GRADUATE ASSISTANTSHIPS

Recommendations for the appointment of teaching, research and administrative assistants are made by individual departments or programs. Assistantships are awarded with the expectation that service will be provided by the recipient. Appointment Letters and position availability are initiated by the hiring department.

See the Graduate Assistants United (GAU) contract for additional benefits information. It’s recommended aspiring teaching, research and administrative assistants also familiarize themselves with disability services for students.

Grad Assistant To-Do Checklist

Have an assistantship? Use this checklist to initiate the assistantship waivers and benefits.

Learn More

hiring department Resources

Have questions? Contact the Program Director directly with questions regarding available assistantship positions. The Graduate School does not manage assistantship position availability. For questions regarding assistantship benefits and waivers, submit an inquiry form.

Eligibility & Benefits

Those receiving an Administrative, Teaching, and Research assistantship appointment must be enrolled in a graduate degree program, be registered for 6-to-12 graduate credits or 3 graduate credits for approved ABD Status (ABD status is not automatic and the student must apply for this status. Click here for a FAQ and application.) and be in good academic standing.

All graduate assistantships, regardless of full-time or half-time appointment, are billed at the full-time rate, with the exception of ABD approved status.

IMPORTANT: Health, Vision, and Dental Insurance is a contractual benefit and it cannot be waived. If you currently have health, vision, or dental insurance, your existing insurance could be classified as secondary insurance.

Have questions? Contact the Program Directordirectly with questions regarding available assistantship positions. For questions regarding assistantship benefits and waivers,submit an inquiry form.

VIEW GAU CONTRACT ENROLLMENT SERVICES TUITION & FEES

2025-2026 ACADEMIC YEAR*

*Please note: GAU contract is currently being negotiated. Stipend rates for 2025-2026 are subject to change based on the final Collective Bargaining Agreement.

Full-time (20 hours/week) Assistantship Waivers

100% Tuition Waiver (Full-time rate based on residency)
30% Standard Fees Waiver (Standard fees are Registration Fee, Health Services Fee, Technology Fee, and Student Services Fee)
100% Acc/Sick (Health) & Vision Insurance Fee Waivers(cannot be waived)
75% Dental Insurance Fee Waiver(cannot be waived)
100% Parking Permit Fee Waiver

Full-time (20 hours/week) Assistantship Student's Financial Responsiblity

70% Standard Fees (Standard fees are Registration Fee, Health Services Fee, Technology Fee, and Student Services Fee)
100% Non-standard fees
25% Dental Insurance Fee(cannot be waived)

Half-time (10 hours/week) Assistantship Waivers

50% Tuition Waiver (Full-time rate based on residency)
100% Acc/Sick (Health) & Vision Insurance Fee Waivers(cannot be waived)
75% Dental Insurance Fee(cannot be waived)
50% Parking Permit Fee

Half-time (10 hours/week) Assistantship Student's Financial Responsiblity

50% Tuition Fee (Full-time rate based on residency)
100% Standard Fees (Standard fees are Registration Fee, Health Services Fee, Technology Fee, and Student Services Fee)
100% non-standard fees
25% Dental Insurance Fee (cannot be waived)
50% Parking Permit Fee

Please note: The next academic year’s financial breakdown will be updated in June once Enrollment Services publishes the new tuition and fee rates.

Stipend & Levels of Pay

2025-2026 Stipends*
2025-2026 Academic Year Full-time Graduate Assistants (20 hrs/wk)
Level I Level II Level III	$22,370.00 $23,030.00 $24,105.00
2025-2026 Academic Year Half-time Graduate Assistants (10 hrs/wk)
Level I Level II Level III	$11,185.00 $11,515.00 $12,052.50
One Semester (Fall 2025 or Spring 2026) Full-Time Graduate Assistants (20 hrs/wk)
Level I Level II Level III	$11,185.00 $11,515.00 $12,052.50
One Semester (Fall 2025 or Spring 2026) Half-time Graduate Assistants (10 hrs/wk)
Level I Level II Level III	$5,592.50 $5,757.50 $6,026.25

Levels of Appointment for Graduate Pay

Level I:	All graduate students without a master’s degree.
Level II:	- Graduate students with a Master’s degree - INCOMING (new to URI) graduate students who have 30 graduate credits - Graduate students who have passed a PhD qualifying examination or departmental equivalent. Promotion to level II takes effect immediately upon the Graduate School receiving the exam results.
Level III:	All Graduate Assistants who are enrolled in a Ph.D. program and have passed both the oral and written portions of the Ph.D. comprehensive examinations prior to the date of appointment. Promotion to level III takes effect immediately upon the Graduate School receiving both written and oral exam results.

Contract Letters

Appointment Letters and position availability are initiated by the hiring department. For available assistantship positions, please contact the program directly.

Process Information: Assistantship contracts take time to process and graduate assistants (GAs) will not receive late charges towards assistantship waivers. As long as the hiring department activated the job record, payroll will not be affected.

Students have a portion of the bill they are responsible for (reference Eligibility & Benefits tab). Late fees will apply if payment is not made by the due date set forth by Enrollment Services. Once the assistantship waivers are posted, GAs are billed at the full-time rate, except if the student has an approved ABD status.

Sample GA Contracts

Contract letters are initated by the hiring department using Adobe Acrobat Sign.

Below are samples of the contracts:

24/25 ADMINISTRATIVE GA CONTRACT 24/25 TEACHING GA CONTRACT 24/25 RESEARCH GA CONTRACT

Additional Hours

Academic Year & Summer Term Working Hours:

Academic Year: All graduate students can work up to 20 hours a week during the Fall and Spring term. Domestic students can work an additional 5 hours or 10 hours (level III students only). Reference below for additional information. Due to visa restrictions, international students can only work 20 hours a week during the academic year. International students should contact the Office of International Students and Scholars for additional information.

