FAQ: Grad Assistantship & Tuition Scholarship We provide the opportunity to fund your education through hands-on paid experiences (assistantships) and through an award in the amount of the tuition value (no service required). Apply for a Grad Assistantship Apply for a Tuition Scholarship Graduate College ☰ Menu About Graduate Admissions expand or collapse menu Pre-Application Post-Application Post-Admission Graduate Programs expand or collapse menu Arts & Humanities Behavioral & Health Sciences Business, Government & Nonprofit Education Science & Technology Accelerated Degree Options All Programs & Degrees Master of Arts in Interdisciplinary Studies (MAIS) Funding Current Students Info for Faculty & Staff expand or collapse menu 2022 Graduate College Award recipients Contact Us General Information What is a Graduate Assistantship? A Graduate Assistantship (GA) is an employment position on campus that is awarded full-time (20 hours per week) or half-time (10 hours per week). Assistantships enhance the student’s graduate education by exposing them to professional activities and concerns of their discipline and gives them the opportunity to work closely with faculty and other university professionals. Interested? Apply for a departmental GA by completing our online application form. Funds are allocated by the Graduate College, academic units and non-academic support units. Assistantship offers are extended by the departments or hiring units. Descriptions and postings can be found on Handshake or the Graduate Assistantship Position Listing. Important: Summer term GAs are not allowed. If you have the chance to work in a graduate assignment during summer or winter term, these will be processed as hourly student employment positions. General Payment Information GA appointments are set to 16 weeks of work. GA stipends are paid through payroll on the last business day of each month during the awarded semester. GA stipends are disbursed in 5 equal installments. Taxes are withheld on GA compensations. This position is distinct from hourly student employment. Assistantship stipend amounts can be prorated based on a late start date. Qualifications Students must be enrolled for at least 9 qualifying graduate credit hours. Students must have an official transcript on file in the Office of Admissions showing that their bachelors degree has been conferred. Students must be admitted without provisions to degree status in a graduate degree program. Students admitted conditionally due to GPA reasons are not eligible for funding. Students must maintain a UNI cumulative graduate GPA of at least 3.00. A newly admitted graduate student must have at least a 3.0 GPA for undergraduate or previous graduate work of at least 8 graded credit hours. Students must meet UNI's Human Resources Services' employment eligibility. What are the benefits of holding a Graduate Assistantship? A GA will help you develop and apply fresh knowledge related to your field and graduate major, boosting your resume and knowledge base. A GA awardee might have tuition billed at the cheaper resident rate. Non-resident spouses of GAs receive tuition billed at the cheaper resident rate. GAs are able to purchase an “A” (faculty/staff) campus parking permit. GAs receive holidays and might not work during breaks, although this can vary according to special adjustments in the academic calendar. Note: Students must maintain at least a half-time assistantship for the entire semester to receive these benefits. Which types of Graduate Assistantships are available at UNI? There are three categories of Graduate Assistantship positions and they are available in both academic departments and support service departments (non-academic) at UNI. Some assistantships are funded internally and others are funded externally. Regardless of the funding source, all policies and procedures pertaining to them are the same. Graduate Teaching Assistants (Academic Departments): Graduate students given primary responsibility for the instruction of undergraduate courses are the exception rather than the rule. Graduate Research Assistants (Academic Departments): Research Assistants are selected for excellence in scholarship and promise as researchers. They perform research as a portion of their training under the direct supervision of regular faculty members or support the research initiatives of the institution. Graduate Service Assistants (Support Service Departments): Graduate Service Assistants work in a service unit whose mission is closely related to the student’s area of academic study and interest. They are responsible to a professional member of the service unit who supervises and trains the student in the service role. Are there other forms of Financial Aid/Employment available for me? Other types of financial aid can be applied for through the Office of Financial Aid and Scholarships (FAFSA and/or loans). Other types of employment (Hourly student employment) can be applied for through Handshake (online job board) available on the Career Services website. Graduate students can enroll in an internship class to find the right employment for them (with the help fo their Academic Advisor). What is a Graduate College Tuition Scholarship? This scholarship is a monetary award that helps to pay tuition costs. The Graduate College's Tuition Scholarships are awarded to cover half of or the entirety of the in-state tuition rate. It does not cover mandatory fees. Students receiving this award will see their scholarship posted directly to their University bill (U-bill) by the first day of the semester. A Graduate College Tuition Scholarship does not qualify a student for the resident tuition rate. Students are responsible for the amount of their tuition and fees that the scholarship does not cover. These scholarships are processed through the Financial Aid Office; you are not required to do work nor provide any services to receive this award. Interested? Apply for a Tuition Scholarship by using our online application form. Eligibility for a Tuition Scholarship (TS) Students must be enrolled in at least 9 qualifying graduate credit hours. Students must have an official transcript on file in the Office of Admissions showing that their bachelors (or any other required) degree has been conferred. Students must be admitted without provisions to degree status to a UNI graduate degree program. Students must be declared in their graduate degree program. Students must maintain a UNI cumulative graduate GPA of at least 3.00. A newly admitted graduate student must have a GPA of at least 3.0 for undergraduate or previous graduate work of at least 8 graded credit hours. If GPA drops below a 3.0, the scholarship will be removed and the student must pay the tuition and return the award amount. Download the GA handbook Assistantships Inventory Application for Financial Aid Application & Admission How do I apply for financial support? Admission offers do not include funding nor is it implied, students need to apply separately for financial support. Graduate College's GAs and Tuition Scholarships are applied