PRDD

Become an Undergraduate Teaching Assistant (UTA)

Students often wonder what types of activities, outside of the classroom, they can get involved with to broaden their educational experiences and become more competitive for graduate school admission, internships and even employment positions.  An undergraduate teaching assistant position is often a good choice not only for those students who see a career as an educator in their future, but also for those students with good organizational, analytical and leadership skills.

 

The university has a set process by which students may be selected to fill undergraduate teaching positions for instructors in many fields, including psychology.  Students may be invited by the instructor to TA for a course or they may sign-up to become part of the undergraduate teaching assistant pool through their major advising office.  Regardless of how one becomes part of the selection pool, all students must meet the following requirements in their first session as an undergraduate teaching assistant.

 

Students must:

1. Have an overall UCF GPA of at least a 3.0

2. Have earned 90% or above OR an "A" in the course for which they will be a TA

3. Register for the 3 s.h. UTA training course (PSY 4932 Undergraduate Teaching Experience for Psychology courses) and complete FERPA training prior to being enrolled as a grading UTA in any course.

4. Generally, students are expected to commit up to 10 hours per week to the completion of UTA duties or responsibilities which are determined by the specific instructor for whose course they are a UTA.

5. Students will receive an "S" or "U" designation on the permanent transcript for the satisfactory or unsatisfactory completion of the UTA responsibilities. This does not contribute to the GPA but these lettered designations are placed on the transcript upon completion of the UTA experience course.

 

The benefits of a UTA position:

1. Get real-world experience in assisting with an online or face-to-face course, including content development and lecture presentations for face-to-face courses.

2. Develop and master organizational, communication, and analytical skills.

3. Earn credit while demonstrating the ability for both independent leadership skills and collaborative skills working with other UTAs and students.

4. Develop faculty mentorship and advisory relationships for letters of recommendation.

 

Feel free to send questions regarding this and other activities. Remember it is never to early to start planning for the future. Take these opportunities while you can. Often, waiting until the senior year or last session prior to graduation is too late.