Statistics PhD Student Handbook

The Statistics-PhD program requires a minimum of 96 credit hours for completion. This is comprised of 64 credit hours at the advanced doctoral level and 32 credit hours at the MS level.

Review complete course requirements here: https://stat.illinois.edu/academics/graduate-programs/phd-statistics/coursework

• Successfully complete the Qualifying Exam after first year in the PhD program.
  • Successful completion of the Qualifying Exam will allow a student to continue on to PhD candidacy and allow a student to begin working with research faculty.
• Successfully pass a Preliminary Exam for thesis proposal.
• Successfully pass a Final Exam for thesis proposal.
• Successfully deposit thesis for review.
• Minimum GPA: 3.0
• Students should register for at minimum 0 credit hours of STAT 599 Thesis Research before deposit.

Minimum Grades and Credit for Repeated Courses

The Graduate College has no minimum grade policy, but a department or program may set a minimum grade to be earned in order for a course to count as credit toward the degree. Students are responsible for knowing their departmental requirements.

Students must earn a grade of C- or higher in a course or CR (Credit/No-Credit) in order for the course to be counted towards degree requirements. 

A student can repeat a course that they got a less than favorable grade in, however the original grade will not be replaced and both grades and total hours will count towards the cumulative GPA, as well as appear on the student’s transcripts. Neither the Graduate College or the department allow for graduate level course grades to be replaced. 

Credit/No-Credit (Pass/Fail)

Credit-no credit is a permanent notation on the academic record that may be requested by a student with the adviser’s approval. Students on limited status admission or probation are not allowed to register for credit-no credit course work until the limited status or probation has been removed.

Credit/no credit courses are not counted toward the GPA, but are included as part of the total credit hours and are assessed as credit hours when completing degree audits for graduation. In any one semester, a student may take no more than 4 semester hours on a credit-no credit basis. Over the entire degree program, a student must earn at least 2 hours of graded (A-D) course work for each hour of credit-no credit course work.

A student may amend a credit-no credit request and return to a regular grade mode by filing a second credit-no-credit form and submitting it by the published deadline as indicated in the Graduate College Academic Calendar. Additional information about credit-no credit can be found in the Student Code.

Students may not take the Credit/No-Credit option for any required degree program course.

The following courses will not be approved for Credit/No-Credit:

• STAT 527 (Qualifying Exam Course)
• STAT 528 (Qualifying Exam Course)
• STAT 511 (Qualifying Exam Course)
• STAT 575 (Qualifying Exam Course)
• STAT 553 (PhD Theory Course)
• Either STAT 525 or STAT 542 if used to meet the Computing-related course requirement
• Either STAT 427, STAT 593, or STAT 595 is used to meet the Practicum course requirement
• Either STAT 556, STAT 555, STAT 533, STAT 554, or STAT 576 if used to meet the Stochastic Processes and Time Series course requirement

Elective courses used to satisfy degree requirements may use the Credit/No-Credit option. Only those courses receiving the Credit (CR) notation will be eligible for degree consideration. Courses listed as options to meet one or more core requirements may elect to use Credit/No-Credit only in the event said course is selected as an elective (e.g., STAT 525 may be used to meet the Computing-related course requirement by receiving a standard letter grade, thus STAT 542 can then be selected as Credit/No-Credit in a future term as the Computing-related course requirement will have been met with STAT 525). 

Course registration questions can be addressed here: stat-grad@illinois.edu

Course registration FAQ (Seat Availability, Registration Errors, Course Capacities, Individual Studies & Thesis Research, Internship, etc.): https://stat.illinois.edu/course-information-pages/registration-frequently-asked-questions-info

Registration Errors: https://stat.illinois.edu/course-information-pages/common-registration-errors

Term Specific Registration Information: https://stat.illinois.edu/academics/registration

GRADUATE COLLEGE TIME REQUIREMENTS FOR DEGREE

• Bachelors to PhD Program Time Limits - 7 years from first term enrolled in doctoral program.
• PhD Program Time Limits with a MS at Illinois - 5 years (2 yrs. for MS and 5 yrs. for PhD)
• PhD Program Time Limits with a Non-Illinois MS - 6 years from first term enrolled in doctoral program