for through each department. Assistantships are available in both academic and non-academic departments. For GAs: you will need to submit an online Application and it should be directed to the appropriate contact listed on the GA description (click on the form and review the instructions). Assistantship openings and descriptions can be found on: (1) Handshake (Official UNI's job board), (2) departmental websites, and (3) the Graduate Assistantship Inventory. For Tuition Scholarships: these should be applied for by using the online Application form. You just need to select your program correctly. Departments take the decision about whom to award Assistantships and/or Scholarships, the Graduate College does not recommend nor assists in the selection/decision making process. The Graduate College will support the process and make sure guidelines and policies are followed, we will make sure that internal processes are carried out. Is there any deadline to apply for funding? Check with your Graduate Program Coordinator regarding their preferred deadline! Overall, funding applications should be submitted to the academic department no later than February 1 for the next academic year support (this deadline might change and be pushed for an early date). For example, if you are interested to start either in Fall 2022 or Spring 2023, you should submit your application for funding in February 2022. When and How will I know and be sure that I'm being awarded with any funds? What do I do next? Awarding decisions will vary among academic programs and/or non-academic units. If you do not hear from or get a formal offer before or close to Feb 28, then you might not have been considered for the initial funding round. However, after this date, you'll be put on a waiting list and might be awarded funds if someone declines their allocated funds. Consider that non-academic units can hire anytime and even after the semester starts, so their timeline is unique and different from academic programs. Where can I review the cost of studying, including tuition and fees? The office of the Registrar posts a tuition overview on the following site: tuition.uni.edu. Are you an International student? You can review the information shared by the International Admissions Office at intladm.uni.edu Specific information: holding a GA and/or an scholarship Will I be considered for funding after I receive my admission decision or admission letter? No, funding must be applied separately (graduate assistantships and scholarships or Financial Aid). An offer of admission does not include an offer of funding, nor is it implied. Students will be notified separately of any funding they might receive as it entails a different process and eligibility criteria. How should I better prepare to start my GA assignment? We've got you on this one! You are required to follow our GA orientation (general orientation) and a department-based or assignment-specific training You can visit the following link to get ready for the general one. What happens to my Assistantship or Scholarship if I swap, drop or withdraw one or more classes? One of the requirements to hold a Graduate Assistantship or have a Graduate College Tuition Scholarship is to be enrolled in at least 9 qualifying on-campus graduate-level credit hours. If you need to drop below the required 9 hours, funding must be resigned. To swap or change your current enrollment, please visit the information shared below. What do I need to do for swapping or dropping classes without losing my award(s)? You will see a "Grad Assistant Full-time Req" hold (RGA) or “Grad Scholarship Full-time Req” hold (RGG) on your account for the entire semester. This type of hold does not prevent you from registering for classes but it does prevent you from dropping them. In order to drop or swap any class you must: Inform your academic advisor about your plans/changes Submit an online student request named “Change of registration: Drop course from current/future term” in MyUNIverse Once the online student request is submitted you will be notified regarding its approval/reject via email Upon approval, the Registrar's Office will adjust your records, which may take a couple of days Check your overall registration to verify you are enrolled in 9 qualifying credits. What steps should I follow to resign a Graduate Assistantship? You retain the pay for the time you have worked To resign after the start of the semester, email your supervisor and the Graduate College informing that you are resigning your assistantship Use the link in your assistantship offer letter to decline the position electronically Provide the last day worked and number of hours worked during the last week of employment If you are a non-resident and resign your assistantship, your tuition will be billed at the non-resident rate The Graduate College will process your RGA hold removal. What steps should I follow to resign a Graduate College Tuition Scholarship? You will be responsible for the entire tuition charges for that semester To resign, use the link in your scholarship offer letter to decline the award electronically Once you decline the award, the system will send an automated email to your academic department and the Graduate College informing them that you have declined the scholarship Once we cancel your support, you will see the scholarship as an amount you owe in your U-bill Refer to the following rule based upon the time of the semester that this withdrawal occurs: "if the student withdraws from the semester or from the university due to a personal, family, or medical emergency, the tuition scholarship will be honored and applied to the UBill, based on the schedule below." This follows the percentages of tuition and fees refund policy. The percentages are the amount of scholarship that is removed (i.e: withdrawal during week 1, removes 90% of the value of the scholarship) Week 1 – 90% Week 2 – 75% Week 3 – 50% Week 4 – 25% Week 5 and beyond – student gets to keep the entire award The Graduate College will release the RGG hold after we can verify the removal as been processed. Termination of Assistantship Appointments A graduate assistantship appointment may be terminated for cause, including, but not limited to: Failure to complete hire paperwork (I-9 form) at the HRS office on time. Failure to enroll in the minimum qualifying hours. Failure to maintain good academic standing (UNI cumulative GPA 3.0 or above). Neglect of duties or incompetence. Constant refusal to follow supervisor’s advice/counsel. Failure to comply with Assistantship obligations as set forth by department/program rules/sponsored research agreements. Personal conduct that violates UNI student conduct code policy 3.02 state and federal law. Performance that does not meet expectations may impact the renewal of the GA and, in certain circumstances, it may lead to the cancelation of accepted GA offers. Download the GA handbook Orientation for new GAs Submit a Student Request Let's Be Social! Stay up to date with the Graduate College by following us on social media. Facebook Twitter Instagram
