Graduate Student Employees

Check out the 07-08 Factbook on U of A operations to find out some interesting facts:

20% of employees at the U of A are graduate students; 19% are faculty.

http://oirps.arizona.edu/UAFactbook.asp

"Approximately 1,200 graduate students are employed as graduate teaching and research assistants. Graduate teaching and research assistantships are available through departments. The primary purpose is to provide undergraduate students excellent classroom and laboratory instruction. In addition, they provide graduate students with training for careers in teaching and research. For teaching assistants, the work involves teaching and related activities such as reading and grading papers, leading discussions, and instructing and guiding students in the lab. For research assistants, the work involves research-related activities.

At the UA, Graduate Assistantships/Associateships in Teaching (GATs) are salaried positions, in contrast to fellowships or stipends. They are a means of monetary support for graduate students and offer the opportunity to develop teaching skills. Their primary purpose is to provide undergraduates excellent classroom and laboratory instruction.

GATs in the UA are given responsibility for a significant proportion of the total undergraduate instruction. Responsibility for their selection, training, supervision, and evaluation rests in each academic department, with oversight by the Graduate College. The Graduate College has been given the mandate to assure that the departments comply with the Arizona Board of Regents' policy for GATs."

http://www.utc.arizona.edu/tas/resourceguide/resource_guide_chapter_2.htm