Graduate Assistant (Teaching and Non-Teaching) Appointments

Appointments will normally be made during the following periods, closely following the academic terms: Fall term: September- December (17 week period) Winter term: January- April (17 week period) Spring term: May-June (9 week period) Summer term: July-August (9 week period) Contracts expire at the end of the assigned term and cannot be carried over into another semester.

Appointments may only be made as follows: 

Full-time

Normal hours of work: 204

Three-quarters

Normal hours of work: 153

One-half

Normal hours of work: 102

One-third

Normal hours of work: 68  

One-quarter

Normal hours of work: 51

One-sixth

Normal hours of work: 34

The normal hours of work assigned to a full-time Graduate Student is 12 hours a week during the Fall and Winter terms and may vary from week to week. Part-time Graduate Assistantships will have the normal hours of work pro-rated.

It is recognized that Graduate Assistants in the Spring and Summer terms will perform more hours a week, and that these hours may also vary from week to week, given the shorter period of appointment.

Duties should not cause the Graduate Assistant (Teaching) or Graduate Assistant (NonTeaching) to work a significant number of additional hours over and above these norms. Where in any given week a Graduate Assistant (Teaching) or Graduate Assistant (NonTeaching)is requested to work more than twelve hours, advance notification and/or consultation with the Graduate Assistant (Teaching) or Graduate Assistant (Non-Teaching) is required to ensure that the increased number of hours will not be so large as to hinder normal progress of their program of study and research. In this context, the Graduate Assistant (Teaching) or Graduate Assistant (Non-Teaching) is advised to consult with his/her Course Instructor or Researcher if it is felt that normal progress cannot be maintained.

As soon as is feasible before the Graduate Assistantship appointment is to begin, the Department Head or equivalent shall provide a graduate student with an Offer of Employment, using the template approved by the Parties. The Graduate Student shall accept or reject the Offer of Employment in writing. Prior to the commencement of the Graduate Assistantship, unless otherwise not possible, the Course Instructor and the Graduate Assistant (Teaching) will discuss the contract and complete the assignment of duties form. Prior to the commencement of the Graduate Assistantship, unless otherwise not possible, the Department Head/Researcher and the Graduate Assistant (Non-Teaching) will discuss the contract and complete the assignment of duties form.

Both the Offer of Employment as well as the assignment of duties form must be completed and signed by all parties in order to be deemed compliant. Within the first month of the Graduate Assistantship commencing, copies of all employment contracts will be provided to the Graduate Student, with a copy sent to Human Resources (gsahr@ucalgary.ca) and the GSA (gsacontr@ucalgary.ca). Adherence to these provisions and general contract compliance is of the upmost importance to the GSA and the Board. It is in all parties’ interest to ensure contracts (Offers of Employment and the assignment of duties form) are completed, signed and submitted to Human Resources and the GSA within the first month of the Graduate Assistantship commencing.

The Parties recognize that there may be changes in the funding available to departments or in the operational requirements of departments after employment contracts are issued to Graduate Assistants (Teaching) and Graduate Assistants (Non-Teaching).

• Cancellation of the contract by the Board prior to the commencement of the academic term will result in: 1) the Graduate Student being offered an equivalent position; or 2) in the event that an equivalent position is not available or the Graduate Student elects not to accept the equivalent position, a cancellation fee of fivehundred dollars ($500) will be paid as salary. 
• Cancellation of the contract by the Board on or after the commencement of the academic term will result in: 1) The graduate student being offered an equivalent position; or 2) in the event that an equivalent position is not available, the student will be paid the value of the contract as scholarship; or 3) if the student elects not to accept the equivalent position, a cancellation fee equivalent to the scholarship portion of the contract will be paid. For the purposes of this article, an equivalent position will be either a Graduate Assistantship (Teaching) or a Graduate Assistantship (Non-Teaching) with the same period of appointment, level of appointment and a similar assignment of duties the Graduate Student is to perform.
• Cancellation of the contract by the Graduate Assistant at any time Graduate Assistants (Teaching) and Graduate Assistants (Non-Teaching) may resign by providing written notice to their Department Head and Course Instructor/Researcher with a minimum of ten (10) business days’ notice.

Where a Graduate Assistant (Teaching or Non-Teaching) is absent from work without authorization for three consecutive working days, scheduled or normally worked by the Graduate Assistant, the Course Instructor or Researcher may deem the Graduate Assistant to have resigned their employment without notice.

Graduate Students registered on a full-time basis with the Faculty of Graduate Studies will not normally be appointed to more than one and a half full-time or equivalent appointments per academic term, and in no case more than two full-time or equivalent Graduate Assistantships per academic term. The Department Head, Course Instructor/Researcher and the Graduate Student must consider the interplay of various factors in determining any additional Graduate Assistantships and judge responsibly whether a Graduate Student’s academic program will be jeopardized by his or her additional Graduate Assistantship. A full or partial Graduate Assistantship may be held in combination with any other Graduate Assistantship provided that it does not violate the terms of the other Graduate Assistantship. Graduate students registered on a part-time basis with the Faculty of Graduate Studies shall in no case be eligible for more than one-half or equivalent Graduate Assistantship.

Evaluation: There is no probationary period for Graduate Assistantships (Teaching) or Graduate Assistantships (Non-Teaching). Department Heads or equivalents must ensure that Graduate Assistants (Teaching) and Graduate Assistants (Non-Teaching) are trained and supervised for the duties to be performed and develop departmental guidelines to promote these activities. If requested, Course Instructors shall meet with Graduate Assistants towards the middle of the period of appointment to discuss performance and provide feedback in writing. This formative feedback should not become part of the Graduate Student’s permanent record. Departments are also encouraged to provide each Graduate Assistant with written performance feedback within one month of completion of the Graduate Assistantship. A copy will be given to the Graduate Assistant with the original kept in the departmental files.

If mandatory training time or orientations are required for the purposes of the Graduate Assistantship, it will be included toward fulfillment of the Graduate Assistant’s hours for the period of the Graduate Assistantship. A Graduate Assistant (Teaching) and Graduate Assistant (Non-Teaching) in full-time Graduate. Assistantships may opt for additional professional development and will be permitted to use one hour of their Graduate Assistantship for professional development, subject to the approval of the professional development by the Department Head or equivalent.