Care Plan and you don't have your own insurance, you may purchase the University-Sponsored Health Insurance. If you register for 6 or more credits and you don't have hospitalization insurance, you will automatically be enrolled in the University-sponsored plan when you register. If you already have insurance through your parents, employer, or spouse, bring the name of your insurance company or HMO and your policy number when registering and you will not be charged for the University sponsored plan. For more information, call (612) 624-0627.
Below are a few common items, taken from the Graduate Assistant Employment office's policies. The full list of employment policies is online: http://www1.umn.edu/ohr/gae/
Unemployment: Graduate Assistants are covered by Workers’ Compensation but do not qualify for unemployment compensation, because Minnesota law specifically excludes registered students from this benefit.
Earned Sick and Safe Time (ESST): As employees in the state of Minnesota, all graduate students receive MN Earned Sick and Safe (ESST) leave time based on the number of hours worked. Details are found at the site linked above. This provides 1 hour of sick and safe leave time for every 30 paid hours worked. A maximum of 80 hours can be accumulated in one year. For a student who is paid as a 50% TA or RA, each week is 20 hours paid, which translates to 2/3 of an hour of leave per week; if you prefer a whole number, 2 hours of leave are accumulated for every 3 weeks of paid work. The ESST leave accumulated is summarized on the student's pay stub each pay period.
Parental leave: A University employee with a 50% or greater appointment (this includes TA and RA appointments) may take up to six weeks of parental leave with pay. The complete University policy on parental leave is found here: https://policy.umn.edu/hr/parentalleave. Students should contact the Graduate Operations Office (115 Smith Hall) to make arrangements for parental leaves. Beyond this parental leave period, graduate students do not qualify for the unpaid Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) protection policy, as a 50% assistantship does not reach the minimum of 1250 paid hours per year.
Vacation: Although Graduate Assistants are afforded no formal vacation leave, this does not imply that they cannot take vacation time. In fact, regular time away from work is in the best interest of a student's mental health. Students with Teaching Assistantships are expected to be available for all duties through each term. As stated above, this includes the full 19-week period of the semester, not just the 15-week instructional period. Any extended absences must be agreed upon by the student's research advisor, and also approved by the Associate Department Head. Students on Research Assistantships should consult with their advisors regarding the time they wish to take for vacation.
In situations in which a student in the graduate program needs to leave for an extended period of time but still plans to return, a formal leave of absence can be requested. Details of the LOA are found here: https://cse.umn.edu/college/policies/leave-absence-graduate-students. Briefly, this requires the student leave to begin at the start of a term (Fall, Spring, or Summer) and can last up to 2 years. This allows the student to stay in the Ph.D. program and return at a later time without having to reapply. One disadvantage is that the student will not have health insurance or a stipend while on leave. The Graduate Student Health Plan can still be covered through continuation coverage (i.e. COBRA). Such options should be discussed with the Director of Graduate Studies or the Director of Operations (Chuck Tomlinson).
In situations when a student needs to leave in the middle of a term and cannot fulfill their research and/or teaching duties, a discussion should be initiated with the Director of Graduate Studies and should usually involve the student's research advisor. Depending on the mechanism of support and the expected length of the leave there can be different options, and these situations are usually handled on a case-by-case basis.
In addition to the LOA details in the previous section, if a student appointed to a Teaching Assistantship needs to leave campus for an extended period during the semester, the following departmental procedures apply.
Students on TA contracts must be available for assignment to appropriate teaching duties every day the semester is in session.
A student appointed as a TA must obtain permission from both their advisor and the Associate Department Head to go on an extended leave (three or more days). Leaves will normally be granted only for one of the following reasons: (i) illness, (ii) family or personal emergency, and (iii) activities that are directly related to research, i.e., attending a scientific conference or making a research visit to another institution.
If circumstances arise that prevent fulfilling TA responsibilities, the TA should notify the Instructor and Head TA. To the extent a TA's absence is covered by Minnesota Earned Sick and Safe Time (ESST), the TA will not be responsible to find a replacement as precondition for utilizing their ESST. However, if the absence is not covered by ESST, the TA (or employee) will be responsible to arrange directly or through the Instructor and Head TA for someone to serve in their place.
If the TA has not yet chosen a research advisor, both the Director of Graduate Studies and the Associate Department Head must grant permission to go on an extended leave.
If a TA is not able to return on or before the agreed-upon date, then the student will automatically lose TA funding for the unapproved additional period of time they are absent, and they may risk losing their TA appointment for the remainder of the term. This includes delays due to U.S. visa issues that cause a delay in a student's return to campus. Please know that the Department is willing to work with students through situations of chronic illness and disabilities; communication is critical in these situations.
Graduate Assistants and Fellows are strongly discouraged from accepting outside employment during the term of their appointment or award. Completing a Ph.D. is a large time commitment, and taking another job can distract from degree completion. Ideally, prompt completion of graduate degree requirements should be the only demand on a graduate student's time other than duties related to a Teaching Assistant appointment. Should you decide to be a private tutor for pay, consult with your advisor prior to doing so. Outside employment without the prior approval of the Director of Graduate Studies and Associate Department Head may jeopardize your position in the graduate program.
Conference attendance is not a requirement of our program, but it can be a very beneficial experience for students to meet others in their field and talk about their research results. There are a number of outside sources for students to search for support to travel to conferences, including the ACS specific divisions and WISE. In addition, the Department of Chemistry has a limited pool of funding in the Graduate Student Travel Award (GSTA). The purpose of this award is to recognize outstanding research progress and support professional development and networking activities for graduate students. Award amounts will be at least $100 and will vary depending on the availability of funds. Students can apply more than once for this award, but it is unlikely to be awarded more than twice.
Applications must be received no more than 60 days before and no less than 10 days before the date of conference travel. Awards will be administered via direct payment to student account. Students can apply year-round by filling out the form linked here. Be prepared to answer in 50 words or less why you are attending this conference and what you hope to get out of the experience. You should also be prepared to attach PDFs of your updated CV and an invoice or proof of registration for the conference. Eligibile students must be a current graduate student in the UMN Department of Chemistry at the time of attending the conference for which the support is requested.
Students attending conferences may also find this article useful to get the most out of the experience!