First Year

• Qualifying Exam Courses
  • STAT 527 - Advanced Regression Analysis I (4 hours)
  • STAT 528 - Advanced Regression Analysis II (4 hours)
  • STAT 511 - Advanced Mathematical Statistics (4 hours)
  • STAT 575 - Large sample theory (4 hours)
• Grad Academy/Grad Symposium
  • Grad Academy is for students entering the PhD program who are already teaching eligible.
  • Grad Symposium is for for students entering the PhD program who are not teaching eligible.
• Complete EPI (International student only)
• Qualifying Exam (after completion of first year)
  • Two day exam, four hours each, consisting of five questions per day

Second Year

•  
  • Begin work with Research Advisor

Third – Fifth Year

• Prelim Exam (Thesis Proposal)

Fifth – Seventh Year

• Final Exam (Thesis Defense)
• Dissertation Deposit

Annual Reviews

• Annual academic reviews completed in first half of fall term
• Bi-annual TA reviews completed at end of each fall/spring term. ​​​​​​​

A PhD qualifying exam is offered once each year, at the end of June. The exam covers material in STAT 527, 528, 511, and 575. It consists of two four-hour exams, given on two different days. There are approximately two problems per course, for a total of about eight problems. The exams are interchangeable, i.e. there could be questions relating to any course on either or both exams.

Every eligible PhD student is required to take the Qualifying exam after the first full year. A student receiving a passing score on the exam becomes a PhD candidate and maintains regular progress towards the PhD degree. A student who does not achieve a passing score will have one of two possible outcomes: (1) near passing, allowed to make a second attempt the following year, or (2) terminal non-passing score.

Preliminary Examination

During the first two years of graduate study, the student should be thinking seriously about what area of statistics to concentrate in, so that upon completing the qualifying examinations, work can begin toward the preliminary examination. The preliminary examination is frequently an oral presentation of the proposed thesis topic.

To schedule your Preliminary Exam visit here. Your request will be processed by the staff in the office and arrangements will be made with the the Graduate College to confirm your committee as well as make arrangements with the Office of the Registrar for an exam location. 

You are permitted to have a committee member who is not University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign affiliated. In order to proceed with a non-University of Illinois affiliated committee member, you will need to provide a CV as well as a letter of justification from your Chair on why the individual should serve on the committee. In addition, a valid email address for the non-University of Illinois committee member must be provided so that office staff may contact directly to obtain the appropriate signatures.

Once the office staff have received your request to schedule your Prelim Exam, they will reserve an adequate space that will have both a computer and a projector in the room. If you require additional technology in the room, please indicate as such in your request form. The office staff will also submit the committee approval to the Graduate College. Once the room and committee has been confirmed, you and the committee will be notified via email of the schedule and location of the Prelim Exam.

Preliminary Examination Committee

The Preliminary Examination Committee consists of at least four faculty members, not all of whom need to be in the Department of Statistics. The committee must be approved by the Graduate Advisor of the Department of Statistics, ad well as the Graduate College. The student prepares a written report to be presented to the members of the Committee at least two weeks before the Preliminary Exam. The Preliminary Exam itself consists of a short presentation by the student followed by questions from the members of the Committee. The Committee then has three choices: pass the student, fail the student, or postpone their decision with an indication to the student of what further work must be accomplished to satisfy the Committee. Since failure means that the Committee believes that the chances for success are very slim, only under extraordinary circumstances will a failed student be allowed to retake the Preliminary Exam. A pass means the student is eligible to begin thesis work.

Doctoral Thesis and Defense Examination

The thesis is written under the supervision of the student's faculty advisor. It must consist of original work, presumably an outgrowth of the preliminary work. A thesis examination committee consisting of at least four faculty members, appointed by the Graduate College at the request of the Department of Statistics, reads the thesis. The student is examined orally by this committee during the defense examination. The committee members should be given sufficient time to study the thesis prior to the examination.

After the defense examination had been passed, copies of the thesis, whose format and physical appearance have been approved by the Department of Statistics and the Graduate College, are to be submitted to the Thesis Office of the Graduate College for final approval.

To schedule your Final Exam and begin preparations for your Thesis format review, you will need to visit here. Your request will be processed by the staff in the office and arrangements will be made with the the Graduate College to confirm your committee as well as make arrangements with the Office of the Registrar for an exam location. 

