English Department graduate students seeking financial assistance have two general options for support from SIUE: (1) University Support; and (2) Departmental Support.
1) University Support
One of the most attractive support options offered by SIUE is the Competitive Graduate Award, granted through the Graduate School. These fellowships include a modest stipend and remission of tuition and some fees. Fellowship recipients are required to carry a minimum of nine hours of graduate credit (three courses) each semester and remain in good academic standing; there is no teaching or other work obligation. More information about this award, including deadlines and application information, may be found at the SIUE Graduate School's Financial Aid page. (Please note that the CGA requires students to carry 9 credit hours at the graduate level; any 100-, 200-, or 300-level courses taken to help meet a language requirement or other undergraduate deficiency will not count toward this CGA requirement.) This same webpage also offers information on other financial assistance programs.
2) Departmental Support
The English Department has one financial support program: Graduate Assistantships (GAs). English Department GAs usually teach composition and work in the Writing Center, and anywhere from 5 to 10 such "teaching GAs" are hired annually. Additionally, the Department employs a GA to assist the editors of Sou'wester; this GA position is available irregularly. Students interested in serving as an editing GA must contact, prior to the GA application deadline, the editors of Sou'wester and must make sure their application materials clearly indicate their interest in editorial work.
Graduate Assistantships are for the nine-month academic year and provide both a modest stipend and a waiver of tuition, including one summer semester. Assistants must take two graduate-level classes each semester; teaching load is usually one course in one semester and two courses in the other, with some work in the Writing Center during the semester in which a GA is teaching only one course. It is possible to complete the MA program in two years while working as a GA, since the Department offers graduate-level courses in the summer term. English GAs are limited to two years' employment, and must be classifed, not unclassifed, graduate students.
DEADLINE: Applications for assistantships that are received in the English Department by February 21 are given priority consideration; applications will be accepted until all positions are filled or until May 1, whichever occurs first.
The SIUE Graduate School website has more information on Graduate Assistantships, including course load requirements and detailed financial information. Note that, as with the Competitive Graduate Award, only graduate-level classes (those at the 400 or 500 level) count toward meeting the minimum courseload requirement for Graduate Assistantships, which is two classes (six credit hours) per term. Please note that graduate students from outside the United States are generally not awarded assistantships for their first year of graduate study.
| NOTE: | students applying simultaneously to the English Graduate Program and for a Graduate Assistantship must submit TWO SEPARATE application dossiers: one for the Graduate Program, and a separate one for the Graduate Assistantship.
As explained in more detail on the Graduate Assistantship Application Form (Spring 2012) or Graduate Assistantship Application Form (Summer 2 012 and later), the GA application dossier, like the graduate program application dossier, consists of a cover letter, an application form, transcripts, a personal statement and/or writing sample, and three letters of recommendation accompanied by access waiver forms. While these two dossiers may be identical, it is to your advantage to "tailor" them; your GA application dossier, for example, may be stronger if it contains letters of recommendation that address your prospects for teaching success (or editing skills, if applicable), while letters in the Graduate Program application dossier may wish to stress the likelihood of your success in academic research and writing. Your personal statements could also reflect those different concerns. Students applying for a Competitive Graduate Award are also encouraged to get letters specifically tailored to that award. |
URL: http://www.siue.edu/ENGLISH/Grad/fellowships.html
Published by: Department of English Language and Literature
Last Update: by English Web Manager
SIUE