Summer Term: All graduate students can work up to 40 hours a week on hourly payroll during the summer term. Summer term begins the day after the commencement ceremony and ends the week before the Graduate Assistantship contracts begin.

Domestic students may receive employment outside of the university. International students may have restrictions, please contact the Office of International Students and Scholars for additional information.

Additional Working Hours

International Students: Due to visa restrictions, international students can only work 20 hours a week during the academic year. International students should contact the Office of International Students and Scholars for additional information.

Additional 5 hours: Domestic students with a Graduate Assistantship or 20 hour/week URI student employment requesting to work an additional 5 hours during the academic year would need their Major Professor’s or Program Director’s approval. Once approval is received (e.g. email acknowledgment), the hiring department may process as they normally would for hourly student payroll. Graduate School approval is not needed.

Additional 10 Hours: Domestic students with a Graduate Assistantship or 20 hour/week URI student employment requesting additional 10 hours during the academic year (only available to graduate students on level III) require Graduate School approval. Approval from the Graduate School must be received by completing the Additional 10 Hour Request & TA Overload Request Form.

Teaching Overload for Graduate Assistantships:If a graduate assistant is asked to teach a course beyond their assistantship, they must be paid on a teaching overload and not on hourly payroll. Please reference section 6.4 of the GAU contract. A PTF contract should not be used. Approval must be received from the Graduate School prior to hiring the student to teach the course. Approval from the Graduate School must be received by completing the Additional 10 Hour Request & TA Overload Request Form.

Forms & Resources

Annual Teaching Assistant Training Workshop

Have an assistantship for the upcoming academic year? We encourage new and returning Teaching Assistants to join us for our Annual Graduate TA Training Workshop held during the summer. Click here to learn more.

Learn More

Form	Description
Additional 10 Hour Request Form - Level III ONLY	ONLY FOR LEVEL III STUDENTS. Request for additional 10 hours on hourly payroll during the academic year.
GAU Contract	Collective Bargaining Agreement between Graduate Assistants United (URIGAU/NEARI) and the Rhode Island Council on Postsecondary Education.
GradForms	Graduate School related forms
Graduate Assistant To-Do Checklist	Useful checklist for students to use when initiating their assistantship waivers and benefits.
Health & Dental Insurance	URI Health & Dental Insurance certificate of coverage and to self-enroll. (Health and Dental Insurance is a contractual benefit and it cannot be waived. Students who currently have health and dental insurance should use this benefit as secondary insurance.)
Human Resources Forms	Hiring forms needed: Bar of Claims Form, Drug Free Workplace Policy Acknowledgment, I-9 form, and SGA-1G/2G forms
Kingston Campus Map	View the map of the Kingston Campus which also indicates parking lot areas.
Off-Campus Housing Database	This service aims to connect students, faculty and other members of the URI community to local landlords to find off-campus housing.
Payroll Department	View payroll schedule
TAP Parking Permits	IMPORTANT: GA commuter students can only park in commuter lots (#4, #7, #25 & #26). Resident GAs must park in their assigned lot. GAs are NOT eligible to park in the Faculty/Staff parking lots.
Tuition and Fees, Enrollment Services	Annual tuition and fees for full-time, part-time (per credit) students.

Have questions? Contact the Program Directordirectly with questions regarding available assistantship positions. For questions regarding assistantship benefits and waivers,submit an inquiry form.

Summer Research & Teaching Appointments

The summer term begins after the commencement ceremony and ends a week before the Fall semester begins.

Eligibility Criteria

To be eligible, students must have held an assistantship during the 2024-2025 academic year (Spring or Fall) as either full-time or half-time in addition to the following:

Research Appointments:
- Job assignment is research based
- Must work for at least 2 consecutive pay periods
- Must be hired for at least 10 hours/week and not more than 40 hours/week
- Will be paid at the effective Graduate Student hourly rate
Teaching as Instructor of Record Appointments:
- Job assignment is Teaching at least one three (3) credit course for at least one term of summer session
Teaching Assistant (Not Instructor of Record) Appointments:
- Job assignment is assisting in a Summer Session term for a minimum of ten (10) hours per week for at least one term of summer session

Additional Information:

Union members will be deducted union dues.
There are no fringe benefits beyond those accrued during the academic year assistantship.
Registering for any credit-bearing activity during the summer is not required and there is no tuition remission during the summer term.

2025 Summer Rates

Research Appointments graduate hourly pay rates:
Level I – $31.07
Level II – $31.99
Level III – $33.48

2025 Summer Session Dates

Summer Sessions:
Session 1 (5/19/25-6/20/25, 5 weeks)
Session 2 (6/23/25-7/25/25, 5 weeks)
Session 3 (5/19/25-7/25/25, 10 weeks)
View In-House Payroll Schedule

Teaching as Instructor of Record Appointments:
Instructors of record shall be paid $1,575 per credit hour taught from Summer Session funds, unless it is not a summer session course, for at least one term of summer session.

Teaching Assistant (Not Instructor of Record) Appointments:
Shall be paid $1,575 ($31.50 hr) per summer term for a ten (10) hour work week from college, department or other non-Summer Session funds. The rate of pay for hours in excess of ten (10) is to be prorated at $1,575 ($31.50 hr) per ten (10) hours, not to exceed $6,300 per summer term at forty (40) hours per week.