You are permitted to have a committee member who is not University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign affiliated. In order to proceed with a non-University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign affiliated committee member, you will need to provide a CV as well as a letter of justification from your Chair on why the individual should serve on the committee. In addition, a valid email address for the non-University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign committee member must be provided so that office staff may contact directly to obtain the appropriate signatures.

Once the office staff have received your request to schedule your Final Exam, they will reserve an adequate space that will have both a computer and a projector in the room. If you require additional technology in the room, please indicate as such in your request form. The office staff will also submit the committee approval to the Graduate College. Once the room and committee has been confirmed, you and the committee will be notified via email of the schedule and location of the Final Exam.

By following the structure and templates outlined on the Graduate College’s website, you should be able construct your thesis properly and to the standards of the university. For examples and templates, please see: http://www.grad.illinois.edu/thesis/format.

Once your thesis is completed, it must receive a format review from the Department’s Thesis Format Reviewer. The Format Reviewer will check to make sure you meet the standards and requirements set forth by the Graduate College. Upon approval from the Format Reviewer you can then submit your Thesis to the Graduate College by using their web-portal found here: http://www.grad.illinois.edu/thesis/submit.

After receiving approval from the Department Format Reviewer, a Dissertation Approval Form (TDA) will be submitted to the Graduate College indicating that the thesis has met the department’s approval and is now ready for review from the Graduate College. The Graduate College will not review a thesis until the TDA has been submitted.

For more information about Thesis and Dissertations, please see: http://www.grad.illinois.edu/thesis

Purpose

The purpose of the Annual Academic Review is to assess the academic progress of PhD students in the Department of Statistics. This formal evaluation ensures students are making satisfactory progress toward degree completion and meeting departmental and Graduate College expectations. The process helps identify milestones achieved, areas needing improvement, and provides students with constructive feedback. Completion of the annual review is required to maintain status as a Student in Good Standing.

Applicability

All PhD students in Statistics, except first-year students who have not yet completed the Qualifying Examination, are required to complete the annual evaluation each academic year.

Platform

Evaluations are completed electronically through the ATLAS Grad Student Toolbox available at:
https://my.atlas.illinois.edu

Students must log in using their NetID and password. If the Grad Student Toolbox does not appear, it can be selected from a dropdown menu to enable access.

Timeline

• The evaluation period is announced annually.
• The submission deadline is typically in mid-October. For the 2024–2025 academic year, the deadline is Friday, October 18, 2024.
• Failure to submit by the deadline may result in a hold on student registration or a loss of Good Standing status.

Evaluation Components

The evaluation includes, but is not limited to, the following components:

• Coursework and milestones completed
• Research progress
• Publications or conference presentations (if applicable)
• Practical experience, including Teaching Assistantships
• Confirmation of meeting teaching requirements
• Accomplishments and professional development activities

Thesis Advisor Assignment

Students must ensure that their Thesis Advisor is correctly listed in the ATLAS system. The evaluation will be routed to the listed advisor before final review by the Academic Advisor.

• Second-year students may assign the faculty member they are currently doing research or reading projects with.
• If not engaged in research, students should list their first-year faculty mentor as their advisor.
• If the Thesis Advisor is not listed or is incorrect, students must contact the department to update the Graduate Records system.

Review Workflow

1. Student Submission via ATLAS
2. Review by Thesis Advisor or Mentor (only one reviewer per student; if student has more than one advisor, advisors must collaborate on review)
3. Final Review by Academic Advisor, currently Professor Ruoqing Zhu
4. Feedback is documented in the student’s academic record

Practical Experience Checklist Notes

Students must accurately indicate their teaching experience in the Practical Experience Checklist. Options include:

• Teaching Assistantship
• Satisfied Teaching Requirement

If the Teaching Requirement has been met, students must also include this under “Other Accomplishments” by listing the term and noting “Met Teaching Requirement” under the Name of Accomplishment.

Questions and Support

For help or clarifications:

• Email the department at [stat-office@illinois.edu]
• Contact the Academic Advisor, Professor Ruoqing Zhu, at [rqzhu@illinois.edu]

Compliance

Completion of the Annual Academic Review is mandatory per Graduate College policy for all continuing PhD students. Noncompliance may impact academic standing and registration eligibility.

