Division of Graduate Studies' Allocations & Funding

We've summarized some important information pertinent to our guidelines and resources that will smooth our funding processes, allowing your program and students to grow and Master Tomorrow.

Announcements

2024-2025 Graduate Assistantship Appointment Dates

Per the current UNI's approved academic calendar, the Fall 2024 Graduate Assistantship contract starts 8/26/2024 and ends 12/20/2024. The Spring 2025 appointment starts 1/21/2025 and ends 5/16/2025.

2024-2025 Graduate Assistantship Stipend

The 2023-25 full-time Graduate Assistantship stipend amount is $6,000.00 per semester. The half-time appointment stipend is $3,000.00 per semester. This amount is flat and the same for all graduate programs.

2024-2025 Tuition Scholarship amount

The value of the Graduate College Tuition Scholarship is based on the graduate in-state tuition rate, which is $5,015.00 per semester. The half scholarship's value is $2,507.50. Additionally, the quarter scholarship amount is $1,253.75.

Only the scholarships allocated from the Graduate College should be sent through the GC10 system. Any other type of department, grant, or foundation-funded scholarship awarded to graduate students should be reported to the Financial Aid office by the awarding unit through a FW90 form.

2024-25 Funding Cycle Deadlines

Programs must offer all allocations to qualifying students by March 15. For international students, offers should be made by March 1 (recommended).
The deadline for students to accept funds is April 15 (per CGS resolution).
Any declined funds using Graduate College allocations must be offered by May 1.
Unused allocations after May 1 will return to the Graduate College. All unused allocations will be centralized by the Graduate College the same day.
Per the UNI’s Strategic Enrollment Master Plan, all eligible graduate applicants must be admitted by March 1, 2023. This is the goal!
Payroll’s cutoff dates for PAF processing will be listed here: https://obo.uni.edu/payroll/paf. Payroll’s pay days will be listed here: https://obo.uni.edu/payroll/dates.
Awarded students will have till August 5, 2024 to fulfill Fall 2024 funding eligibility.
All Fall 2024 GA offers and PAFs should be processed by August 9. August 2 is the last desired day to process any Tuition Scholarship before the scholarship is paid to the student’s UBill.
January 3 is the last day Spring 2025 students have to fulfill funding eligibility. January 3 is the last desired day to process any Spring 2025 Tuition Scholarship before the scholarship is paid to the student’s UBill.
All Spring 2025 offers and PAFs should be processed by January 10, 2025.

Posting GA openings

Academic Units

All assistantship postings must follow specific language and will be approved prior to posting. Academic units can either post the GA opening on the departmental website or on Handshake. If posting on the departmental website, follow this example. On Handshake, students will be directed to apply through an external link, using the Graduate Assistantship online application form.

Academic Support Units

GA positions for Academic Support Units will be required to be advertised through Handshake so that prospective GAs will find openings. On Handshake, students will be directed to apply using the Graduate Assistantship online application form. All assistantship postings must follow specific language and will be approved prior to posting. Any GA opening will be also emailed to all current grad students by the Graduate College.

GA job description template (2024-25)

General Information

Student Requirements

The requirements for a Graduate Assistantship and/or a Graduate Studies Tuition Scholarship are:

(a) Follow the maximum support rule. Eligible students who received an Assistantship and/or Tuition Scholarship from your department in previous semesters have priority for support; but students will not be eligible for support beyond the maximum number of semesters.
- Master/Specialist students are allowed a maximum of four (4) semesters of support per degree. Students with a graduate double major can receive up to 8 semesters of support as long as progress in the second major is made.
(b) Full-time enrollment in 9 qualifying credits. Students who fail to enroll in 9 qualifying graduate credit hours by the end of the deadline will be moved to a late start date of the 2nd week of the semester, or to the Monday after meeting this requirement (stipend will be prorated).
The following cannot be used as part of the qualifying graduate-level credit hours:
- Off-campus courses, audit, courses taken as credit/no-credit, undergraduate, CIEP and courses through Continuing Education and Special Programs
- Repeated courses taken in a prior semester with financial support
- Students in their final semester need a minimum of 3 qualifying credit hours of required coursework to complete their degree.
(c) Having undergraduate transcripts on file.
(d) Being admitted without provisions to degree status in a graduate degree program.
(e) Having and maintaining good academic standing (Undergrad GPA of 2.75 or higher)
- All prior semester grades need to be posted in order for GPA to be verified.
- Students with a grade of “I” (Incomplete) will not be able to start their Assistantship until a grade is posted for that course and then their GPA will be verified.
(f) Must meet employment eligibility set by the Human Resource Services office.

