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Graduate Sociology at SUNY Albany
Department of Sociology Graduate Student
Handbook
Graduate Student Support
Assistantships and Fellowships
Each year the University prepares and distributes
a bulletin, University at Albany Graduate Assistantships
and Fellowships: Information for Students. This
publication provides detailed information on
the University's policies and procedures as
they pertain to assistantships, fellowships,
and tuition scholarships. The document is available
from the Office of Human Resources and is sent
to each assistant or fellow with a copy of the
appointment form.
What follows are the policies and procedures
specific to the Department of Sociology which
fall within the guidelines set by the University.
Sources and Types
There are several types of state funded assistantships
and fellowships available at the University:
teaching assistantships, graduate assistantships,
fellowships, and presidential fellowships. Research
assistantships are available through grant-supported
research projects. All teaching and graduate
assistants funded on state lines at the University
are represented for purposes of collective negotiations
by the Graduate Student Employees Union/Communications
Workers of America, Local 1188 (GSEU/CWA). All
fellows and assistants/teaching, graduate, research/funded
through the Research Foundation of New York
or other agencies are not part of the GSEU/CWA
bargaining unit. Assistantships and fellowships
allocated to the Department of Sociology are
awarded by the Graduate Committee. Presidential
fellowships are awarded by the president of
the university following a university-wide competition.
Research assistantships are awarded by the principal
investigator of a sponsored research project.
There are assistantships allocated to administrative
offices on campus. These are awarded by the
directors of the respective offices: e.g., Advisement
Service Center, Office of the Registrar, Undergraduate
Admissions, Institutional Research, etc. Calls
for applications are generally held in the spring
of each academic year. Departmental recommendations
factor into a unit's decisions.
Selection and Renewal of Assistants/Fellows
Each year the Graduate Committee, based on
the department's allocation, sets aside a certain
number of assistantships/fellowships for incoming
students. Awards to first year students are
based on graduate application credentials.
A larger portion of the department's allocation
is awarded to continuing students. The department
aims to support students, once selected for
an award, throughout the normal graduate career.
MA students may be supported up to two years
on state lines. Students completing a doctoral
program may be supported for up to a total of
four years in graduate status at the University.
Support beyond the fourth year is normally through
appointment as a part-time lecturer or as a
research assistant on a grant.
Graduate assistantships may be terminated if
the student is not making satisfactory progress
in the program, or if assistantship performance
is unsatisfactory. Individuals are informed
in writing or in person if such action is taken
by the Graduate Committee. In addition, assistants,
as well as fellows and non-supported students,
must demonstrate satisfactory academic progress.
All students receive a written evaluation at
the end of an academic year, along with a check
list on which is indicated the program requirements
the student should plan on completing the next
academic year (see Appendix 12). The following
are representative of criteria employed to determine
who, among returning students, shall receive
an award for the coming academic year:
- Progress toward completing required courses
- Number and duration of a grade of incomplete
in courses
- Grade point average
- Number of credits taken per year
- Taking and passing required examinations
on schedule
- Paper presentations, publications, and indications
of academic progress
- Previous funding history.
Responsibilities and Duties
Graduate students who receive an assistantship
award are assigned by the Graduate Committee
to work with a faculty member. The expected
work commitment varies according to the type
of assistantship: full-time assistantship (20
hours per week), half-time assistantship (10
hours per week). Responsibilities vary, depending
on the needs of the faculty member to whom a
student is assigned. Generally, graduate assistants
perform teaching, research, administrative and/or
professional duties which are meant to contribute
to the academic development of the student.
Assistants are expected to perform their duties
following the academic calendar and are expected
to assist during final examination periods.
Assistants may be expected to provide service
over the entire period of appointment including
intercessions and recesses, provided the arrangement
is understood by the student at the time of
appointment.
Fellowships carry no work obligations. However,
the responsibilities and duties associated with
assistantships offer important graduate training,
and the department will accommodate fellows
who wish to work with a faculty member. During
those semester(s) a fellow works on research
with a faculty member, the student may register
for three credits in an independent research
course, with that faculty member as the instructor
of record, and register for nine credits of
regular course work. Fellows may register for
as many independent research courses as they
wish during the years they are holding a fellowship
and wish to work with a faculty member, but
only six credits of independent study courses
(research or reading) will count toward the
60 credits required for the doctoral degree.