As a PhD student in Statistics, you are eligible to obtain a Masters in Science Degree in Statistics from the University of Illinois if you meet the program requirements of the MS program. While maintaining your course work towards your PhD, you can petition the Graduate College to add the MS: Statistics degree as a secondary degree. Upon completion of the program requirements of the MS, you are eligible to then add yourself to the degree list for the next possible degree conferral period. 

*If you have already received a similar degree from another institution you are not eligible for this program as the Graduate College will not issue a duplicate degree.

If you are interested in receiving an MS degree in Statistics while continuing your work towards your PhD please follow the directions below.

1. Go to the Graduate College Student Portal and log-in with your NetID.
2. Once logged in and viewing your record, along the right side of the page, under Resources, click Petition.
3. On the petition page, click "Start New Petition", then in the popup window, "Start New Petition" again.
4. For the request type, choose "Curriculum Change" and fill out the other info that populates.
5. Under the ‘detailed explanation’ section you can copy and paste the following explanation:
   • I am a PhD Statistics student wanting to add the MS Statistics program to be eligible for the MS-Stat Degree (10KS0329MS) as a secondary degree while continuing my work in the PhD program.
   • This will ensure the Graduate College adds the Statistics MS program as a secondary degree, rather than completely moving you our of the PhD into the MS.
6. Finally, you will click ‘Submit’. The petition will then be routed to the department for department approval then submitted to the Graduate College for final approval.

Once the petition is approved you will continue to do your work in the PhD program as you normally would. Once you have completed the necessary requirements for the MS degree you can place yourself on the Graduation List for the upcoming degree conferral date. You will do this through Student Self-Service. After you have placed yourself on the degree list, the department will verify that you have met the MS degree requirements in order to graduate during the degree confirmation period. You can review the MS degree requirements here. Note that if you have not completed the Practicum requirement for the PhD (STAT 427, 593, or 595), you may still meet the similar Experiential Learning requirement for the MS if you have at least 12 extra hours of graduate study at UIUC not already counted elsewhere toward the MS.

After you have placed yourself on the degree list and it has been approved by the department you will be awarded your MS in Statistics degree after the next degree conferral date. If you wish to take part in the Math/Stat Convocation ceremony held each May during Graduation Weekend to receive your MS degree you may do so as well.

See the Graduate College Petition Process website for information.

DFR: Deferred grades are issued at the end of the term only for STAT 599. DFR grades will only be changed to an “S” grade once the thesis has successfully be completed.  

I: Incomplete grades are issued at the end of the term when students have not completed the required work for the course. The time limit for students to complete the work is as follows:

• 5:00 PM of Reading Day of the next semester in which the student is registered, if next semester of registration is within a year
• if not registered in a graded course within a year, one year
  After the deadline, the Graduate College will automatically change an “I” grade to an “F by Rule”. This failing grade will be reflected in the student’s GPA until the instructor changes it. 

NR: Not reported. This temporary notation is automatically entered if an instructor does not report a grade by the deadline. A student will not be certified for a degree with an NR notation in the academic record.

S / U: Satisfactory / Unsatisfactory. A permanent notation used as a final grade only in courses (generally thesis research or seminar courses) approved for this grade mode.

W: Withdraw. A permanent notation signifying an approved withdraw without credit.

You are encouraged to apply to multiple funding sources. It would be wrong to claim reimbursement from two sources for the same expense. So when you apply for travel funding, you are implicitly promising that any funds you receive will be used for the purpose for which they were approved, and that you will not be reimbursed from any other source for the covered expenses.

Please note that all travel support is subject to the availability of departmental funds and is not guaranteed.

DEPARTMENT OF STATISTICS

Travel funding from the department is restricted to students giving talks or presenting a poster on their work. Summer schools and intensive workshops at national institutes generally qualify for funding also, please check with the Statistic’s Business Office prior to attending. Students are required to request support from their advisor.

Amount of funding: $2,500 per Academic Year.

Eligibility requirements: You must be a current PhD student in good standing in the Department of Statistics.

Application procedure: Complete a pre-approval request through ChromeRiver. (You may need to request access to ChromeRiver. Step 1: Complete the Information Security Compliance Form. Step 2: Email stat-business@illinois.edu asking for access to ChromeRiver, stating you have already completed the Compliance Form.) 

