Information for Appointments to Graduate Assistantships (GAs)
ELIGIBILITY AND APPLICATION
In some departments in the J. Mack Robinson College of Business, Graduate Assistantships are available to
master’s students. Availability is on a very limited basis. Applications for Graduate Assistantship
appointments may not be submitted until acceptance to a graduate program has been granted.
Applications will only be accepted via e-mail attachment.
Graduate assistants work up to 20 hours per week, per semester. Concurrent with assistantship appointments,
master’s and doctoral students may not engage in other outside employment. Ph.D. students needing special
exceptions should request approval for hire through the head of the academic unit and Director of Ph.D.
Programs.
To apply for a GA appointment, students must complete the Graduate Assistantship Application (located at:
http://www.robinson.gsu.edu/rcbgra/) and submit it, along with a resumé, as an e-mail attachment to Lydia Woltz
at: grahire@gsu.edu. GA applications and/or resumés should not be sent to any of the Robinson College of
Business departments, as consideration for a GA position will not be granted unless the application and/or
resumé is sent according to the instructions listed on this page. (Departments should only be contacted to check
on the status of an application that has been sent to Lydia). After the application has been approved, it will be
sent to the departments that have a budget for graduate assistants (as listed on page five). These departments will
directly contact students whom they wish to hire. Any questions regarding status of the application or the
availability of GA positions should be directed to the departments listed on page five.
REQUIREMENTS
Students holding a GA I appointment are expected to devote 120 hours per semester for fall and spring semesters,
and 60 hours for summer semester to research projects under the supervision of a faculty member. This is an
average of eight hours per week during each semester, per GA appointment.
To ensure timely progress toward completion of their degree, students holding Graduate Assistantships must
register for a minimum of nine (9) credit hours of academic coursework (COURSEWORK REQUIRED BY
THEIR PROGRAM) during the fall and spring semesters and at least six (6) credit hours during the summer
semester in which an assistantship is held. International students are required to register for a minimum of nine
(9) credit hours of academic coursework to meet visa requirements. They should check with International Student
Scholar Services about registration and requirements for summer semester.
Students must maintain satisfactory academic standing during the period(s) of their appointment including having
a minimum 3.00 cumulative grade point average (GPA).
Registering for less than the required minimum credit hours of academic coursework and/or having a GPA below
3.00 will result in loss of assistantship.
Doctoral students needing special exceptions should request approval for hire through the head of the academic
unit, Director of Doctoral Programs, and the Associate Dean.
GRADUATE ASSISTANT STIPENDS
Each semester, graduate assistants receive a flat rate stipend for each appointment they receive. Each appointment
is equivalent to eight hours of work per week. The stipend ranges per appointment, per term are as follows:
Levels of Graduate
Assistantships
Master Students
GRAI & GLAI
GRAII & GLA II
Fall & Spring
Semesters
3 Wk May-Mester
6/7 Wk Summer
Semester
Master Students
$1,000 - $2,000
$1,200 - $3,000
Master Students
$250 - $500
$300 - $750
Master Students
$500 - $1,000
$600 - $1,500
Doctoral Students Doctoral Students
Doctoral Students
Doctoral Students
GRAIII & GLAIII
$2,000 - $5,000
$500 - $1,260
$1,000 - $2,520
GTAIII
$3,100 per course
$3,100 per course
$3,100 per course
Maximum Wk Hrs Total of 136 work
Total of 40 work
Total of 72 work
per Appointment
hours per appt.
hours per appt.
hours per appt.
Total stipends for graduate assistants cannot exceed
$12,000 per semester or $36,000 per year.
BOTH 3 Wk
MayMester
& 6/7 Wk Summer
Semesters
Master Students
$750 - $1,500
$900 - $2,250
Doctoral Students
$1,500 - $3,780
$3,100 per course
Total of 112 work
hours per appt.