Fellows and assistants may not hold more than
one full assistantship or fellowship or part
time lectureship or engage in outside employment
during the term of their appointment. Exceptions
based on educational, not financial, need may
be made by the Academic Vice President. An assistant
who wishes an exception to be made should ask
the Assistant to Chair for the appropriate application.
Requests must be submitted and approved prior
to the date extra service is to begin.
Course Load and Tuition Scholarships
and TAP
Students who are on full assistantship are
expected to register for 9 credits each semester.
Assistants on a full assistantship are eligible
for a tuition scholarship of up to 9 credits
per semester. University policy requires fellows
to register for a minimum of 12 credits per
semester and a minimum of 24 credits per academic
year. Fellows are eligible for a tuition scholarship
for up to 12 credits per semester.
The department makes every effort to award
tuition scholarships to assistants and fellows
commensurate with the registration requirements
reviewed above. Continued progress in the program
is the major considerations in the final tuition
award level.
All assistants and fellows who are non-NYS
residents and who have been at the University
for a minimum of 12 months will have their tuition
support provided for at the in-state tuition
rate. Non-U.S. assistants/fellows who are not
eligible for NYS residency will receive tuition
support at the out-of-state rate. Graduate students
who receive an assistantship or fellowship award
are required to apply for the Tuition Assistance
Program (TAP), whether eligible or not, during
their second semester at the University. Any
TAP awards are applied toward tuition before
the University tuition scholarship is applied.
Other Sources of Support
Part-time Lectureships
The Department is usually allocated part-time
lines to cover scheduled courses each semester.
The department has used these lines to support
fifth year graduate students and, when possible,
students beyond the fifth year. Students with
appropriate experience have been appointed to
a lectureship prior to the fourth year of study.
Part-time lecturer appointments are made within
the context of undergraduate program needs and
with consideration of the qualifications and
eligibility of graduate students not otherwise
supported. Lecturers fall under the UUP bargaining
unit; therefore, part-time lecturers are eligible
for a UUP tuition voucher for one course, regardless
of the number of credits assigned to the course,
during the semester(s) of appointment.
Continuation of support is dependent on the
University budget and part-time resources.
Tuition Scholarships
Graduate students appointed to department-supported
assistantships and fellowships have first priority
for tuition scholarships. The Office of the
Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences will
consider applications for scholarships from
students supported by research grants, as well
students without any university funding, when
tuition dollars are available. Academic performance
and progress in the program are the main criteria
applied.
Summer Sessions Appointments
In the fall of each year, the department invites
faculty and graduate students to apply for teaching
positions that will be available for the following
summer. The number of positions that will be
available for graduate students depends on the
number of faculty who apply and the department’s
summer stipend allocation. The main criterion
for appointment of a graduate student is the
successful completion of SOC 606 or its approved
substitute. Once this criterion defines the
pool of candidates, selection is based on the
following factors:
- The number of years completed in the program
- The number of previous appointments to surnmer
sessions
- The undergraduate courses to be offered.
Cutoffs for items one and two are a function
of the makeup of the pool. The courses covered
by regular faculty determine the third. Assistants,
fellows, and non-supported students are equally
eligible within this context. When making application
graduate students are advised to follow instructions
and provide all the requested information.
Competitions
The Allen E. Liska Award for Dissertation
Research
The Liska award commemorates the memory of
Professor Liska who passed away in 1999, and
is awarded each spring to support dissertation
research for a Ph.D. student who has defended
their dissertation proposal. The deadline for
the submission of materials is announced during
the spring semester. The winner is selected
by the Graduate Committee and the award is presented
at the Standing Lecture.
The Paul Meadows Award for Excellence
in Teaching or Research
The Meadows awards are given annually to sociology
MA and Ph.D. students for excellence in either
teaching or research. The deadline for the submission
of materials is announced in the spring semester.
Decisions are made by the Graduate Committee,
and the awards are presented at the Standing
Lecture.
A student wishing to be considered should
submit the appropriate material to the committee.
In its evaluation of teaching, the committee
will review course evaluations, recommendations,
syllabi, and any other relevant material that
is submitted. In evaluating research, the committee
will review a single written submission. A master's
thesis, a term paper, or a paper submitted to
a meeting or journal qualify. The paper may
be co-authored with another student, but not
a faculty member. Completed dissertations are
excluded. Usually, one award is given in each
area; however, two awards may be given in the
same area or no awards in either area.