Application deadline: Apply as early as possible before your trip, but no less than 90 days before your trip. Retroactive applications will not be considered.

While planning your trip: Check with Business Office on rules and regulations of purchasing travel expenses (see below for some of the rules).

After funding is approved: Please check with the Business Office about procedures for paying directly for transportation and conference registration, getting receipts, and claiming for accommodation and other expenses.

After the trip: complete the reimbursement form and email  it with your receipts to the Statistics Business Office (stat-business@illinois.edu). Receipts must be original itemized receipts in order to be accepted. Receipts for airfare and lodging must be fully itemized 

Travel Reimbursement Rules & Regulations:

• Please review the Business Travel Guide for campus rules and regulations (here are a few):
  • Travel must serve the best interest of the University of the Illinois System, have a legitimate business purpose, and be related to the employee's job duties.
  • All travel must be by the most direct route, using the most economical mode of transportation available considering travel time, costs, and work requirements. When reserving lodging, employees must request the lowest available rate that does not exceed state lodging maximums.
  • Employees should not pay out of pocket for other employees travel expenses
• All receipts must be turned in prior to the 60-days of the conference. If the reimbursement is not submitted prior to 60-day, the employee will be taxed on the reimbursement.
• Room Sharing: If you share a room, you need to get a receipt in each person’s name with their portion of the hotel expenses. If the hotel is not willing to do this, then one person would need to get reimbursed for the total expenses, which will be charged only to that person’s academic year funding.
  • NOTE: DO NOT VENMO/PAYPAL/etc expenses of the room to each other, as the University will not reimburse the VENMO/PAYPAL/etc.

GRADUATE COLLEGE CONFERENCE TRAVEL AWARD

See the Graduate College website for application guidelines. To be considered, complete the application form by one week ahead of the Graduate College deadline. Write "Graduate College Conference Travel Award" in the comments box on the application form.

The Department of Statistics offers Doctoral students an “Open Offer”, which means they will hold either a teaching or research assistantship or a fellowship for up to five academic years (Fall and Spring terms only) from their first term of enrollment, providing satisfactory progress is evident by the student. After the fifth year if additional thesis work is required, additional support may be provided on a term-by-term basis. Summer support is not guaranteed and is not included in this policy. Students are required to meet the following criteria in order to maintain their “Open Offer” status:

• Secure a thesis advisor by the end of the first academic year.
• Complete any required ESL courses by the end of the first academic year (for international students only).
• Pass the Qualifying Exam by the end of the first year or pass the make-up exam within one academic year if the first attempt results in a failing grade.
• Not take a leave of absence from the program unless otherwise approved.
• Maintain a satisfactory GPA.
• Not be on probation status at any time during the duration of the program.
• Maintain consistent and regular meetings with thesis advisor.
• Complete the Graduate Student Self-Evaluation by the deadline.
• Complete the Teaching Assistant Self-Evaluation by the deadline.
• Have a satisfactory progress on the Graduate Student Annual Evaluation at all times.

Please see the Graduate College Benefits Grad Map for up to date details on graduate student benefits such as health insurance.

International students who have not taken or passed the one of the required proficiency tests specified above, may take the Oral English Assessment Interview (OEAI). Additional information regarding the OEAI is available on the Department of Linguistics website.

For more information about the English proficiency requirement for teaching assistants, please contact your program of study office or refer to the Department of Linguistics website.

A. Teaching Assistant Responsibilities

Students who hold a teaching assistantship are expected to honor their commitments to the accepted position by satisfactorily completing assigned duties, having clear and responsive communication to the supervisor, and being readily available to begin their assignment effective the start date of their offered position.

 Assistantship responsibilities may include one or more of the following:

• Involved with instruction
• Teach classes
• Grade
• Lead lab/discussion groups for a course
• Develop instructional materials
• Proctor exams
• Hold office hours
• Tutor
• Other duties as assigned

It is the responsibility of the teaching assistant to initiate contact with their assigned supervisor promptly upon accepting the appointment to clarify expectations and discuss duties.

B. Research Assistantship Responsibilities 

Advanced PhD students in the Department of Statistics may be awarded research assistantships, typically in collaboration with a faculty member on projects closely aligned with the student’s dissertation research. Responsibilities associated with these appointments may include, but are not limited to, data analysis, literature reviews, statistical computing, and the development or application of research methodologies.

