Graduate Assistantships

Computer Science Graduate Assistants (GAs) are graduate students who are hired to perform instructional, research, or administrative duties for the department. Graduate Assistantships are administered in conjunction with the Graduate School, and are governed by the Graduate Employees Union (GEU) Collective Bargaining Agreement. Both M.S. and Ph.D. students can serve as GAs, although most available positions are filled by Ph.D. students.

All GAs must be enrolled full-time (except in summer), be in good academic standing, and be making satisfactory academic progress. Note that students completing the final two terms of their degree only need to enroll in a minimum of 5 graduate credit hours. All GAs receive a full tuition remission and a fee remission. GAs also receive a monthly stipend, which varies according to the nature of the appointment, the source of funding, and the student’s stage in their program.

When offered a GA position, the GA will receive a detailed Notice of Appointment letter that includes the stipend rate and the full-time equivalency (FTE), which is the percentage of hours the GA will work in a 40-hour work week. For example, a GA with a 0.37 FTE appointment is expected to work 14.8 hours per week.

Teaching Assistantships

A limited number of teaching assistantships (TAs) are available to our best-qualified graduate students. These assistantships are normally granted for one term at a time, and are renewable based on department need and the student's performance in coursework and TA responsibilities. Teaching assistants typically work with course instructors to hold office hours, grade homework, etc. TAs are hired with 0.37 FTE appointments (14.8 hours per week) for the quarter.

In some cases, a TA may teach a course as Instructor of Record under supervision of a faculty member. These appointments are for 0.49 FTE (19.6 hours per week).

Application Process

Students can apply for TA positions on the CS graduate assistantship webpage. Please note that a PSU Odin account is required to access the application.

The selection criteria for teaching assistants are similar to those used for graduate admission: grades, references, plus evidence of teaching experience or ability.

Note that decisions about TA positions are made by the department, not by individual instructors. While instructors do have some input into the decision process, it is not generally useful to send unsolicited mail (spam) to instructors requesting TA positions.

TA Evaluation Process

At the end of the term, the department will send out a TA evaluation form seeking feedback from students on overall performance, communication, accessibility, and knowledge of content. Please note that these evaluations will be shared with the course instructor, and that poor evaluations can impact a student's eligibility to be a TA in future terms.

Research Assistantships

Many faculty in the department have research grants that support research assistants (RAs), who are normally Ph.D. students. Faculty members choose RAs on an individual basis, but the most important criterion is the student's ability to contribute to the professor's research program. Typically, students are given a research assistantship only after they have been in the graduate program for at least one term and have taken at least one class from the professor, although faculty do sometimes give RAships to especially qualified incoming students. Ordinarily, students are able to use the work supported by the assistantship as part of their own RPE and dissertation research.

Stipend rates are set by faculty based on availability of resources. RAs can be employed at an FTE of 0.30 (12 hours per week) to 0.49 (20 hours per week), or up to 1.0 (40 hours per week) in summer.

Hiring Steps

GAs who have been offered a position must complete hiring paperwork in person at PSU’s Office of Human Resources (HR) before work can commence. For the list of required documents and more information, visit: https://www.pdx.edu/human-resources/new-hire-resources. New international GAs must also obtain employment authorization from the Office of International Students & Scholar Services (OISSS). Learn more at: https://www.pdx.edu/international-students/employment.

After completing the necessary HR hiring paperwork, the hiring unit or department will provide the GA with a Notice of Appointment via email with details of the position, as described in Article 17.3 of the GEU Contract, which the GA must take action on (accept or deny) to complete the hiring process.

Tuition and Fee Remission

The hiring unit or department informs PSU’s Student Finance Office to apply the tuition and fee remission once the GA accepts their Notice of Appointment, and enrolls in the necessary 9 credits (or minimum 5 credits, if in the final two terms of their degree). It is the GA’s responsibility to enroll in the credits they need by the add/drop deadline for their term of appointment in order for the tuition and fee remission to be applied. The deadline to register is always 11:59 PM on the Sunday following the first week of the term. Refer to the PSU Academic Calendar for the exact date.

Remissions for GAs who registered by the deadline are submitted in Weeks 1-3 of the quarter. GAs are never responsible for any late payment fees due to the remission being applied after the payment deadline for the term. This is written within Article 20.5 of the GEU contract. The late fee will be reversed once the remission has been applied.

Pay Schedule and Hours

Pay is distributed on the last business day of every month. For more information about payroll and getting paid, visit: https://www.pdx.edu/human-resources/payroll.