Financial Assistance

Financial assistance in the form of assistantships or scholarships is available from a number of sources. Most graduate students in the Department who receive financial assistance through the University of Georgia are on a Departmental assistantship or a Graduate School assistantship. Students on an assistantship must take a minimum of 12 hours per semester.

Application for an assistantship can be made at http://geography.uga.edu/application-for-departmental-assistantship

1. Departmental Assistantships: Each year approximately thirty Departmental assistantships are awarded for the academic year. A small number of assistantships are available during the summer session.
   1. The assistantship is typically for one-third time work commitment (thirteen hours per week) or four-ninths time work (seventeen hours).
   2. In addition to the actual monies received by the assistant, the assistantship carries a tuition remission.  The student pays a $25.00 reduced tuition fee each semester in lieu of full tuition, plus all applicable student fees.
   3. A student holding an academic year assistantship may register in the following Summer Semester and pay only the $25.00 reduced tuition fee, plus applicable student fees.
   4. Duties of a Departmental assistant normally include one or more of the following:
      1. Lab/discussion instructor for GEOG 1101, 1103, 1112, 1113, 1125, 2010, 2110, 2130, 2250, 3510, 4330/6330 or 4370/6370 courses; usually these instructors are those who hold the Bachelor degree or are new students with the Master degree;
      2. Teacher of an independent section of 1101, 1111, 1112, 1113 or 1125. To teach an independent class, the instructor must have the Master degree.
      3. Assignment to one or more members of the faculty as a teaching or a research assistant.
   5. An assistantship can be cancelled at the close of any semester if the assistant's service or academic performance becomes unsatisfactory (see Section E & H).
   6. All new graduate students holding an assistantship that carries any kind of instructional responsibility (GA, GTA & GLA) must attend TA Orientation and successfully complete GRSC 7770 at the earliest opportunity to prepare for his/her departmental assistantship duties. Failure to do so may result in the cancellation of the departmental assistantship.
   7. International graduate students who were required to submit TOEFL iBT scores or IELTS scores have additional requirements. The full policy is available at www.ctl.uga.edu/teachingassistant/tapolicy.
      1. Students with a speaking score of 26 or higher on the TOEFL iBT or 7.5 or higher on the IELTS can be considered for any teaching assignment, including instructor of record.
      2. Students with a speaking score of 24 or 25 on the TOEFL iBT or a 7.0 IELTS score must successfully complete a 3-credit-hour language and cultural orientation course (LLED 7769). With a LLED recommendation, these students may be considered for any teaching assignment. LLED 7769 and GRSC 7770 may be taken concurrently with assignments where the student is not instructor of record.
      3. Students with a speaking score of 23 on the TOEFL iBT or a 6.5 IELTS score may teach in limited and closely monitored assignments (e.g. laboratory teaching, graders, language teaching in native language) upon completion of LLED 7769, with instructor recommendation. GRSC 7770 may be taken concurrently with these limited assignments.
      4. Students with a speaking score of 20-22 TOEFL iBT or below 6.5 IETLS score test must successfully complete a 3-credit-hour language skills course (LLED 7768) before enrolling in LLED 7769 and GRSC 7770. Such students will need to retake tests and achieve requisite scores to be in compliance with policy.
      5. Appeals to waive the speaking score of 26 for full teaching assignments will be considered by the Center for Teaching & Learning if the student has (A) successfully completed LLED 7769, (B) has a recommendation from the LLED 7769 instructor, (C) has twice scored either the a 23 TOEFL iBT speaking or a 6.5 IELTS score, and (D) has a departmental recommendation and a request for an appeal.
2. Graduate School Assistantships are selected in University-wide competition. The department determines which of its new students it will nominate for this award. A student may not directly apply for this award. An important element in the selection process is the GRE score (see Section B), previous grade point averages, letters of recommendation, and other supporting documentation. The number of assistantships won by Departmental graduate students varies yearly.
   1. The assistantship is normally for a 40% time work commitment (sixteen hours a week) and is usually awarded for 21 months.
   2. In addition to actual monies received by the assistant, one pays a reduced tuition of just $25 per semester and the required student fees.
   3. A student holding an academic year assistantship may register in the following Summer Semester and pay only the reduced tuition of $25.00, plus all applicable student fees.
   4. Duties of Graduate School assistants normally include:
      1. Graduate Research Assistantship: assignment to a member of the faculty as a research assistant;
      2. Graduate Non-Teaching Assistantship: assignment as research assistant as well as assistant in laboratories, grading papers, and other similar work.
   5. Holders of Graduate School Assistantships have a work commitment, and the holder should not consider the assistantship as a financial scholarship in which he/she pursues only dissertation research.
3. Other possible sources of financial support include research assistantships funded by faculty research contracts, and others noted in the Graduate School catalog or announced annually by means of circulars to the Department. For further information see the Graduate Coordinator.
4. Merit supplements are available on a competitive basis for the most outstanding holders of departmental or Graduate School assistantships.