School of Physics UTA Guidelines
Latest revision: Summer 2024
- Eligibility. Georgia Tech undergraduate students who have earned a grade of “A” in a 2000-, 3000-, or 4000-level physics course are eligible to be UTAs for that course. UTAs are not hired in summer semesters. UTAs cannot be assigned to classes that are cross-listed graduate/undergraduate.
- Teaching assignments. There are two different teaching assignments for UTAs in the School of Physics:
- Intro Physics. These are students who assist with the lab instruction in the large enrollment intro physics courses (PHYS 2211 and PHYS 2212, regular and IPLS).
- Non-Intro. These are students who are assigned to any other class that is not PHYS 2211/2212.
- Pay rate. All UTAs are paid at a rate of $15 per hour. Each pay period lasts two weeks, so UTAs receive a paycheck every other week. The total semester pay depends on the specific teaching assignment and could vary from one semester to another due to the schedule of GT Holidays and breaks. See the sections below for the specific pay details for each teaching assignment.
- Intro Physics UTAs. The weekly workload for Intro Physics UTAs consists of 3 hours per lab section (maximum 3 sections), plus 1 hour for a mandatory weekly TA meeting (2 hours for the first meeting of the semester). The total hours per week are therefore 4/7/10 hrs for 1/2/3 lab sections, respectively.
- Intro Physics UTAs in the IPLS classes may also have grading duties which will affect their total weekly hours.
- Intro Physics UTAs may pick up additional hours for proctoring tests (but not final exams), at a rate of 2 hours per test, as long as their total time does not exceed 10 hours per week.
- Intro Physics UTAs are paid only for weeks in which there are lab meetings, which means there will be no pay on weeks in which lab sections do not meet (e.g., Labor Day, Thanksgiving, MLK Day, Fall Break, Spring Break, and the week with the final instructional days).
- Please note that it is the UTA’s responsibility to inform the UTA Coordinator by email before Friday at noon on any week in which their hours need to be adjusted (for example, a reduction in hours due to sickness, or an increase in hours for proctoring exams).
- Non-Intro UTAs. The expected semester workload for Non-Intro UTAs is a 130 hours total, spread out over the 15 weeks of the semester. As such, Non-Intro UTAs are expected to work an average of approximately 8 hours 40 minutes every week (8.67 hours), and are paid a fixed stipend of $1950 for the entire semester. Duties and responsibilities for Non-Intro UTAs can include any of the following:
- Facilitating or helping to facilitate labs, recitations, or studio sessions.
- Grading assignments such as homework, lab reports, worksheets, projects. The instructor must provide the UTAs with clear, legible solutions and a detailed rubric with instructions on what, if anything, is left to the UTA’s judgment. UTAs are expected to complete grading within 10 days of receiving the assignment (within reason, barring unexpected circumstances), unless an alternate arrangement is made with the course instructor.
- Holding office hours not to exceed 2 hours/week. These office hours will act as supplement to the instructor’s office hours, not as replacement for them.
- Proctoring and helping to grade semester quizzes, tests, or exams. Note that this is NOT permitted for final exams.
