Financial Aid & Assistantships

Pre-Professional Training Opportunities

Qualified students have a range of opportunities to learn and to develop new skills under the supervision of professionals in various fields requiring a high degree of facility with language, literature, critical analysis, and verbal expression. Within FGCU, English MA students work as teaching assistants or associates for composition courses; as research assistants who collaborate with faculty on research projects; as project managers for the English program; as editors for The Mangrove Review and Aquila; and as staff for the FGCU Sanibel Island Writers’ Conference. For more information, please read below.

Through the FGCU English Master’s program, I was able to develop confidence in my own skills and abilities, especially my writing, and I was also able to further develop the professional skills necessary for a variety of writing- and teaching-related positions through the availability of internships, small class sizes, the availability and willingness of the faculty to engage with and mentor their students, and the teaching assistantship that was offered to me.

~ Christina Prosnak, Assistant Language Teacher, The Japan Exchange & Teaching Program

Graduate Assistants (GA) Compensation & Responsibilities

Graduate Assistantships, which include a stipend and a tuition-waiver, are available on a competitive basis—the student’s initial admission package determines placement. The English MA Program Coordinator, in consultation with English faculty and the Chair of the Department of Language and Literature, tenders the offers for Graduate Assistantships.

These assistantships require ten hours of work per week for a semester (fifteen weeks total), and they are usually allocated for positions as Graduate Teaching Assistants (GTAssistants) who assist a faculty member with a composition course. However, depending upon university support, graduate assistantships might also be available for duties as a research assistant with a faculty member, project manager for the English program, editor with The Mangrove Review and Aquila, or staff assistant for the FGCU Writers’ Conference.

FAQs
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What is a Graduate Assistantship (GA-ship)?
- A Graduate Assistantship is support for a first-year MA student that consists of doing on-campus work in exchange for a stipend and a set number of tuition waiver hours.
What is the work requirement for Graduate Teaching Assistantship (GTAssistantship) for first-year students?
- GTAssistantship requires an average of 10 hours of work per week for 15 weeks.
If a student receives a GA-ship for the fall semester, will that GA-ship be renewed for the spring semester automatically?
- No, the GA-ship will not be renewed automatically. The student must maintain good academic standing (3.0 GPA) and perform all duties at an acceptable level in order to have the opportunity to continue the GA-ship for a second semester.
How are these GA-ships awarded?
- All applicants to the program automatically receive consideration for a GA-ship during the admissions process.
- GA-ships are awarded on a competitive basis by the MA in English admissions committee, taking into consideration the quality of candidates’ application materials.
Minimum Requirements
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- Formal acceptance into the MA program in English and letter of invitation to become a Graduate Assistant.
- Graduate Teaching Assistants (GTAssistants) must complete 18 credit hours of graduate course work in English during their first year in order to be eligible for a Graduate Teaching Associateship (GTAssociateship: teaching one or two composition courses per semester as instructor of record) in their second year.
Responsibilities for Graduate Teaching Assistants (GTAssistants)
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- You must commit to serving an average of 10 hours per week to assist the assigned Composition course.
- You must maintain good academic standing (3.0 GPA) and perform all duties at an acceptable level in order to have the opportunity to continue your assistantship for a second semester.
Stipend and Tuition waiver for GTAssistantships
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- You will receive a stipend of $2,000 spread over 9 pay periods for the semester.
- You may receive a tuition waiver for up to 9 credit hours per semester. This waiver covers only in-state tuition but not fees.
- Your tuition waiver and stipend are guaranteed for only one semester. If you fulfill all your GTAssistantship responsibilities satisfactorily and remain in good academic standing, your GTAssistantship may be extended into a second semester.
- Your contract will be discontinued and the stipend will be prorated if you do not fulfill the responsibilities of this contract.
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Graduate Teaching Associates (GTAssociates) Compensation & Responsibilities

A limited number of Graduate Teaching Associateships are available each year. Once appointed and credentialed, a GTAssociate teaches one or two composition courses per semester as instructor of record. These GTAssociateships include a stipend and a tuition waiver. To apply for a GTAssociateship, a student must have 18 total graduate credit hours in English with a 3.3 GPA or higher, pass ENC 6745 Composition Pedagogy with a grade of B+ or higher, and successfully complete a GTAssistantship. GTAssociates may take 3-9 credit hours of coursework per semester.

These GTAssociateships are awarded competitively, based on the student’s record of academic achievement at the graduate level and achievement in working as a GTAssistant. The English MA Program Coordinator, in consultation with English faculty, the Chair of the Department of Language and Literature and the Director of the Composition Program, tenders the offers for GTAssociateships.

In addition to standard student evaluations, GTAssociates will be evaluated through classroom observations by their faculty mentor, the Composition GTA Coordinator, the Director of Composition and/or the English MA Program Coordinator in each of their two semesters of teaching. Classroom Observation Reports will be submitted to the student teacher as well as the English MA Program Coordinator and the Director of Composition.

FAQs
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What is a Graduate Teaching Associateship (GTAssociateship)?
- A GTAssociateship is support for a second-year MA student that consists of a stipend and a tuition-waiver in exchange for teaching one or two composition courses per semester.
How many GTAssociateships are available for second-year MA students each semester?
- A limited number of GTAssociateships are available each semester, and the number varies with undergraduate enrollments.
How do I qualify for a GTAssociateship?
- You may apply for a GTAssociateship if you have completed 18 total graduate credit hours in English with a 3.3 GPA or higher, have successfully completed a GTAssistantship, and have passed ENC 6745 with a grade of B+ or higher.
- Application does not guarantee qualification or award of the GTAssociateship.
How are these GTAssociateships awarded?
- They are awarded competitively. Assignment of GTAssociateship will be determined by faculty who teach in the English MA and Composition programs.
Who gives GTAssociates their teaching assignments?
- The Director of Composition gives GTAssociates their teaching assignments.
Minimum Requirements
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- You must announce your desire to become a GTAssociate early in the semester prior to the one in which you would be entering the classroom.
- You must have taken and passed ENC 6745: Composition Pedagogy with a grade of B+ or better.
- You must have completed 18 graduate credit hours in English.
- You must have completed a GTAssistantship successfully.
- You must be in good academic standing. You must have a 3.3 GPA or higher.
- You must have the endorsement of the Director of Composition and the English MA Program Coordinator.
Responsibilities
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- You must assume all responsibilities associated with the planning and teaching of one or two sections of Freshman Composition per semester. These include the design of the syllabus and lesson plans for each class session, teaching and the management of class time, and all grading and evaluation of assignments.
- You must work with a faculty mentor and the Composition GTA Coordinator for pedagogy.
- You must cooperate with the Composition GTA Coordinator, the English MA Program Coordinator, the Director of Composition, and your faculty mentor to set up classroom observations within the first four weeks of class in both the Fall and Spring semesters.
- You must perform all duties at an acceptable level in order to maintain your GTAssociateship and to have it continued for a second semester.
Stipend and Tuition Waiver
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- You will receive a stipend of $3,100 per course per semester, which will be spread over 9 pay periods.
- You may receive a tuition-waiver for up to 6 credit hours per semester. This waiver covers only in-state tuition but not fees.
- Your tuition-waiver and stipend are guaranteed only for one semester.
- If you fulfill all responsibilities listed above satisfactorily and maintain a GPA of 3.3 or higher, your GTAssociateship may be extended into a second semester.
- Your contract will be discontinued and the stipend will be prorated if you do not maintain the responsibilities of this contract.