Assistantships
Graduate students with assistantships teach one course each quarter. Ph.D. students are eligible to apply for TA positions for professors teaching 200-level literature survey courses.
In addition, graduate students with assistantships may teach a second course for additional pay, or they may work in one of the following positions. Applications for each are taken in the Spring quarter for the following year. Students are selected by a faculty advisor based on their abilities.
- Teaching Assistant for Professors Teaching 200-level Literature Survey Courses
- Assistant to the Creative Writing Coordinator
- Assistant Director of the Center for Writing Excellence
- Assistant to the Director of Composition
- Assistant to Sphere undergraduate literary magazine
- Computer Classroom Consultant
- Editor-in-Chief of Quarter After Eight literary magazine
- Library Assistant
- Writing Tutor
Teaching Assistant for Professors Teaching 200-level Literature Survey Courses
As TAs in survey classes in English and American Literature (English 251, 252, and 253), students attend class lectures, assist in grading and facilitating classroom group work, run weekly small discussion groups, and possibly give a lecture. Graduate students have found these positions invaluable in developing their own pedagogy and teaching philosophy for undergraduate literature classes.
An assignment as a TA in one of the surveys is considered the equivalent of teaching a smaller class as a teacher of record.
Graduate Assistant to the Coordinator
Office of Special Programs in Creative Writing
This position is held by a master's or doctoral level teaching assistant of the Department of English, ideally a student in the Program in Creative Writing. A person scheduled to take the area Ph.D. exam spring quarter should not apply. Recent graduates with a Group III contract may also apply. The graduate assistant works in the Office of Special Programs, in addition to teaching the usual one course per quarter.
Available:
September-June
Remuneration:
Salary per quarter equal to teaching a second course.
Minimum Qualifications:
The successful candidate will have excellent interpersonal and communicative skills; the ability to work efficiently and with limited supervision; self-motivation, good organizational skills, and careful attention to detail; and an interest in contemporary poetry, fiction, and nonfiction.
Job Description:
Assist the Coordinator of Special Programs in Creative Writing in all details and activities generating from the Office of Special Programs. These include:
- Planning for and conducting the program's annual literary festival, other readings, lectures, and residencies by distinguished visiting writers
- Assisting the Coordinator in selecting and supervising student assistants
- Assisting with writing and editing the alumni newsletter
- Conducting research and creating reference files
- Maintaining records and files for the program
- Planning and managing the operating budget
- Planning and implementing the program's advertising and promotional campaigns, including an 8-page newspaper for the Spring Literary Festival; the design, production, and distribution of posters; and writing press releases
- Providing a resource and information center for undergraduate and graduate students in the Program in Creative Writing
- Maintaining an active program of information and exchange with alumni
- Representing the Program in Creative Writing in a wide variety of situations
- Other duties as assigned
If you are interested in this position, please contact Kevin Haworth, the Coordinator of Special Programs in Creative Writing.
Assistant Director, Center for Writing Excellence and Writing Across the Curriculum
The Assistant Director works with Dr. Sherrie Gradin in creating, implementing, maintaining, and supporting the writing-across-the-curriculum initiative of the Center for Writing Excellence.
Our mission is to strengthen engagement with writing on all levels and in all disciplines through providing student support, faculty development, and institutional services that uphold a writing-centered curriculum at Ohio University.
The Assistant Director is usually a Graduate Associate pursuing a Ph.D. degree in composition and rhetoric; however, highly qualified MA students may also apply and those interested in writing program administration.
The Assistant Director accepts this special assistantship in place of teaching a second course in the English Department, and works fifteen hours per week. How long the appointment of the Assistant Director lasts is under the discretion of Dr. Gradin, and is also dependent upon maintaining satisfactory academic progress. The Assistant Director fulfills duties during fall, winter, and spring quarter.
In collaboration with the Director, the Assistant Director’s duties include, but are not limited to:
- Creating and implementing university-wide curricular decisions regarding writing courses
- Organizing and delivering workshops for Writing Across the Curriculum and the Project for Curricular Innovation
- Assessing and maintaining university writing projects, including the Linked Course program, the Writing-Enriched Course program, the Junior-Level Rhetoric and Critical Discourse project, and others
- Organizing and administering Composition Exemption Examinations and the scoring of them
- Corresponding with faculty and administration across the university (both in Athens and at the regional campuses)
- Drafting budget needs and requests
- Revising statements in the Schedule of Classes, the university web site, and other university literature regarding the Center for Writing Excellence and its responsibilities
- Organizing and attending meetings for the Committee on Writing Across the Curriculum
- Drafting and proofreading documents for the Director
- Supervising work study students and delegating responsibilities to them
- Maintaining files for the Center for Writing Excellence and ordering supplies needed
- Researching, organizing, and implementing new projects for the Center for Writing Excellence
Assistant Director of Composition
Eligible individuals include graduate teaching associates in any concentration and Group III faculty. The assistant will work 15 hours a week, in place of teaching a course. (The pay will be equal to teaching a course.) Those interested in applying should prepare a (no more than) 2-page vita and a (no more than) 2-page application letter which specifies (1) their interest in the position, (2) their qualifications for the position, and (3) the significance of this position in relation to their career plans.
The Assistant Director will aid the Director in fulfilling many of the following responsibilities, as well as with specific research and teaching tasks:
- Advising graduate students on teaching responsibilities and department policies
- Designing and implementing T.A. orientation
- Serving as a member of the composition committee
- Scheduling T.A.s and Group II/III faculty for classes they teach
- Participating in evaluation of the writing program
- Other responsibilities as needed, including clerical tasks
If you are interested, please contact Candace Stewart, Director of Composition.
