A number of other graduate assistantships and associateships, some administrative or research in nature and some which combine such responsibilities with teaching, are awarded on a competitive basis to students in the department. Most Calls for Applications are posted during second semester for assistantship positions beginning the following academic year.

Assistant Director of College Composition

With two positions open to advanced PhD students, Assistant Directors co-teach the two-week teacher training course, English 731, and the yearlong teaching practicum alongside the Director of Composition; work with the teacher/mentor program; and perform other administrative duties related to the College Composition program. This administrative position bears no additional teaching responsibilities.

Graduate Assistant Director, Howe Writing Across the Curriculum (HWAC)

The Graduate Assistant Director position at the HWAC Program is designed to provide experience for doctoral students in Rhetoric and Composition who are interested in researching and potentially directing writing across the curriculum programs or other types of writing programs. In special cases, MA students will be considered.

In this position, you will receive administrative, curricular, consulting, pedagogical, and research experience that can inform your dissertation project and help prepare you to be competitive on the national job market.

Graduate Assistant Director, Howe Writing Center (HWC)

This position is designed to provide experience for doctoral students in Rhetoric and Composition who are interested in researching and potentially directing writing centers or other writing support programs. In special cases, MA students will be considered.

The ideal candidate will have prior experience working in a writing center with both online and face-to-face consulting; a demonstrated commitment to mentoring undergraduate students; and/or experience working with multilingual writers.

Writing Program Administration

Graduate students also play other important roles in writing program administration. A team works together each summer to edit Rhethawks, the in-house publication that is required reading for all first-year writing students. Many participate as well in compiling the Teacher’s Guide on which new graduate teaching assistants rely in teaching first-year composition. And the Portfolio credit program involves doctoral students in every aspect of a process that culminates in a two-day holistic evaluation of writing portfolios submitted by incoming students for advanced placement.