DEPARTMENT of MATHEMATICS

APPLICATION for GRADUATE TEACHING ASSISTANTSHIP INFORMATION about the PROCESS and TA DUTIES COMMON PROBLEMS with SUBMITTED APPLICATIONS FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS about APPLYING OUTLINE of FALL and SPRING SCHEDULES Application forms are available at http://www.math.purdue.edu/jobs/ta or the page will mention when they are available. The deadline for applications is listed on the application form not in this document. Late applications are accepted until unless mentioned otherwise on http://www.math.purdue.edu/jobs/ta If you have questions that are not answered in this document, please send e-mail to Ms. J. Morris (jmorris@math.purdue.edu).

revised 03/02/2012

INFORMATION about the PROCESS and TA DUTIES

NOTE: The application process described in this Information and FAQs sheet, and the application form available from MATH 820 and at http://www.math.purdue.edu/jobs/ta are only for graduate students from Departments other than Mathematics, who have never been employed by the Department of Mathematics as Graduate Teaching Assistants and have not passed the Department of Mathematics' screening. If you are from a Department other than Mathematics and have passed our screening, you should send e-mail to jmorris@math.purdue.edu and fill out a schedule card for the semester you want to be considered. If interested in becoming a mathematics graduate student, go to http://www.math.purdue.edu/academic/grad/ In order to be eligible to apply for a Graduate Teaching Assistantship (= TAship) for a fall semester, you must (1) be a full-time graduate student working towards a degree at Purdue during that fall semester; (2) not be employed by another Department for that semester; (3) be eligible to start 1/2-time employment a week before fall classes start; (4) be free for the whole week before fall classes start. Since we do not hire new TAs in a spring semester, the spring application process is to identify students to whom we might be able to make an early offer for the next fall. So, in order to be eligible to apply in the spring, you will need to meet the above four conditions for the next fall. A complete application consists of (1) a completed application form, (2) an unofficial copy of all your transcripts (after high school) including Purdue transcripts and (3) an unofficial copy of your TOEFL scores (if applicable to you). Please note that student generated printouts of transcripts are not always acceptable. Application materials submitted electronically will not be accepted. Applications for TAships are only accepted at specific times: from around midMarch until (approximately) the end of June for fall applications; from around mid-October until (approximately) mid-November for spring ones. (Deadlines are listed on the application forms.) To minimize our workload we appreciate it that you wait for your application to be complete before sending it unless there is not sufficient time to complete it before the deadline. (Thank you.)

International students should only apply for the fall if their visa status allows (or will allow) them to start employment a week before the start of fall classes. There is not sufficient time between being hired and the start of classes to change visas, to change the sponsorship of an I-20 or DS-2019, or to obtain permission from INS to be employed. International students with questions about employment eligibility should contact their department or ISS at (765) 494-5770. If you are waiting to get a visa, list which one you plan to apply for and who will be listed as your sponsor (i.e., the person or institution that guarantees that you have sufficient funds to be a graduate student at Purdue) - not who is issuing the I-20. You should not wait for your visa to send your application but send us an update when you receive it. This application process is not one that allows you to count on this job to obtain a visa. Select applicants will be chosen solely on the basis of their application materials to participate in a screening. Names of applicants who do not get a screening slot at that time are included on a screening waiting list. The goal of the screening is to evaluate language, communication and teaching skills. Additional information about the screening and on how to prepare for it will be provided to those chosen for the screening. Applications are not carried over to the next semester. Those not chosen for a screening slot or who did not pass the screening will need to reapply. Only applicants with extensive teaching experience in the US might be considered for an early fall offer (i.e., before participating in the screening). Offers before the end of June are unlikely. Otherwise fall hiring decisions are made after the screening on the Tuesday before classes start. New TAs are hired from among those who pass the screening or are on the current teaching waiting list. (Students who pass the screening but are not hired, are kept on a teaching waiting list for one year.) A series of teaching workshops takes in most of the week before fall classes start. Attendance at the training is mandatory for everyone who is newly hired and for those who passed the screening and want to have their name included on the current teaching waiting list. It is the students' responsibility to resolve time conflicts between our mandatory meetings and activities in their own department - see last page for a tentative schedule. New TAs are hired for 1/2-time positions. 1/4-time appointments are rarely available for new TAs in the fall. A 1/2-time TA should expect to work on the average 20 hours per week (including finals week). New TAs with no teaching experience are usually given a Calculus recitation assignment while new TAs with teaching experience might be given Algebra to teach on their own. The Department of Mathematics does not hire TAs to teach specific courses and does not hire graduate graders. TAs' assignments change each semester and might have increasing levels of responsibility. The current pay rate for new TAs and how much tuition students are still responsible for are listed on the application form. Check with your Department about additional College or School fees that are not waived. Employment is on a semester by semester basis, though, whenever possible, it is continued for those TAs whose performance is better than good, who are full-time students working towards a degree and are not employed elsewhere. We always employ fewer spring TAs than fall ones. We need to be able to reach you once you turn in your application. So please send e-mail to jmorris@math.purdue.edu if you will be out of e-mail contact for more than three days, especially during the period that an update on your application status will be e-mailed - see application form - since that e-mail will require a response. If we cannot reach you (especially close to the screening), we cannot let you know that a screening slot became available for you. International students not currently in the U.S. should send us e-mail about when they plan to arrive and give us upon arrival a local phone number (yours or a friend's).