Students who have successfully completed STAT 427: Statistical Consulting may also be eligible for research assistantships within the Illinois Statistics Office. These positions provide valuable experience in statistical consulting and applied research. Duties may involve designing experiments, developing survey methodologies, analyzing data, constructing theoretical or empirical models, performing statistical computing, and contributing to the statistical components of research proposals.

Clients served through these assistantships may include faculty and researchers from across the university, as well as partners in government and industry. These appointments are intended to enhance students' practical skills and prepare them for professional roles in academic, governmental, and private-sector research settings.

C. Appointment Start Dates

Appointment start dates for the respective terms will usually begin on August 16 for fall, January 1 for spring, summer appointments are dependent on funding sources. Employment dates are dependent on HR rules and regulations. If a graduate employee is unable to begin their appointment on the dates assigned in the offer letter, please consult with your supervisor and the Teaching Assistant Trainer for prior approval. Cases will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis.

If the graduate employee is unable to begin the assigned appointment by the effective date of the received offer and the assigned supervisor does not approve of the requested time, Department HR will modify the offer effective start date to reflect that of the new start date, thus imposing a financial penalty to the first monthly stipend payment.  A base rate calculation of the amount of working days missed in that current pay period will be deducted from the beginning of the pay period to reflect that of the accurate starting date of the graduate employee.

Graduate employees who have a teaching assistantship during the fall and or spring term should seek prior approval from their supervisor(s) before scheduling trips during extended academic breaks, such as winter break.

D. Approved/Unapproved Time Off

Graduate employees who hold a teaching assistantship must seek prior approval from their current or next immediate supervisor for any time off during the assigned assistantship period(s) for approved time off (the exception being unforeseen emergencies). In the event the graduate employee has planned holiday or personal time that overlaps from one appointment to another, the employee will need to seek approval from both supervisors.

Assistants shall receive holidays off without loss of pay in accordance with the campus holiday schedule provided by Illinois Human Resources, which may be modified from time to time. Any other event (extended holidays, personal time, or during academic breaks such as spring break, winter break, etc.) which may prevent a graduate assistant from performing their duties effectively during any duration of time outside of the campus designated holidays must be discussed with and approved by the immediate supervisor(s).

E. Resignation/Release

If a graduate assistant wishes to resign after acceptance of an appointment, the assistant must provide a written statement a minimum of fourteen (14) calendar days prior to the effective date of resignation requesting the resignation.

If a graduate assistant wishes to resign from their appointment after the start of the effective date, the employee must schedule a meeting with their supervisor to discuss the resignation and upon a continuation of the request must submit a letter of resignation to the Department HR office. A fourteen (14) calendar day notice is required of resignation.

A. Teaching Assistant Evaluations

Teaching Assistants fill a critical role in our department’s mission to offer high-quality instruction and support to our students in learning statistics and data science. It is also our hope that our Teaching Assistants will find opportunities for personal and professional growth. Being a Teaching Assistant can help with 

1. Expanding your content knowledge and software skills,
2. Improving your communication skills (especially with students who may not have high levels of technical skills and statistical background), and
3. Growing in your professional skills by learning to work with other professors and course staff and handling responsibilities diligently.

To encourage reflection, all Teaching Assistants will be asked to complete a self-evaluation of their performance at the end of each semester in which they hold a teaching assistant appointment. To encourage growth through feedback, each Teaching Assistant will also receive a supervisor evaluation from their teaching supervisor at the end of each semester in which a teaching assistant appointment is held. These evaluations may highlight both areas where Teaching Assistants have excelled and areas for potential growth. Each Teaching Assistant will have a chance to review their supervisor’s evaluation.

B. Unsatisfactory Evaluations

While some areas of growth are to be expected, Teaching Assistants may occasionally be notified that their efforts or the quality of their work is unsatisfactory. When possible, teaching supervisors should make these concerns known to the Teaching Assistant before the appointment is over and provide an opportunity for the Teaching Assistant to improve before the end of the assignment. End-of-semester supervisor evaluations should then reflect the holistic performance of the Teaching Assistant across the semester and remark on whether the Teaching Assistant made satisfactory improvements to their performance.

