Graduate Assistantships

As a Graduate student in the English Department you are eligible for a Teaching Graduate Assistantship. Graduate TAs teach two courses of College Writing per year, under supervision and guidance of the Director of Composition. Students wishing to teach at a community college or a university will be interested in a teaching graduate assistantship. A strong background in academic writing is essential for this position.

Graduate Assistants receive

• $8,000 Annual Stipend
• Tuition Waiver of 12 Credits/Year
• Resident Tuition Rates
• Teaching Assignments

Getting Started

1. Talk to your advisor about your interest in a Graduate Assistantship.
2. Review the Graduate Assistant Guidelines at the Graduate Office for details on stipends, tuition waivers, and responsibilities. You’ll also want to review the English Departments Teaching GA Requirements.
3. Apply to the Master's Degree Program. All applicants for a graduate assistantship are required to be admitted in to a BSU master's degree program. See the Graduate Studies Admissions for information on requirements and how to apply for graduate studies.
4. Apply to the Director of Graduate Studies in the English Dept for a graduate assistantship.

Application materials should include

• a cover letter indicating the applicant's intentions and academic preparation and/or professional experience
• a current resume
• 3 letters of recommendation, speaking to the applicant's readiness to learn to teach
  unofficial transcripts

Send or deliver materials to

Dr. Mark Christensen,
Director of Graduate Studies, English
Bemidji State University
1500 Birchmont Dr NW
HS 312
Bemidji MN 56601

Department Requirements
First-year teaching GAs must be available in mid-August (two weeks before fall courses start) for ENGL 6950: Teaching First-Year Composition Workshop.

All teaching GAs must take the following courses during their first year of teaching:

• ENGL 6950: Teaching First-Year Composition Workshop (1 credit) held in late August of each year
• ENGL 6700: Seminar in Rhetorical Theory (3 credits), fall semester
• ENGL 6500: Seminar in Pedagogy of Teaching Writing (1 credit), fall and spring semester

More course information is available at ENGL 6500 / 6700: Seminars. Direct questions about these courses to Dr. Brian Donovan (bdonovan@bemidjistate.edu).

Graduate Assistant Guidelines

• GA appointments assume that students are pursuing course work, which will normally lead to a master's degree in English.
• GAs must register for and complete a minimum of six (6) graduate credits each semester. A 3.00 G.P.A. ("B" average) must be maintained for all course work attempted.
• GAs are not permitted to carry forward more than three graduate credits of incomplete ("I") or in-progress ("IP") grades, other than thesis, research paper, or internship/practicum credits, grade designations from a prior quarter, or summer session, or semester.

Deadlines
To be considered for the first round of positions, new applicants must apply by March 1st of each year. Applications received after March 1st will be considered in a second round as funding and need makes possible.

• February 15th: Renewing GAs should notify the English Department Director of Graduate Study of their interest.
• March 1st: MA candidate’s application received by English Department Director of Graduate Study.
• March 15th: first round of applications reviewed.
• March 30th: first round of successful applicants contacted.

Reappointment
Graduate Assistantships in English are usually last two years as this is the time normally needed to complete coursework as a Masters candidate. First-year GAs who meet the Graduate Studies requirements (as detailed in the Graduate Studies Graduate Assistantship Guidelines) and successfully fulfill their assigned duties can usually expect a renewal of one year.

At the end of their first year of appointment, GAs who are interested in continuing should notify the English Department Director of Graduate Study of their interest by February 15th.

Third year appointments are unusual and contingent upon Departmental need and available funding. The Department makes GA appointments first to continuing first-year GAs, then to new MA candidates. If, after new and continuing appointments have been made, the Department has GA positions available, applications for third-year GA positions will be considered.

Contacts

Dr. Mark Christensen,
Director of Graduate Study, English
HS 312
218 755-2807
mchristensen@bemidjistate.edu

Susan Hauser,
Chair, Department of English
HS 336
218 755-3355
shauser@bemidjistate.edu