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Assistantships, Residency, and Professional Societies
This section of the handbook addresses policies, guidelines, helpful hints, and opportunities for graduate students.
Research Assistantships
During the academic year, graduate students who are conducting research with a faculty member typically receive a 50% research assistantship. This assistantship includes a stipend for living expenses while tuition that is paid separately out of the research grant. The student is expected to work 20 hours per week in support of the research project in return for this stipend and tuition remission. Typically, this research is directly related to the student's thesis work. During the first two semesters, when students have a heavier course load, they may spend less than 20 hours per week on research upon approval of their research advisor. During subsequent years, when the course load is light, students typically spend substantially more than 20 hours per week doing research. During summer, students spend full time on research and typically receive a 100% research assistantship for a period of two and a half months. Note that a student does not receive paid vacations as a research assistant; 2 weeks of unpaid vacation are typically allotted during the summer. Additional (or less) vacation time is per prior agreement between the student and the advisor. Note that all research assistantships are subject to availability of federal research funds. Continuation of a research assistantship requires that a student maintain a B (3.00) GPA and perform satisfactorily in research.
Teaching Assistantships
During the academic year, some students may receive a 25% or 50% teaching assistantship. This assistantship includes a stipend for living expenses plus tuition remission depending on the percentage of the appointment.
Teaching assistants assigned to a lecture class are required to grade homework assignments, to provide written solutions to assignments, to be familiar with lecture material, to attend (or have attended in previous semesters) lectures, to proctor exams, and to grade all hourly examinations and the final examination. In addition, the lecture TA may be required to conduct occasional evening or daytime reviews for examinations.Teaching assistants assigned to the weather laboratory are required to conduct two (2) two-hour laboratory sections each week, to prepare and deliver brief introductory material relating to each exercise, to see that the equipment is properly set up and cared for, and to grade students’ laboratory notebooks and laboratory-related homework. All TA’s using laboratory equipment are expected to attend training sessions in the careful use of equipment, to follow established procedures, and to report breakage and malfunctions in a timely manner.
All Teaching Assistants are expected to hold one or two office hours per week for each 25% appointment. All efforts are to be coordinated with the faculty member responsible for the course.
Fellowships/Grants
You can also apply for fellowships, so that you control your support. NSF lets you apply in the fall, NASA in the spring. EPA and DOE also have fellowships. Below are links to these opportunities:
National Science Foundation Funding for the Research and Education Community
Department of Energy Scholarships and Internships
Tuition Classification - Residency
For information about tuition classification, call the automated phone service at 303-492-6868. Information on petitioning for in-state tuition classification, as defined by Colorado law, is printed in the tuition classification guidelines available from the Tuition Classification Office, Regent 1B 54. The guidelines are also available on the web at:
Read the guidelines carefully, and be certain you understand the petition process and deadlines. If you have questions about your particular circumstances, call 303-492-0907 to make an appointment with a staff member. In brief: In-state status will be required after one year for all students supported by the department. In-state status requires domicile (legal, primary residence) in Colorado for the year immediately preceding the first day of class. The only exceptions to the one-year domicile requirement, as provided by law, are for active-duty military personnel on permanent duty station in Colorado and for Olympic athletes in training at the United States Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Domicile is defined as your true, fixed, and permanent home and place of habitation. Domicile is a legal characteristic that everyone has, and you can have only one domicile at any one time. Your domicile is your legal, primary residence.
Professional Societies
The two principal professional societies for atmospheric and oceanic sciences are:
- The American Meteorological Society AMS (http://www.ametsoc.org/AMS/)
- The American Geophysical Union (AGU) (http://www.agu.org/)
Graduate students are encouraged to join one or both of these societies. Applications can be obtained from the respective home pages. Benefits of student membership include notification of scientific meetings, receipt of a weekly (AGU) or monthly (AMS) professional news publication, and discounted rates on purchase of professional journals and books published by the society.
Society dues and fees for subscription are the responsibility of the individual.
