Graduate Assistantships

Eligibility

Every graduate student who meets the following eligibility requirements and is not a current Shippensburg University full-time employee may apply for a graduate assistantship. To be eligible to receive a graduate assistant appointment, a student must be admitted into a Shippensburg University graduate degree program. Graduate assistantships are awarded for spring and fall semesters and over the summer terms. The appointment and continuation of an assistantship will depend upon good academic standing (3.0 GPA) and recommendation of the position supervisor. Nondegree students, those working towards certification without a degree, and undergraduate students taking graduate courses are ineligible for a graduate assistantship. International students are eligible for graduate assistantships and should contact the Center for Global Education prior to the beginning of the hiring process.

Students on academic or disciplinary probation are not permitted to apply for or continue in a Graduate Assistant position without approval of the Director of The Graduate School.

How to Apply

Check out JobX for available graduate assistantships on campus. Positions are generally posted beginning in April for the following fall semester and in November for the following spring semester, but it is a good idea to check regularly for updates.

Lists of available graduate assistantships and student payroll positions are available online. You may wish to contact some of these departments directly to express interest in their positions. You should also work with your academic department to identify potential positions.

Departments that hire students will review the applications that have been submitted and consult with academic departments to identify candidates. They may contact you and conduct an interview before making a final decision. If you are selected, the department will make a verbal offer and ask for your acceptance before making the formal recommendation for appointment.

After the appointment is submitted online by the department, The Graduate School office will verify your eligibility and then send an official letter of appointment. You will then be required to sign a memorandum of agreement and return it to The Graduate School.

Graduate Assistants may be hired for an assistantship through the end of the first week of a semester, for summer assistantships, through the end of the first week of Summer term A. 

If you have not worked for the university before, you will need to fill out appropriate payroll forms.

The tuition waiver applies to courses necessary for graduation. Therefore, in most cases, students may not hold graduate assistant positions for more than two years, defined for this purpose as four regular semesters and one summer session. The tuition waiver will cover up to nine credits per semester. Students may use three credits of their nine credit tuition waiver awarded in the fall or spring semester to take one winter course. The Graduate Assistantship tuition waiver may cover up to 12 credits per semester for those graduate students in accelerated programs. If a graduate student who has received a tuition waiver withdraws from classes or receives no credit for classes based on the grade earned in the class(es), the student will be responsible for the immediate and full re-payment of all tuition paid by Shippensburg University paid on behalf of the student. Any and all payments required under this section will be pro-rated to the extent possible. Under no circumstances will the Graduate School at Shippensburg award a tuition waiver for a class from which the student previously withdrew (received a W on their transcript) or received a failing grade of F on their transcript, or received a grade which fails to meet academic requirements and the student is repeating the course.

Reimbursement to Shippensburg For Tuition Waivers

Resignation

Compensation and tuition waiver policies for resignation are the same as those for a dismissal. A graduate assistant may resign from an assistantship position during the course of a semester or a summer. Any hours worked prior to resignation must be recorded on the student payroll and paid to the student.

A student who resigns will have tuition waiver pro-rated based on the number of hours actually worked according to the following schedule.

Hours worked Repayment of Tuition Waiver

80 - 89 % of contract Repay Shippensburg 10 % of waiver
70 - 79 % Repay Shippensburg 20 % of waiver
60 - 69 % Repay Shippensburg 30 % of waiver
50 - 59 % Repay Shippensburg 40 % of waiver
50 or less % Repay Shippensburg 50 % of waiver

During the academic year, full-time graduate assistants usually enroll in nine graduate credits each semester, even though six credits is the minimum for full time status with regard to financial aid. During the summer sessions, all Graduate Assistants must register for and complete at least one graduate course (3 or 4 credits) during one of the summer sessions. The assistantship position will provide for tuition waivers for those students in accelerated graduate programs that require additional credits during the academic year and summer terms. A student who withdraws from classes and no longer meets the academic load requirements will be dismissed from the assistantship.