In cases where a Teaching Assistant is performing at an unsatisfactory level at the end of the semester (e.g., leaving town before assistantship duties are completed, showing up late or missing Final Exam proctoring, very poor grading quality on the final assignment or project, etc.), these issues may be documented in an end-of-semester evaluation without advance notice to the Teaching Assistant or immediate opportunity to improve. 

The program director of the graduate employee’s degree program (i.e., the PhD program director or the MS program director), the Teaching Assistant training committee chair, and an HR representative from the statistics department will review all evaluations submitted each semester. In cases where a Teaching Assistant receives a poor evaluation from their teaching supervisor, the Teaching Assistant’s program director will initiate a conversation with the Teaching Assistant (and if appropriate, the Teaching Assistant’s teaching supervisor) to determine whether a formal reprimand should be issued. 

See “Infractions, Reprimands, Appointment Reductions, and Dismissals” section for more details.

A. Minor Infractions

While it is always our hope that Teaching Assistants will complete all assignments to a satisfactory level and remain employed with us until degree completion, there may be circumstances that warrant the reduced appointment or dismissal of a Teaching Assistant from assistantship duties in the department, either temporarily or indefinitely. According to the GEO Contract, Section IV J. “Dismissal may result from two or more minor infractions as well as for a single serious infraction.” 

Minor infractions involving timeliness may be excused when the Teaching Assistant receives prior permission from their teaching supervisor or has experienced an emergency that affects their performance. Outside of those circumstances, examples of minor infractions include, but are not limited to…

• Failing to attend mandatory orientations and/or required teaching assistant training events;
• Being at least 5 minutes late on three or more occasions to required meetings, lab or discussion section facilitation, proctoring, office hours or any other time-specific commitments;
• Being very late or missing time-specific commitments at least once;
• Moving an in-person commitment (e.g., office hours) to an online medium (e.g., zoom) on two or more occasions without permission;
• Arriving to campus after duties begin or leaving campus before duties are complete;
• Being late to meet tasks deadlines (e.g, grading, grade posting, solution keys) on three or more occasions;
• Being very late (3 or more days) to meet tasks deadlines;
• Completing tasks at an unsatisfactory quality on several occasions and not showing sufficient improvement after receiving appropriate feedback;
• Competing tasks at a very poor quality when a supervisor’s instructions were clear and reasonable (e.g., grading with little to no consistency with the rubric, creating solution keys or practice problems with generative AI that are not of appropriate quality and not sufficiently edited, etc.);
• Neglecting smaller tasks that have been requested by a supervisor

In situations where a Teaching Assistant has committed a minor infraction, and it is not believed that the Teaching Assistant was knowingly negligent, it should be the teaching supervisor’s goal to offer feedback to the Teaching Assistant and to provide opportunity to improve. If satisfactory improvement has not been made after a sufficient time period, the issue will then be formally documented with the Teaching Assistant’s program director and department Human Resources (HR) representative–either through an end of semester evaluation, or through direct communication. 

If the program director believes it is warranted, the Teaching Assistant may receive a formal reprimand (in the form of a written statement) stating the facts supporting this decision. When receiving a formal reprimand, the assistant will be provided with an opportunity to respond to the supervisor and program director. If desired, the Teaching Assistant may appeal the decision to one of the Unit’s Executive Officers (e.g., Department Chair or Department Associate Chair). If requesting an appeal, the Teaching Assistant will be given a minimum of two (2) business days to prepare for this meeting, and the Teaching Assistant may also request the presence of a Union Representative at such a meeting if desired.

When a minor infraction is committed, and the teaching supervisor believes the Teaching Assistant was knowingly negligent in that situation, the supervisor may report the situation to the Teaching Assistant’s program director without being given the opportunity to improve their performance first. The same appeal process applies.

B. Serious Infractions

On rare occasions, a Teaching Assistant may receive a reduced appointment or dismissal without first receiving a formal reprimand if they have committed a serious infraction.

Examples of serious infractions include, but are not limited to…

• Engaging in academic misconduct (e.g., significant violation of academic integrity, either through their own work or by facilitating violations for other students);
• Severely neglecting or refusing to perform assigned duties that are reasonable;
• Violating University regulations or policies, including regulations or policies related to discrimination and harassment;
• Acting outside the appropriate exercise of University responsibilities so as willfully to physically harm, threaten physical harm to, harass or intimidate a visitor or a member of the University community with the effect of interfering with that person’s performance of University duties or academic activities;
• Damaging, destroying or misappropriating property owned by the University or any property used in connection with a University function or approved activity.