TUITION WAIVERS
Georgia State University awards tuition waivers based on the total amount earned on assistantships per semester,
not on the amount that is paid for each appointment. Under the University’s guidelines, graduate assistants will
receive tuition waivers as follows:
Student’s total semester earnings
(sum of all assistantship appointments)
Fall & Spring
Summer
Semesters
Semester
Tuition waiver GSU
will award that student
$2,000 or more
$1,000 or more
Full tuition waiver
$1,000 to $1,999
$500 - $999
Partial (50%) tuition waiver
Less than $1,000
Less than $500
No waiver
Many departments offer GA appointments at $1,000 per fall and spring semester and $500 per summer semester
(for eight hours of work per week). In order to earn a total of $2,000 per fall and spring semester and continue to
receive a full tuition waiver, many students will want to hold two $1,000 GRA appointments (and work a total of
16 hours per week). In order to earn a total of $1,000 per summer semester and continue to receive a full tuition
waiver, many students will want to hold two $500 GA appointments (and work a total of 16 hours per week).
GAs may receive a maximum of 2.5 appointments per semester. This can be done by simultaneously engaging in
dual assistantship appointments within other departments of the Robinson College of Business, or with other
departments across the University.
EXEMPTION FROM GRADUATE ASSISTANTSHIPS
Tuition waivers only cover the cost of tuition, not student fees and not the rest of the program fee for premium
programs. The program fee for a premium program includes tuition and other costs of that premium program;
premium program students who get full tuition waivers from a GRA are still responsible for the rest of the
program fees for their programs.
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STUDENT FEES
Even though graduate assistants receive tuition waivers, they still must pay their graduate assistant
registration fee, mandatory student fees and health insurance fee. Nonpayment of applicable fees will result
in cancellation of course registrations, and loss of assistantship and tuition waiver.
For a complete breakdown of costs please visit the student accounts website below. Note: Increases in
mandatory student fees generally occur in fall semester.
http://www.gsu.edu/studentaccounts/tuition_and_fees.html
PAYMENT PROCEDURES
Graduate assistant stipends are paid in four equal installments during the semester:
Semester
Pay Dates – LAST BUSINESS DAY OF EACH MONTH
• Fall
Last Business Day of September, October, November, and December
• Spring
Last Business Day of January, February, March, April
• Summer
May-Mester: Last Business Day of May
Six and Seven Week Summer Session: Last Business Day of June and July
Within three days of receiving notification of appointment, students must immediately complete the
Graduate Assistant Hiring Packet in the GSU Office of Human Resources (3rd floor, One Park Place South).
These forms must be completed by the 15th of each month (or the last working day before the 15th). Failure
to do so will delay stipend payments. No special check runs will be initiated for payments due to late
submission of hire packet. Note: Not completing your hiring packet within the Office of Human
Resources (HR) will result in loss of pay. No retroactive payment will be issued for a month or
semester in which the hiring packet was not completed on time within HR.
EMPLOYMENT ELIGIBILITY
All graduate assistants, including international students currently hold the J-1 or F-1 visa, must have a
U.S. social security number in order to be considered for a Graduate Assistantship position. International
students who do not have a U.S. social security number should request a commitment to employment letter
from their hiring department once they’ve been awarded an assistantship. Please take this letter to a local
Social Security Administration office to complete an application for a U.S. social security number. An online application for a social security card is available at http://www.ssa.gov/online/ss-5.pdf. More
information about applying for a U.S. social security card as an international student is available on-line at
http://www.ssa.gov/pubs/10181.html.
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HEALTH INSURANCE
Graduate Assistants receiving full tuition waivers are required to have health insurance coverage. The
University System of Georgia has contracted with Chartis Educational Markets (formerly Pearce & Pearce,
Inc.) to provide student health insurance at a reduced premium. For premium costs please visit:
http://www.gsu.edu/studentaccounts/tuition_and_fees.html .
Students who hold graduate assistantships during spring semester pay in advance their health insurance
premium for summer semester. The health insurance premium paid during spring semester covers January
1st – July 31st. Students who receive their first graduate assistantship during summer semester will be
charged a pro-rated (reduced) health insurance premium for summer. There is usually an increase in health
insurance premium each fall semester. Students may enroll on-line at Chartis Educational Markets’ web site
at
http://www.studentinsurance.com/
You have the option to purchase health insurance from an outside agency. If you are already covered under
another health insurance plan, you may waive out of the Chartis required plan by going to their web site and
answering a few questions about your current coverage. For more information please contact them at 1-800222-6491 or 1-800-220-1123.