Graduate Sphere Assistant
Sphere is the Ohio University undergraduate literary magazine. The graduate assistant works with undergraduate editors and staff to select writing and artwork for publication, then works side by side with students in editing and preparing the magazine for publishing. Duties include attending meetings and relaying information between the faculty advisor and the magazine staff. Also expect to work on fundraising (poetry slams, visits to college administrators) and promotion of Sphere. A fun time is guaranteed for all.
If you are interested in this position, please contact the OU English Dept., 360 Ellis Hall, 740-593-2838. or Sphere's faculty advisor, Mark Halliday.
Computer Classroom/Lab Consultant
There are four Computer Consultant positions available; each consultant works 15 hours in the lab. The position is open to graduate students only, and applicants with computer experience and interest in computer-based writing instruction are preferred. Duties and tasks include:
- Assist instructors in Ellis 18, 19, and 20, as requested, in solving simple technical problems
- Help instructors and students with computer-related instructional activities
- Work on the English Department Web site
- Attend meetings when called with supervisor and media/tech coordinator
- Keep media/tech coordinator informed of technical problems in the three rooms
- Work in Ellis 18 (or other designated space) for 15 hours per week,unless helping in 19 or 20
- Help maintain cleanliness, order, and security in the computer classrooms and lab
- Assist in computer pedagogy workshops
If you are interested, please contact Albert Rouzie
Editor-in-Chief of Quarter After Eight
The Editor-in-Chief position for Quarter After Eight literary journal is a one-year appointment which pays the equivalent of a supplemental teaching contract for three quarters. While the position pays only one graduate student per year, we recommend pairing up with another graduate student with whom you will share editor-in-chief responsibilities over two years. This way, one of the students receives the stipend for the first year, while the other defers that payment until the following year. During the second year, the payment goes to the student who deferred payment the first year. While not necessary, we have found this pairing to be effective in reducing the workload of the Editor-in-Chief position.
Responsibilities:
- Directing the aesthetic vision of Quarter After Eight, including making final editorial decisions, soliciting submissions, and managing the content, layout, and printing of the journal
- Acquiring funding through the Ohio Arts Council, the Student Activities Commission, sales, donations, and fundraisers
- Managing the journal's finances, including paying the printing bill, awarding the money for the prose contest, purchasing all supplies, and balancing the Chubb Hall account
- Managing the editorial, production, and reading staff
- Overseeing all daily business, including arranging editorial meetings, managing reading distribution, responding to finalists, the printer, literary directories, and other publications; overseeing journal distribution; and directing all marketing activities
- Preparing and arranging for Quarter After Eight's participation in the Associated Writing Program's annual conference
Qualifications Include:
- Knowledge of contemporary writing and trends in experimental prose; an understanding of the Quarter After Eight aesthetic; familiarity with current writers and literary publications
- Fundraising experience or a capacity to discover new and creative methods for acquiring money
- The capacity to develop a vision for Quarter After Eight's aesthetic, finances, and distribution
- Editorial experience with a literary or artistic publication
- Management skills, including a capacity for problem-solving, the ability to work under pressure, an aptitude for meeting multiple deadlines, and the capacity to manage people
- Layout and design experience, including familiarity with Quark, Photoshop, and the electronic printing process
- The ability to develop and maintain a meaningful rapport with the staff, the English Department, and other literary publications
The Editor-in-Chief position is a highly rewarding and intellectually stimulating one. It provides the exceedingly rare opportunity for a graduate student to manage the aesthetic and financial future of a nationally-distributed literary publication. Along with its extensive benefits, however, the position requires a high level of dedication and includes substantial responsibility, considerable stress, and ongoing frustration.
If interested, please contact the editors at
Library Assistant
The library assistant helps the Department Bibliographer develop and maintain the English collections in Alden Library. (The Department Bibliographer's responsibilities are discussed in "A Report on the English Collections in Alden Library.") While the assistant's duties may vary according to special needs that arise each year, primary responsibilities include:
- Filing and organizing book order slips (from Blackwell's and from Baker & Taylor) for consideration by faculty members
- Processing faculty requests
- Reviewing current media catalogs for essential titles (including periodicals, videos, and compact disks) that have not been acquired on approval, through order slips, or by faculty request
- Researching electronic data bases in conjunction with various collection development projects
- Writing and typing library-related reports for the Bibliographer and/or the Department
- Assisting the Bibliographer and/or the Library Liaison with culling books/periodicals from the collection (for annexing or for removal)
The library assistant should have graduate-level research skills, patience with detail, and the discipline to work on a self-regulated schedule after having been trained by the Department Bibliographer. Previous library experience is a plus.
Ideally, the assistant would commit to one year of service, to ensure continuity in the collection development process.
If you are interested, please contact Beth Quitslund.
Writing Tutor
Writing fellows in the Writing Tutoring Program provide one-on-one writing assistance to students who come from all disciplines and carry with them a wide range of writing abilities. The tutoring assistance takes many forms, including helping students get started on writing assignments, providing feedback, direction, and support during the drafting and revising process, and offering supplemental help in developing proofreading strategies.
Additionally, writing fellows periodically offer writing tutoring presentations on our services to instructors and their students, both within the classroom and in our home location within the Academic Advancement Center. Fellows must also attend regular staff meetings and training sessions, and may be required to supervise undergraduate writing tutors.
- Applicants must be graduate students with excellent writing, reading, and thinking skills.
- Applicants must be able to demonstrate knowledge of the writing process, and be able to communicate that knowledge to others. Strong organizational, interpersonal, and oral communication skills are required, as is the ability to constructively assess student writing at all stages.
- Applicants need to be able to keep thorough and detailed records. Second-year or beyond graduate students preferred.
If you are interested, please contact Candace Stewart.