Rescinding Graduate Studies funding BEFORE the semester starts

Awarded students should revisit their offers and decline the funds electronically by clicking on the link given while letting the Graduate Studies Division know (gradcollege@uni.edu). More information can be found on our FAQ information.

Rescinding Graduate Studies funding AFTER the semester starts

Graduate Assistantship

If a GA rescinds after the semester starts, a revised GC10 offer (indicating prorated stipends) and a TRM PAF should be processed. The Graduate Studies will provide the new stipend and adjusted payment amounts based on an end date. Always discuss termination and inform any withdrawals with the Division of Graduate Studies.

Tuition Scholarship

To rescind a scholarship, students need to decline the offer electronically. The Graduate Studies will process the scholarship removal and the student will owe the scholarship on their u-Bill. Refer to the following rule based upon the time of the semester that this withdrawal occurs:

"if the student withdraws from the semester or from the university due to a personal, family, or medical emergency, the tuition scholarship will be honored and applied to the UBill, based on the schedule below. This follows the percentages of tuition and fees refund policy. The percentages are the amount of scholarship that is removed (i.e: withdrawal during week 1, removes 90% of the value of the scholarship):

Week 1 – 90%
Week 2 – 75%
Week 3 – 50%
Week 4 – 25%
Week 5 and beyond – student gets to keep the entire award.

GC10 Electronic Offer Form system

If you received any Original or Extra allocation, when completing a GC10 Offer Form and using your allocated awards, please select "GC-Original Allocation" or "GC-Extra Allocation" as Funding Type, respectively.

Select your organization name as the “Funding Department” when submitting Original Allocation for GAs and/or TS. If you select another unit, your offer form will be incorrectly submitted and it might not reach the Graduate Studies on time for revision.

Personnel Action Form (PAF) for Graduate Assistants

Payroll’s cutoff dates for PAF processing will be listed on the OBO's website: https://obo.uni.edu/payroll/paf. Payrol’s pay days will be listed the payroll's pay dates page: https://obo.uni.edu/payroll/dates. PAFs can be submitted anytime. New system UNI Workday will impact some GA processes and now students will be paid biweekly and new hire paperwork could be completed in person at our offices.

Termination of Assistantship Appointments

A graduate assistantship appointment may be terminated for cause, including, but not limited to:

Failure to complete I-9 form hire paperwork on time
Failure to enroll in the minimum qualifying hours
Failure to maintain academic standing (UNI cumulative GPA 3.0 or above)
Neglect of duties or incompetence
Constant refusal to follow supervisor’s advice/counsel
Failure to comply with obligations as set forth by department/program rules/sponsored research agreements
Personal conduct that violates UNI student conduct code policy 3.02 state and federal law
Performance: unsatisfactory performance should be reported to GC. Performance that does not meet expectations may impact the renewal of the GA and, in certain circumstances, it may lead to the cancellation of already accepted GA offers.

Graduate Assistant Performance Appraisals

Evaluation is a crucial part of the Graduate Assistantship experience. It should be a supportive, constructive, and on-going process that helps identify strengths as well as weaknesses and develops a plan for improvement. All GAs must receive a formal performance appraisal, using the GA Performance Appraisal Form, based on their job description, by their supervisor each semester as follows:

An informal performance appraisal conducted 3 weeks after the student’s start date (optional).
A formal performance appraisal, using the GA Performance Appraisal form, conducted at the end of the semester.
At any point during the semester, additional performance appraisals may be conducted at the request of the GA or their supervisor.

Following the review, the performance appraisal form will be signed by the GA, Supervisor, and Graduate Program Coordinator or Department Head. Both the student and the supervisor share responsibility for ensuring that the evaluation process is carried out.

The performance evaluation should be kept in the GA’s personnel file in the department for at least 3 years once the student is no longer a GA in the department. Any evaluations that are not satisfactory or with discipline issues, and all related documentation, need to be reported to the Division of Graduate Studies immediately.

Performance that does not meet expectations may impact the renewal of the GA and, in certain circumstances, it may lead to the cancellation of accepted GA offers.

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