Financial Aid for Graduates
In addition to those forms of financial aid coordinated by the University's Office of Financial Aid, the School of Arts and Humanities offers supplemental support to graduate students through the awarding of Teaching Assistantships and grants from the Armstrong Fellowship Program. Students enrolled in all of the School's graduate programs are eligible to apply for these forms of aid.
Teaching Assistantships
The more common form of graduate student support consists of Teaching Assistantships. Teaching Assistants support the educational mission of the School and gain valuable experience by assisting faculty members with instruction in undergraduate courses and by staffing the programs and research Centers within the School.
Teaching Assistantships must be applied for annually and are awarded on the basis of academic merit. The selection of Teaching Assistantships is thus highly competitive. Decisions concerning Teaching Assistantships are made by the School's Graduate Studies Committee, which contains two faculty representatives from Arts and Technology, Aesthetic Studies, History of Ideas, and Studies in Literature. Students who apply for a Teaching Assistantship after the annual deadline cannot be guaranteed consideration.
The University requires Teaching Assistants to enroll for nine credit hours each semester and to work twenty hours each week. Teaching Assistantships normally carry a modest monthly stipend, tuition and fee benefits, and optional, partial medical benefits. Precise terms of compensation will be specified in the letter of offer awarding a Teaching Assistantship. Teaching Assistants are not allowed to accept outside employment. Failure to meet these requirements may result in loss of the Assistantship.
The School may have a limited number of summer appointments (approximately one-third to one-half the number for the regular academic year), and only those students offered appointments during the academic year are eligible for summer positions.
A TAship typically qualifies a student for a Graduate Student Scholarship (GSS) that covers tuition, fees, and medical benefits for the length of their contract, with potential coverage for up to ten semesters.
The TA Application must be filled out and submitted to the Arts and Humanities Office (JO 4.510) by February 10, 2012. Offers for the next academic year will be made in late April.
TA Application (.doc format)
TA Application (pdf)
The TA Application for ATEC/EMAC students must be filled out and submitted to Becky Gozzola (AT 10) by February 15, 2013.
ATEC/EMAC TA Application (.doc format)
ATEC/EMAC TA Application (pdf)
Recommendation/Evaluation Form (.doc format)
Recommendation/Evaluation Form (pdf)
Armstrong Fellowship Program
The privately-endowed Armstrong Fund permits the School of Arts and Humanities at UTD to award a few modest fellowships to graduate students each academic year. In contrast to Teaching Assistantships, which involve part-time work for the school and are based solely on students' academic record, these awards are based on financial need as well as academic merit. Thus, applicants must provide the fellowship committee information on their incomes as well as estimated expenses.
While the awards are direct payments to recipients, the school requires Armstrong fellows to enroll full time and expects that they use the grants toward University tuition. Students awarded a Teaching Assistantship in 2011-12 are not eligible to receive the Armstrong Fellowship. If a student is awarded the Armstrong Fellowship but withdraws from classes, the amount of the award must be paid back to the University.
Return the Armstrong Fellowship application form for academic year 2012-2013 to the Arts and Humanities Office (JO 4.510) by MARCH 9, 2012. Awards of the Armstrong Fellowship will be announced in late April.
Armstrong Fellowship application form (.doc format)
Armstrong Fellowship application form (pdf)
For more information on financial aid, please visit UTD's Office of Financial Aid