COMMON PROBLEMS with SUBMITTED APPLICATIONS

The following are some of the common problems we see with submitted applications. Some of these are explained further in the FAQs part of this document. Please check before you submit your application that none of these apply to yours. not being available for 1/2-time employment in the fall (for fall applications) counting on using employment with us to get a visa not being legally employable by us a week before classes start (for international) not listing the sponsor listed on the I-20 or DS-2019 having scored too low on an OEPT and not having been certified by OEPP afterwards (being currently enrolled in ENGL 6200 is OK but you must then be certified before the screening) not being free for the whole period listed on the application form and not explaining exactly what conflicts cannot be resolved (often first year students) stating that one is free for the whole period listed on the application form without checking first with one's department and then have unresolved time conflicts later on which result in losing one's screening slot submitting copies of transcripts that are too unofficial not including copies of transcripts or of TOEFL scores and not explaining why not providing all the information asked for or not explaining why it cannot be provided submitting an illegible application, especially an illegible, incomplete or incorrect e-mail address (handwritten applications are perfectly OK but make sure your e-mail address is very clear) submitting a spring application though graduating that spring or summer

All of the above lead to delays and extra work with processing applications. If you have further questions, please read the FAQs below before sending e-mail to jmorris@math.purdue.edu

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS about APPLYING

FAQs or parts of FAQs that might apply to both domestic and international students are in this color. FAQs or parts of FAQs that only apply to international students are in this color. 1 (a) I applied in the past but was not chosen for a screening. Can you use my old application? (b) I was chosen for a screening once but did not participate. Do I automatically get a screening slot when re-applying? (c) I participated in a screening in the past but failed. May I apply again? (d) I passed a screening in the past but was not hired. Do I need to apply again? (a) No. (b) No. (c) Yes. (d) No, send e-mail to jmorris@math.purdue.edu but read the OEPP FAQ. I have accepted fall employment. May I submit a fall application to get spring employment? I have 1/4-time fall employment. May I still submit a fall application to get another 1/4-time? No to both. We have few fall screening slots and possibly many positions to fill. For a fall screening we only consider applicants who are available for 1/2-time fall employment. I have accepted fall employment but will resign from it if offered employment by mathematics. May I still apply? Only if you include with your application a letter from the person or department employing you stating that it is acceptable that you break your commitment to them three days before classes start. We do not appreciate other departments hiring away TAs we are counting on. So, we do not do it to

other departments. We do not appreciate that people we are counting on resign at the last minute. So, we do not expect other departments to appreciate people they are counting on to do the same to them. 4 5 I have accepted spring employment. Can I submit a spring application to get fall employment? Yes. The spring screening is mainly to identify applicants to whom we can make an early fall offer. I am a graduate student who will graduate (and leave Purdue) in May or August. May I submit a spring application for spring employment? No. The spring screening is to identify applicants to whom we can make an early fall offer. We will be done with the spring hiring before the end of fall. I am currently an undergraduate at Purdue receiving a Bachelor's degree in Spring or Summer and will pursue a graduate degree at Purdue next year. May I apply for the spring screening for next fall employment? Yes but see also FAQ about not yet having been accepted formally as a graduate student. Do I have to be formally accepted as a graduate student before submitting an application? No, you do not have to be formally accepted, but you should list "pending being accepted" with "Department" on the first page of the application. Your application will be considered "conditionally" and it is your responsibility to send an e-mail update as soon as you hear whether or not you have been admitted. I am a new student and am waiting to get my I-20 or DS-2019 and/or my visa. May I submit an application now? Yes but we must know the type of visa you will have and who is or will be listed as your sponsor on your I-20 or DS-2019 (i.e., who is providing or guaranteeing the funding needed for you to be a graduate student). Write "pending" with "expires on" for the I-20 or DS 2019 and/or with "Visa". What do you mean with the "sponsor listed my I-20 or DS-2019"? The person or institution who guarantees that you will have sufficient funds to be a graduate student at Purdue - not the institution who issued or will issue the I-20.

