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The Department funds assistantships to support graduate students in their studies. All students accepted into the program are considered automatically for assistantships, and decisions on such awards are based on the same criteria used for admission. Financial assistance is available on a competitive basis in the form of teaching and research assistantships and fellowships. Grants are made officially for only one year, but they are renewable for up to four semesters.
Normally, a student who receives an assistantship will continue to hold that award for four semesters, assuming that the student progresses satisfactorily in the program (i.e., acceptable grades for courses and approval of Thesis proposal before the end of the third semester). Student performance is reviewed by the faculty each semester, and unsatisfactory review, based on academic and/or job performance, will result in the student's being placed on probation by the Graduate Program Director. Failure to improve performance at the end of the first academic year may result in termination of the assistantship.
Assistantship duties involve the commitment of 15-20 hours a week to the Department. Graduate Teaching Assistants are expected to report to the Department at least one week prior to the beginning of classes and be available for duties in the Department until the official end of the semester. Graduate Research Assistants are expected to perform their duties throughout the period of their appointment.
In addition to assistantships there are a number of graduate fellowships that are available to students on a competitive basis. Students who have been admitted to our program are nominated for these fellowships by the Department on the basis of the student's academic credentials. Fellowships pay up to $15,000 per year and may be renewed up to three times.
All new students on financial assistance for the first time, new students hoping to be on assistance sometime during their graduate program, and students who entered the program during the previous spring semester need to participate in the University's Instructional Development Project. This is a workshop for students who will be involved with teaching in one way or another as a part of their assistantship duties. All new students in Geography graduate programs who are on assistance must participate in this training. Also students who plan to be on financial assistance from the Department in the future should participate so they will be eligible for teaching assistantships when they become available. The two day workshop is offered only once a year, during the third week of August, and students must have taken the workshop to qualify for a teaching assistantship. In addition, students who do not speak English as their native language need to take an additional two day workshop which precedes the above workshop.
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