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GA OVERLOADS

GENERAL
Graduate Students are generally permitted to accept combined assistantships and other employment not to exceed 20 hours per week during term time. In the summer and interim terms, the limit is 40 if they are in school. If not in school in those terms then may go above 40.

All other qualifying requirements for employment and assistantship appointments must be satisfied during all terms, i.e.:

• Must be admitted and enrolled as degree seeking graduate students, and
• Must be maintaining a GPA of at least 3.0, and
• Cannot be non-degree status.

REGISTRATION AND EMPLOYMENT
The Graduate Catalog sets out the minimum required and maximum recommended hours that a student can be registered during the fall and spring semesters for differing levels of employment hours. The table on page 94 of the 2005-07 Catalog shows the following:

In order to hold an assistantship, students MUST be registered for the minimum required hours. Maximum hours are generally at the discretion of the student’s academic department however the Graduate School recommends that the limits above should only be exceeded in circumstances where the academic department is satisfied that grades will not suffer.

OVERLOADS
1. A regular appointment will be up to 0.50 FTE and at that level the Graduate School will usually permit registration in up to 12 hours without query.
2. Any combination FTE up to 0.75 with no more than 6 hours’ classes is also permitted without query. If registered in more than 6 hours then formal approval is required from Dr. John Schmitt, Associate Dean.
3. All combinations of FTE above 0.75 require formal approval from Dr. John Schmitt regardless of the registered hours, however generally approval will only be given in very exceptional circumstances for hours above 6 at this level of FTE.

APPROVAL REQUESTS
Formal requests for overload approvals must be made in writing to Dr. John Schmitt, Associate Dean of the Graduate School. A student’s academic department will be the source of that request, and they will canvass on behalf of the student giving details of the proposed workload and registered hours combination, the nature of the tasks and duties to be undertaken, a review of the student’s academic performance and ability, and an assurance that performance will be closely monitored to ensure continued academic success.

Each case will be reviewed on its individual merits and circumstances and any decision either way will not form a precedent for subsequent cases.