TEMPLATE OFFER LETTER FOR RAs and TEs.
Updated: November 11, 2015
March 25, 2015. This letter may NOT be used for TA appointments.
Added appointment level 3.5.15.
Added sentence regarding pay being subject to Provost recommendation. 2-182015.
TA appointments MUST follow the TA template required by the GEU/MSU
agreement which is slightly different than this one. (Updated FEB 11, 2013).
Note important revision regarding the HireRight process: you can find the
HireRight
form
noted
on
page2ofthisletter:
http://www.hr.msu.edu/hiring/hiring_docs/HireRightDisclosureandConsent
Form_SS.pdf. Units should send the GA the consumer disclosure and
authorization form along with the offer letter. Once the unit receives the
completed form from the GA (we do not need the original so it may be faxed
or e-mailed) the unit may attach it electronically to the appointment form in
EBS. Our office will then complete all data entry into the criminal
background check system. We anticipate this change will ultimately reduce
the number of background checks that are delayed or incomplete. Please
contact graduateassistants@hr.msu.edu with any questions.
Dear <NAME>
I am pleased to offer you a [quarter/half/three quarter]-time appointment as a
research assistantship (NOTE: or teaching excluded) in the <UNIT NAME>.
Your appointment will begin <DATE> and end <DATE>. You are being
appointed at position Level <1/2/3>. The stipend for this period will be <$$>, per
bi-weekly pay period (subject to 2015-2016 recommendation made by
Provost). You will be expected to work an average of [10/20/30] hours a week
during the length of the appointment. You will receive student health insurance
and a tuition waiver equal to 9 credits for each of the fall and spring semesters.
(5 credits for the summer session(s)—if appointed for summer). For
information on the student health care insurance plan and health care
options,
please
visit
the
MSU
Human
Resources
website:
http://www.hr.msu.edu/students.htm. (Note: to opt for the dental
plan you must enroll by calling Delta Dental at 1-800-971-4108
In order to be compliant with federal employment requirements, every employee
must have an I-9 form on file. This form is completed by you and your
department if you are a domestic student, or by you and the Office of
International Students and Scholars if you are an international student. It requires
that you be present on campus to present documents verifying your right to work
within the United States within 3 business days of the start of the appointment.
If you will not be on campus within 3 business days of the start of the
appointment period, the appointment start date will be amended to reflect your
actual starting date (and will affect the first pay period).
MSU policy requires a criminal background check for every employee, including those
on assistantships. You will need to sign a HireRight paper consumer disclosure and
authorization form that is included with this letter. Please return it to us along with
this signed letter if you accept the appointment. You must complete and submit this
form to initiate the background check. Your appointment as a GA will be contingent
upon satisfactory results. If you have questions about this process, please contact
Staffing Services at 517-353-3720.
As long as you are making satisfactory academic progress in your program, I
anticipate providing assistantship and/or fellowship support to you for <X> years
(or until the completion of your program). {LANGUAGE VARIES BY UNIT}
*See possible additional language below signature line.
Dr./Professor [name] has been assigned to serve as your faculty supervisor. [If
the supervisor is unknown at the time the letter is written: You will be assigned a
faculty supervisor.] S/he will outline your specific duties and responsibilities,
including attendance at required RA orientation and in-service training programs
scheduled before and/or after classes begin on [date; e.g., Aug. XX for fall
semester 2XXX]. S/he also will be responsible for submitting to [name of unit
administrator] a written evaluation of your performance at the end of each
semester of your appointment.
To continue your assistantship, the [unit’s name] requires that you maintain a
3.[xxx] GPA, satisfactorily perform your TE/RA duties and responsibilities, and
be making satisfactory progress toward completion of your degree. (See [unit
and/or university] handbook for teaching assistants).
You will have access to the following office/workspace [office number or area
here], and you will have access to [details of employee’s access to unit’s
equipment and supplies, including phones, the Internet, and copy machines].
A link to our Graduate handbook [URL] is to remind you of various [unit’s
name] and university rules and procedures related to your duties and
responsibilities and your academic program.
Please sign the bottom of this form and return to me as soon as possible to accept
this assistantship offer.
Sincerely,
XYZ Department Chair/Program or School Director
Signature_________________________________________________________
Date:
I accept the offer of this assistantship and agree to abide by the terms stated in this
letter.
*(The Office of the Provost requests that you also provide the information in the
following three paragraphs. This information is used in all other temporary
employment appointments at MSU): If you wish to use this information, please
insert it ahead of the Professor as supervisor paragraph above.
Please be aware that this offer is contingent upon continued adequate funding
and satisfactory performance. The [unit’s name] may or may not have funding to
support all or part of the position offered and reserves the right to solely
determine the extent of available funding and, if necessary, withdraw or adjust
the terms of the assistantship. [For continuing appointments: The offer also is
contingent upon the continued satisfactory performance in your present
assistantship.]
This appointment provides for a limited employment commitment. All graduate
assistant appointments have a specific termination date. The University has no
obligation to provide reappointment or extension of a graduate assistant
appointment beyond the ending date. You may be dismissed prior to the
expiration of the period set forth above for cause, including but not limited to,
incompetence, serious personal or professional misconduct, failure to carry out
your assigned duties, theft or misuse of University property, acts of moral
turpitude, insubordination, intellectual dishonesty, use of professional authority
to exploit others, or violation of law and/or University rules and regulations.