Our initial round of admission and assistantship decisions are made considering all people whose files are complete by February 1: by this date we should have received all application materials. Any applicants wishing to be considered for one of our specialized area fellowships or scholarships should apply by this time. People applying after February 1 are more likely to go initially onto our admission wait list, although we do admit later applicants as people admitted earlier decide to go elsewhere. Like all admitted students, applicants admitted off of our wait list will be offered a funding package.

While the specific tasks asked of assistants vary, what follows should provide some sense of what an assistant might expect to do:

1. Some assistants give feedback to drafts of student writing for undergraduate classes, proctor exams, or help with grading.
2. Others run study sessions for students taking Critical Thinking.
3. Occasionally, assistants work with professors doing such things as seeking research materials, proofreading, indexing books, and writing summaries of literature on a specific topic.
4. In their second year, most graduate students are the primary instructors of Phil 1010, Critical Thinking, Phil 2010, Introduction to Philosophy, or Phil 2030, Introduction to Ethics.

Graduate students will become primary instructors only after completing most of their coursework. Before teaching, a student must have successfully completed Phil 8970 (Teaching Philosophy). In addition, every graduate student teacher will take Phil 8980 (Teaching Philosophy Practicum) during their first semester of teaching. The philosophy department takes pride in the training and support it gives to its graduate student teachers.

Assistants are paid on the last business day of the month.

For Fall, the last business day of: Sept, Oct, Nov, Dec.

For Spring, the last business day of: Jan, Feb, March, April

For Summer, the last business day of: June, July.

Students who are admitted to the M.A. program with aid are generally promised support (in the form of an assistantship, a scholarship, or a fellowship) for a period of time, contingent on remaining in good academic standing and making satisfactory academic progress. Meeting any of the conditions below will make a student subject to review by the Department and may lead to discontinuation of support.

1. Being on academic warning.
2. Receiving a grade below B in a letter-graded graduate level philosophy course, or a U in an S/U - graded graduate level philosophy course.
3. Having more than one I (Incomplete) in a graduate level philosophy course at the start of any semester.
4. Having any Incompletes in a graduate level philosophy course that have been outstanding for more than one semester.
5. Taking less than a full class load (9 credit hours, excluding Phil 8900-8999) each semester during the regular academic year prior to starting work on one's thesis (indicated by being enrolled in Phil 8999).

This is not a complete list of the conditions that will make a student subject to review and may lead to discontinuation of support. It is not possible to make a complete list because there is a wide variety of unprofessional conduct that may trigger a review. Examples include (but are not limited to): theft of University property, unprofessional behavior in the classroom, violation of the University’s amorous relationship policy, violence towards other members of the University community, etc.

Note: Wherever the above policy refers to "philosophy courses" it also includes any courses taken outside the philosophy department used towards the satisfaction of the philosophy MA degree (e.g., courses for the Neurophilosophy track).

"Letter-graded" classes in the above refers to classes which are graded on an A-F basis.