This fall semester we were able to employ four graduate English students as Teaching Assistants (TAs) in online undergraduate courses, there to assist the instructor of record in a number of different ways. We are now accepting applications for those interested in securing a TA position for spring 2022. We anticipate being able to employ more TAs than in previous semesters, and so we encourage everyone with an interest (including those who have held TA positions in previous semesters) to apply.

Experience as a TA can be a valuable line-item in a curriculum vitae. And assisting in an online classroom will provide a first-hand look at how an actual college English course unfolds over a semester. TA positions are excellent experiential opportunities for anyone who aspires to teach at any level. For anyone who is already an active or experienced teacher, TA positions offer you a chance to use your expertise to make a significant positive impact on the development of undergraduate students who very much need your help.

Duties of the TA vary from class to class depending on the needs of the instructor. For more information, including qualifications for holding a TA position, consult the TA guidelines linked here. Review as well the TA Netiquette form linked here.

In addition, TAs will be required to attend a live zoom orientation session/discussion near or before the beginning of the spring semester.

TAs this fall semester are working 3 paid hours per week (remotely) and making $15/hour. The semester is 15 weeks long so the pay for the semester is $675. We anticipate that the pay/hours situation will be the same in spring 2022. The pay is therefore minimal. The real value of the TA position is the experience it provides.

To apply for a spring 2022 TA position send an email to cloots@mercy.edu by the end of Sunday November 21, using the subject line ENGLISH TA APPLICATION, and with the following materials attached:

1. Resume
2. The name of one MA faculty member who will recommend you (we will check with the faculty member to confirm their recommendation; make sure you establish with that person beforehand if she or he will recommend you).
3. A short statement of purpose, just a paragraph or two (between 200 and 400 words) expressing why you are interested in being a TA at Mercy College.
4. A short statement of your philosophy of teaching, just a paragraph or two (between 200 and 400 words).
5. The completed activity linked here.

If you applied in the past for a TA position but were not offered a position you can resubmit, if you like, the same materials you submitted previously.

As a final note, people interested in being a TA are encouraged (but not required) to take ENGL 510 Theory & Practice of Expository Writing in the spring. Dr. Proszak, who is teaching the 510 course, is also the Composition Coordinator at Mercy College, and is interested in helping graduate TAs be effective in undergraduate composition courses.

Please send any questions to cloots@mercy.edu. Thank you.

Starting this summer, and hopefully continuing each semester thereafter, we will be implementing a Teaching Assistant feature in the MA English program. Because the term “Teaching Assistant” is already a technical term at Mercy College with a number of implications and requirements and duties that are different than what we’re implementing here, we are going to differentiate this by calling what we’re implementing here a “Blackboard English Assistantship” (BEA).

BEAs will be placed inside of online undergraduate English composition classrooms to assist the instructor of record. You can read more about the BEA requirements, procedures, and responsibilities in the PDF linked here.

At this point we expect to be able to fund two BEAs with a $500 stipend, each, this summer. Each BEA would be responsible for assisting in one class this summer (the semester runs from May 27 through August 4).

Experience as an assistant inside of a college classroom can be a valuable line-item in a curriculum vitae. And assisting in a classroom will provide a first-hand look at how an actual college composition course unfolds over a semester. If the interest in BEA opportunities exceeds what we are able to fund, we will consider offering additional unfunded BEA positions to those seeking the experience.

Anyone interested in applying for a BEA for summer 2020 must email the following materials before the end of May 10 to the Program Director at cloots@mercy.edu:

1. Resume
2. A recommendation from any MA faculty (This does not have to be a formal letter. It can just be a brief email from the faculty member expressing their support. You can forward that email to the Program Director)
3. A short statement of purposes, just a paragraph or two (between 200 and 400 words) expressing why you are interested in being a Blackboard English Assistant in a Mercy classroom
4. The completed activity linked here.

This current application cycle is only for summer 2020. We will put up a call for fall 2020 BEA applications later, during the summer, once we are clearer on what funding we will be able to provide. Please send any questions to cloots@mercy.edu. Thank you.