If the program director believes reduction in appointment or dismissal is warranted, a meeting shall be called with the Teaching Assistant, program director, a department HR representative, a Union representative, and other department or college officers as needed or requested by the program director. The Teaching Assistant will be given a minimum of two (2) business days to prepare for this meeting.

Teaching Assistants who wish to know their full rights in this process should consult the latest GEO Contract.

C. Appointment Reductions and Dismissals

In the event that a Teaching Assistant continues to commit minor infractions after a formal reprimand is issued, the department will consider reducing the Teaching Assistant’s appointment percentage or dismissing the student from their Teaching Assistantship for all future semesters in the department. Reduction in duties or dismissal is ultimately up to the discretion of the Teaching Assistant’s program director, in consultation with other department officers (e.g., current or former teaching supervisors, department HR, the Teaching Assistant training committee chair). These decisions will be made based on a holistic evaluation of the Teaching Assistant’s performance across assignments. 

The decision to dismiss a Teaching Assistant should be based on evidence that the Teaching Assistant has knowingly committed minor infractions on two or more separate occasions or assignments, despite receiving feedback and having ample opportunity to improve. If the program director believes reduction in appointment or dismissal is warranted, a meeting shall be called with the Teaching Assistant, program director, a department HR representative, a Union representative, and other department officers as needed or requested by the program director. The Teaching Assistant will be given a minimum of two (2) business days to prepare for this meeting.

Teaching Assistant’s duties are broadly defined to include a range of responsibilities. However, there may be circumstances in which a Teaching Assistant believes they are being asked to complete tasks that are beyond the scope of their assignment. Examples of such tasks include, but are not limited to…

• Being responsible for a majority of the creative development of course materials (assessment items, class notes/slides, etc.) without appropriate resources, source material, and supervisor support;
• Teaching classes in substitution of their supervisor beyond what the Teaching Assistant is comfortable and qualified to do (typically not more than 10% of class periods during a semester);
• Completing research tasks for their supervisor as part of their teaching assistantship hours while not being credited for their contributions;
• Completing other non-class related tasks for their supervisor.

Additionally, Teaching Assistants should not be asked to work more hours than their appointment level. For example, a 20-hour appointment should require no more than 20 hours of work in a typical week. Supervisors may ask Teaching Assistants to redistribute work in adjacent weeks on special occasions (e.g., exam grading or project grading weeks) such that one week requires slightly more than 20 hours of work. An appropriate reduction of work should be granted in an adjacent week such that the two weeks do not average above the Teaching Assistant’s weekly appointment level. Furthermore, such redistribution of hours should be minimal, no more than three times a semester, and with sufficient advance notice to the Teaching Assistant. 

If a Teaching Assistant believes that they are being asked to work beyond the scope of their appointment, and if they do not feel comfortable discussing their concerns with their supervisor alone, they should reach out to the Teaching Assistant training committee chair and their program director for guidance. One or both of these department officers will advise the Teaching Assistant and offer to mediate a discussion between the Teaching Assistant and supervisor. If mediation is not successful, or if the situation is deemed to be of high concern, the Teaching Assistant may request that the issue be raised to a department executive officer (e.g., Chair or Associate Chair). In such cases, a department executive officer should organize a grievance committee (with at least one HR representative) to arbitrate the situation. The Teaching Assistant may ask a Union Representative to sit in on this meeting. 

Consistent with University policies, Teaching Assistants who report a grievance with their supervisor in good faith will be protected from retaliation. In serious cases, a Teaching Assistant  may request to be reassigned mid-semester to a different supervisor.

Each year, the department will recognize one or more department Teaching Assistants who excelled in their positions. These awards will be decided from a committee of faculty and staff in the department, and one or more award winners will be chosen based on nominations of teaching supervisors within the past year. Committee members may also consider previous nominations and evaluations to help in choosing a winner or winners. While both Master’s and PhD level Teaching Assistants will be eligible to receive these awards, the committee will name at least one PhD winner each year.

See Awards for more details and for a list of previous award winners.