10 (a) I need this TAship in order to be able to afford coming to Purdue. Is this going to work? (b) I need this TAship in order to list a sponsor on an I-20 or DS-2019, to get a visa, to renew or extend my current visa, to renew or extend my current I-20 or DS-2019. Is this possible? Only if you get an early offer (i.e., a commitment that we will employ you before you passed the screening). Early offers are very rare, require U.S. teaching experience and are rarely possible before early July. List "Consider for early offer" or " Consider only for early offer" on the top of the application if you wish to be considered for one but please do so only if you have experience teaching in the U.S. 11 My current I-20 or DS-2019 is sponsored by another university which is employing me but I want to join Purdue in the fall. Is that a problem? Check with your department or ISS before applying with us and explain carefully in your application what you were told and what the time frame is. It is my understanding that we cannot employ you until the other university releases your I-20 or DS-2019. There is not enough time between the fall screening and the start of classes to transfer or get an I-20. There have been cases of students ignoring this issue hoping that everything would work out in time and it did not. Not only were we told to terminate those students' employment immediately but the students ended up having to interrupt their studies and leave the country for the rest of the semester. Do not risk this. We need to know in any case who will be listed as sponsor on the I-20 issued by Purdue.

12 (a) I am an international student but was not required to submit a TOEFL score. (b) I took the TOEFL (a long time ago), I recall my scores but (or I cannot recall my scores and) I do not have a copy of them. (c) Is a different print-out of my TOEFL scores OK? (a) Write "N/A" with "TOEFL score" and explain why you did not have to submit a TOEFL score. (b) Check with your department whether they have a copy. List what you recall. Mention that you do not have a copy. (c) Yes, if it shows the breakdown of the total TOEFL score in the different categories. 13 I am an international student but have not taken an Oral English Proficiency Test (= OEPT). I am an international student but am not certified by OEPP. I took an OEPT and was not certified. I will take ENGL 62000 next semester. I am currently taking ENGL 62000. My department signed me up for an OEPT or told me to do so. May I still apply and can I be employed as a TA in Mathematics? Maybe. Passing our departmental screening is recognized by Purdue as equivalent to being certified by OEPP for employment in our department. So, taking an OEPT or being certified by OEPP is not required in order to be a TA with us. However, if you took an OEPT, did not score sufficiently high to be certified and have not been certified by OEPP since (after taking ENGL 62000 for example), we are not allowed to employ you in the classroom. Since we do not have non-classroom assignments for TAs from other departments, we cannot employ you as a TA and, hence, there is no point in applying. OEPP conducts an audit each semester for students employed as TAs who tried but failed to be certified by OEPP. We will be told to pull such TAs immediately from the classroom, even if they passed our screening. Since we do not have non-classroom assignments for such TAs, we have no choice but to terminate their employment. This applies also to students who take an OEPT after having passed our screening and do not score sufficiently high to be certified. Keep this in mind when signing up for an OEPT. If you are currently taking ENGL 62000, you may submit an application. It will be considered "conditionally" on you being certified (which is different from passing ENGL 62000) at the end of the summer session (for a fall screening) or at the end of the fall semester (for a spring a screening). You will be responsible for having your department or OEPP inform us of your certification result. 14 Is a transcript that I print out myself from my school's student system sufficiently official? Yes if (1) your name is printed on it by the school's student system; (2) it lists in what semester or quarter the courses have been taken; (3) it lists all the courses you took and the grades you received. 15 Should I wait for this semester's transcript to submit an application? A more recent transcript that will not list new grades in mathematics or statistics courses is not needed. If it will list new grades in such courses and there is time to meet the application deadline, wait to submit the application until you have the new transcript. If it is close to the deadline, include a copy of your current one and mention that a new one will be sent later. 16 I am not free for the whole period mentioned in the application. Will I be considered if I apply? It depends on what conflicts cannot be resolved. Look at the "tentative schedule" - last page of this document. Try to resolve the conflicts before sending in your application. List on the application which ones remain. New students must check with their department for planned activities for that period before submitting their application. We cannot adapt our schedule to accommodate yours. Most departments are willing to excuse their students for activities that conflict with ours (because they are employment related) but you must get their permission before applying. We will inform you whether or not the remaining conflicts prevent us from considering your application. 17 Should I submit an incomplete application now and just complete it later? Yes, if you cannot complete it before the deadline. No, if you can complete it in time to meet the application deadline. Incomplete applications create extra work.

