How easy is it to get a TA position?

[Asperfemme]

I am just starting my graduate program this fall and am expected to find a TA position over the summer. I am getting really anxious about TA applications having to be perfect and having to be super-competitive because I have no undergrad TAing experience (my school did not have undergrad TAs). I am also promised graduate assistantship funding but my program's student handbook indicates that "if I don't apply for a TA position for my first year, I risk losing my funding". 

 

However, is it really that easy to get a TA position? I am scared this would be like a student looking for regular jobs, where one may submit 50 applications and not hear back from a single one. 

 

Also, once I submit a TA application, when can I expect to hear back and is there some sort of an interview process?

 

And one more thing... What would be the "seniority date" of a new grad student with no TAing experience?

Edited June 24, 2015 by Asperfemme

[firewitch]

In my program, teaching assistantships are assigned to all incoming MA students that do not have other funding, and will be renewed unless the student's GPA falls below a certain level. At the doctoral level, they do not accept anyone without a plan to fund at least their first year, and afterward will work with other departments who need TAs.

 

According to your post, you are guaranteed funding, but must apply for other assistantships. My assumption about this requirement is that it helps them provide funding for more students, if some of them can get funding outside the department. It is really best to be working/teaching within your own discipline, but look through the school's job listings for something you think you can do (might not be teaching - there are also assistantships in office organization and campus life, for example). Be careful - you don't want to apply for a job that will take too  much time away from studying. I would not worry about how easy it is, because the main thing is that you applied, not whether or not you were hired.

[Jay's Brain]

Hi fellow Canadian! I'm not sure how it is for your program or university, but for the one I'm going to I think the assumption is that TAships are pretty much guaranteed for all incoming graduate students. For myself, I submitted an application for TAing, wrote down possible courses I am qualified for, and currently awaiting the results. Like you, I didn't have any undergraduate TA jobs. I received an email from the coordinator saying they will let me know which one I'll be assigned by the end of the summer.

[Asperfemme]

Thank you - this is all very useful information and I understand how the funding and the TA application process works now. It is definitely comforting to know that we are guaranteed a TA position as long as we apply!

 

I am a bit private as to which university I am part of because there are only a couple of ABA programs in Canada and I do not want my colleagues to find me on here. However, after reading your posts, I did get a chance to connect with somebody in my program, who confirmed that the information you have given me about TAships is correct.

[TakeruK]

Hi also fellow Canadian

 

It sounds like you got your issue resolved, yay! But for others who might be reading this, it might be helpful to know that since most TAs at most Canadian schools are unionized, you technically have to "apply" to every single TA position. At Queen's when I was there, it was just a matter of emailing the department with your resume and a list of courses you would prefer to TA. 

 

Then, the department grants TAships as specified in the Collective Bargaining Agreement. The exact process varies with each contract, but in general, the order is 1) first people who are still in their X years of guaranteed funding, then 2) people in the department, and then 3) based on seniority. Your seniority date is often the date of your first TAship with this school, which is "never" for an entering student so you would be at the lowest seniority level. This makes sense--you want to make sure older students who are already there get the funding they need to finish.

 

However, this process is only super formal because of the Collective Bargaining Agreement. Departments usually want to document their TA assignment process to ensure they comply with the Agreement. At Queen's, I was there prior to and after the Agreement took effect and there was no real change in the procedure, just a little bit of extra paperwork.

 

In my opinion, this is a good thing because although the system works now, I feel better having a clear and transparent process in the unfortunate case that the future holds more students than TA positions. Also, although my department was fine, I know there was a lot of confusion for some students in multiple departments and some students felt they were being unfairly passed over for TAships because of favouritism.