Work and Compensation

There are two types of graduate assistantships: regular assistantships and Student Life assistantships. All graduate assistants are obligated to work for 250 hours per semester and 150 hours for the summer (which includes Summer term A and term B). Once the graduate assistant exhausts their 250-hour work obligation per semester, those assistants classified as Student Life will be contracted to work an additional 50, 100, or 150 hours based on their student employment contract. All graduate assistants currently earn a $10.00 hourly wage and use Etime to record their hours.

All graduate assistantships require Graduate Assistants (GAs) to be available to work face-to-face on campus. The work site supervisor may, at their discretion, allow a GA to work remotely for part or all of their assistantship assignment. Graduate Assistants do not have the right to work remotely.

Employee Benefits

With the exception of the tuition waiver and compensation for work performed (including social security and workmen’s compensation payments), students in Graduate Assistantships and student payroll positions do not receive any of the benefits provided to regular university employees, such as health benefits, sick leave, special parking passes for vehicles, or paid holidays or vacations.

Compensation and tuition waiver policies are the same for dismissal as those for a resignation.

A Graduate Assistant may be dismissed from a position due to poor work performance or an inability to discharge the duties of the assignments. The supervisor must notify their supervisor and the Director of The Graduate School in writing of the decision and justification.

Prior to dismissal, the GA Supervisor must give the student notice that their assistantship is in peril and document instructions for improvement. If within two weeks of the first notification, the GA’s performance fails to improve, the GA Supervisor must notify the Graduate School Director of the decision to dismiss the GA and the justification.

At all times, a Graduate Assistant (GA) may be dismissed immediately upon a verified breach of applicable ethical codes and standards. Upon credible allegations of a breach of the university Student Code of Conduct, university policies and procedures, or applicable state or federal civil or criminal codes, a GA will be removed from their assistantship position, yet continue to receive tuition remission until the allegations are resolved. If the applicable adjudicative authority finds the GA responsible for the alleged misbehavior, the GA will be dismissed immediately. If the applicable adjudicative authority finds the GA not responsible for the alleged misbehavior, the GA may return to their GA assignment.

Graduate Assistantships are available only to master's degree students and are awarded to students who are obtaining their first master's degree. You can apply for available positions under System Access, Apply for GA Positions.

• Academic Graduate Assistant (GA):

  • Receive up to a 12 credit per semester tuition waiver

  • Required to work 250 hours during the semester 

  • Paid $10.00 per hour taxable, received in a biweekly check

• Student Life Graduate Assistants (SLGA):

  • Receive up to a 12 credit per semester tuition waiver 

  • Required to work 350-400 hours during the semester

  • Paid $10.00 an hour, taxable, received in a biweekly check

• Student Payroll Positions (SPP) are ineligible for a tuition waiver:

  • Paid $7.25 an hour, taxable, received in a biweekly check

  • May work up to 250 hours during the semester

Some programs are on an accelerated schedule where 12 credits are the norm for the department: Applied Psych, Business (MBA), Computer Science, Criminal Justice, Social Work, and Strategic Communication.  All other programs receive 9 credit waivers during fall/spring semester and 3 for summer.

Our hiring software will let you apply for up to ten positions.  We recommend applying for multiple positions to increase your chances of obtaining a position.  Students may not hold two SPP position at the same time.

No, only students who have been admitted to the Graduate School will have access to our GA employment portal located through their "myship" portal.

Tuition waivers cover tuition for courses mandated by your program of study, but tuition waivers do not cover fees and other Graduate School associated costs. 

You can carry forward three credits of a fall semester tuition waiver to pay for a winter class, but the same does not hold true for the summer session because of different funding sources.   

You commit to working a specific number of hours during the semester based on your position, but you and your supervisor may agree to a mutually agreeable work schedule.  All positions are for on campus work, unless otherwise stated.

Obtaining an advanced degree is challenging; therefore, it is not recommended for any graduate student to work more than 20 hours per week.  

Your supervisor will work with you to document your hours in eTime.