18 Should I submit GRE scores, curriculum vitae, a resume, letters of recommendations, or diplomas? May I submit them? We only want the information we ask for on the application form. We do not take GRE scores in account. We do not look at diplomas. Including them just makes your application bulkier. We will not read letters of recommendations. Since the application form does not ask for them, it would be unfair to those who follow the instructions if we were to read and use such letters. We very much prefer that additional information (such as your teaching experience) be provided on a separate sheet of paper than in a resume that contains extraneous information. 19 May someone else submit an application on my behalf? May I submit an application on behalf of someone else? Yes to both. The person submitting the application may sign the form and should then list his/her name and e-mail address at the bottom. The applicant will ultimately be responsible for ensuring that all information provided (including whether or not he/she is free when required) is accurate. 20 May I send e-mail after submitting my application to make sure you received it? May I set up an appointment to discuss my application or chances at being hired in person or to set up an interview or a special screening? Should I drop by your office upon my arrival? Applicants who send in their materials via mail or fax will receive an e-mail confirming receipt within two weeks. Please make sure that e-mails sent by us are not stopped by a spam filter. You may send e-mail to jmorris@math.purdue.edu if you have not received an e-mail within this time frame. Do not send us e-mail right after faxing your application, for example, and please take in account that international postal mail can be slow. We do not meet applicants personally and have no screenings outside the official ones. We do not have enough staff to meet with every person requesting a private meeting. We do need to be able to reach you. Send us e-mail with your local contact information (your phone number or a friend's). as soon as is feasible. If you have no access to e-mail upon your arrival, you may drop by MATH 820 (8:30 AM - 11:30 AM and 1:30 PM - 4:30 PM on weekdays) to give us this information.

OUTLINE of FALL and SPRING SCHEDULES FOR FALL APPLICATIONS: Schedule outline for the week before classes start
This schedule is for applicants from departments other than mathematics who are chosen for the screening. Students on the waiting list for a screening slot, are informed when the screening schedule is final (on late Sunday or early Monday). They do not attend meetings. All the Monday and Tuesday meetings are mandatory for those who are chosen for the screening. Unless specifically mentioned otherwise, all the other listed meetings are mandatory for those who are hired and those who passed the screening and want to be considered for late openings or spring employment. Some non-mandatory events are not listed. A more complete outline for the week is sent to those chosen for the screening and a complete schedule is distributed at the first meeting listed.
Note: Due to new employment eligibility verification procedures the Monday afternoon meeting is subject to change. Monday 8:45 AM - 9:20 AM 9:30 AM - 10:45 AM 11:00 AM - 1:00 PM 1:00 PM - 5:00 PM Pick up materials. Refreshments General Information Types of assignments and discussion of screening Employment eligibility verification (see Note above) each person is assigned a 15 minute slot; there is leeway when making the schedule until the end of July; a person can go earlier than the assigned time slot but people scheduled for that time have priority; going later than the assigned time is not allowed

Tuesday

8:05 AM - 10:05 AM Screening or 10:15 AM - 12:15 PM each person is scheduled to one of these three screening times and remains or 1:30 PM - 3:30 PM in the room for the whole two hour period; there is leeway when making the schedule until the end of July; mathematics graduate students who require an afternoon time have priority over all others for those time slots 7:30 AM - 8:30 AM Pick up screening results and hiring decisions 8:45 AM - 9:45 AM Workshops (part 1) or 10:15 AM - 11:15 AM each person attends one of the two; which one is determined by the Tuesday screening schedule 9:00 AM - 10:00 AM Viewing of the screening videos or 10:15 AM - 11:15 AM each person attends one of the listed time slots; which one is determined by or 10:30 AM - 11:30 AM the Tuesday screening schedule; a participant may ask to be excused from the viewing of the screening video if absolutely necessary 1:15 PM - 6:00 PM Workshops (part 2) 8:30 AM - 5:00 PM Workshops (part 3) 11:45 AM - 3:15 PM Course organizational meetings take place during this period but do not take in the whole period; the exact schedule is not known until late on Wednesday or early Thursday but does not conflict with the Graduate School Convocation 3:45 PM - 5:45 PM Workshops (part 4)

Wednesday

Thursday Friday

FOR SPRING APPLICATIONS: Schedule outline for the week before classes start
In case of official Purdue holidays at the start of the week before spring classes start, these events take place on consecutive days starting with the first day that is not a holiday.
Monday Tuesday 2:30 PM - 4:30 PM (appr.) Pick up materials. Types of assignments and discussion of screening 8:15 AM - 10:15 AM Screening or 10:30 AM - 12:30 PM each person is scheduled to one of these three screening times and remains or 1:30 PM - 3:30 PM for the whole two hour period; there is some leeway when making the schedule until mid-December; mathematics graduate students who require an afternoon time have priority over all others for that time slot 9:00 AM - 10:30 AM Pick up screening results (and hiring decisions if any)

Wednesday

Students who pass the screening in the spring must participate in the training during the week before fall classes start (on the Wednesday afternoon, all day Thursday and most of the Friday) - see above schedule.