GRA EVALUATION
Graduate assistants who are students within the Robinson College of Business and receive full-tuition
waivers are registered for the college-wide Graduate Assistantship evaluation courses BA 8510 and/or BA
9510. After students have registered for their courses for the semester, the RCB College Graduate
Assistantship Coordinator will apply appropriate evaluation credit hours to the student’s registration. Since
the students receive full-tuition waivers, they will not be charged for these evaluation hours. These credit
hours should not be deleted, nor should the student withdraw from the course. However, the credit hours
may be adjusted to accommodate additional course registrations.
To be rehired as a Graduate Assistant, an overall satisfactory evaluation is required. The faculty member for
whom the student worked for during the semester submits a grade of either “S” for satisfactory or “U” for
unsatisfactory. Future hire is prohibited for students who receive an unsatisfactory evaluation for two
consecutive semesters.
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DEPARTMENTS WITH A MASTER’S LEVEL BUDGET
FOR GRADUATE ASSISTANTSHIPS
Your Graduate Research Assistantship Application will be accessible by the following departments in the
Robinson College of Business:
Department
Accountancy
Contact Person
Patrick Turner
E-Mail
peturner@gsu.edu
Center for Ethics &
Corporate Responsibility
Molly Nuttall
mnuttall@gsu.edu
Center for Process Innovation
Vanessa Browne
vbrowne@gsu.edu
Computer Information Systems
Denise Wilson
dwilson11@gsu.edu
Economic Forecasting Center
Courtney Raines
Executive MBA Program
Yessenia Calle
Finance
Christine Brown
crbrown@gsu.edu
Global Partners MBA Program
Charlene Jefferson
cjefferson@gsu.edu
Hospitality Administration
Esther Yi
International Business
Paula Huntley
phuntley@gsu.edu
Managerial Sciences
Annie Dillard
adillard1@gsu.edu
Marketing
Karen Galanski
kgalanski@gsu.edu
Professional MBA Program
Charlene Jefferson
cjefferson@gsu.edu
RCB Career Services
Veda Jackson
vjackson17@gsu.edu
Real Estate
Christine Brown
crbrown@gsu.edu
Risk Management and
Insurance
Carmen Brown
cbrown4@gsu.edu
craines@gsu.edu
ycalle@gsu.edu
eyi3@gsu.edu
After completion of your GRA application, please send it (as an e-mail attachment) to Lydia Woltz at
grahire@gsu.edu. Any questions regarding appointments with specific departments should be directed to the
appropriate representative above.
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Application for Graduate Assistantships
Applications may be considered only after acceptance to a master’s program has been granted.
Date:
Georgia Residency Status:
Resident
Name:
Date of Birth:
Country of Birth:
Country of Citizenship:
GSU Panther ID #:
GSU Employee ID #:
Mailing Address:
E-Mail Address:
Home Phone #:
Other Phone #:
Non-Resident
Non-U.S. Citizens Only (indicate your visa status):
Admission Test Scores: GMAT
or GRE
Degree program in which you are (or will be) enrolled: College:

Program of Study:
Major of Concentration:
Semester/Year for which you are applying:
Colleges/Universities Attended
Name of Institution
Location: City, State
Degree
Date Received
Employment History at GSU
College/Department
Dates of Employment
From:
From:
Supervisor/Phone #
To:
To:
List below any special research skills you have (such as knowledge of a computer programming language or
statistical package, grant writing experience, editing experience, etc.):
By typing your name in the box below, you agree that upon acceptance of any graduate assistant position(s) offered
within the J. Mack Robinson College of Business, you may not engage in any outside employment during such
assistantship(s), and although you may be granted permission to hold multiple assistantships, you may not work
over a combined total of 20 hours per week.
Please e-mail your completed application and resume to us at grahire@gsu.edu.
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