Graduate Student Travel Policy
To encourage graduate student participation
in professional meetings, the department provides
funds to support graduate student travel. The
criteria listed below are used to allocate the
funds. Generally, the student travel award is
not sufficient to cover the entire cost of attending
a conference and is intended to supplement the
total cost of the student’s travel. The Graduate
Chair accepts applications for travel funds
each year: at the end of the spring semester
for ASA, and early fall for spring and other
meetings. An application consists of a letter
stating the name, dates and location of the
meeting with documentation of confirmed participation
attached. Technical details (receipts and other
documentation needed) will be provided by Cathy
Rose after the student is notified of the award.
Reimbursement is made after the student attends
the meeting. The amount of money available for
student travel each year is contingent upon
the department’s budget allocation.
Award Criteria
- Students may only receive support once each
year.
- The year is July 1st to June 30th
- Students must be on the program: presenting
a paper, round table or poster. Papers may
be co-authored but the student must actually
be the presenter. Other forms of participation
are occasionally supported, but mere attendance
(though arguably beneficial to students) does
not warrant support.
- Higher level meetings receive funding first.
Though it has not happened, this means that
all the money could be spent supporting travel
to the ASA and there would be no student travel
money for the rest of the year. (Students
should be aware that this is basically the
situation with faculty travel money.) Priority
level of meetings is:
- Level 1: ASA
- Level 2: National Specialty Meetings
(e.g. ASC, PAA) and ESS
- Level 3: Other regional sociology meetings,
sub-regional sociology meetings and sub-national
specialty meetings.
- Location of meetings is also considered.
For example, if the ASA is in NYC but all
the National Specialty meetings are on the
West Coast, then Level 2 recipients may receive
as much or more money than Level l recipients.
- Students of any year are eligible to apply
for travel funds and in most years, all requests
are honored.
GSO Grants
The Graduate Student Organization, not to be
confused with GSEU, offers grants of up to $500
for funding research projects (research grants),
travel, and other costs associated with conference/exhibition/participation
(travel grants). Research grants may be used
for travel to research facilities, purchase
of equipment and supplies, remuneration of human
subjects, costs associated with specialized
training, and other research related expenses.
Travel grants may be used to cover travel expenses
and room and meals, and are available only to
individuals presenting papers, posters, literary
work, or art work or to individuals serving
as a chair, panelist etc, for a symposium.
Separate funding pools for UA-GSO research
and travel grants are set up for each of the
three funding periods: fall, October/January
31; spring, February 1-May 31; and summer, June
1-September 30. Full-time students registered
at the University who have paid the mandatory
graduate student activity fee for the current
semester are eligible to apply. Part-time students
registered at the University at Albany who have
voluntarily paid the graduate student activity
fee for the current semester are eligible to
apply. Full or part-time students who pay the
graduate student activity fee during the spring
or subsequent fall semester are eligible to
apply during the summer. Complete information
and application forms are available from the
GSO office located in Campus Center 165B.
University at Albany Benevolent
Association Research Grants
The University Benevolent Association offers
grants of up to $500 to assist advanced degree
candidates pursuing research projects integral
to the dissertation or master's thesis or for
other projects related to more preliminary stages
of advanced graduate research. However, preference
is given to applications that seek funding to
complete the final stages of dissertation research
or its equivalent; secondary preference is given
to masters thesis/project research or to preliminary
project research at the doctoral level. Competitions
are held each fall and spring semester: the
spring competition is intended to support research
activity for the following summer and fall,
and the fall competition is in support of research
activity in the coming spring semester.
The Benevolent Association Research Grant can
be used to support the direct costs of research,
including travel to libraries, archives, laboratories
and other research facilities and resources,
costs of information access, remuneration of
human subjects, purchase of supplies or rental
of equipment, and other research- related expenses.
Expenses associated with having manuscripts
typed, bound and/or photocopied, and travel
to present results of research at scholarly
meetings will not be supported. Applications
for reimbursement of previously incurred expenses
will not be accepted. The call for applications
and their review are conducted by the Graduate
Committee. The Committee evaluates each proposal
and forwards its recommendation, including a
brief statement and a rank order for each proposal,
to the University's Research Incentives Committee.
The basic criterion employed by this campus-wide
committee in the selection of final award recipients
is the quality and feasibility of the proposed
research project. Beyond that, the committee
relies in its decision-making on departmental
rankings, which are to be based on the published
criteria.
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