Accessibility statement

4. Recruitment and selection of GTAs

Principles: recruitment, selection and appointment procedures for GTAs should be fair, transparent, equitable, and in line with University rules and regulations on temporary and casual workers. The selection process should ensure that GTAs have the necessary capabilities for the roles they are being recruited to. 

The nature of the engagement of GTAs and departmental responsibilities

40. GTAs are subject to the policies and procedures for temporary and casual workers set out by Human Resources. Where GTAs are engaged as casual workers, the recruiting department has particular responsibilities (see the section on Pay and Conditions for GTAs for further details).

Duration of GTA positions

41. Departments are responsible for deciding on what basis they wish to recruit GTAs, eg to support individual modules, groups of modules, or for a fixed duration (subject to performance and conduct). Departments may also recruit a pool of GTAs to draw upon as the need arises, in order to maintain flexibility, but in this case it is vital that there is a transparent system for selecting suitably qualified individuals from the GTA pool when a specific GTA position becomes available. 

42. Where demand for GTA positions within a department is high, the department should try to ensure that as many suitably qualified PGRs as possible can benefit from the experience.

Advertising

43. All GTA positions should be advertised in advance. To enable all suitably qualified PGRs to apply, GTA positions should be advertised widely, including on departmental webpages and, where appropriate, with cognate departments and (particularly for more generic positions) the central YGRS Teaching Opportunities webpage (requests for the latter should be sent to  marketing-support@york.ac.uk). 

44. GTA advertisements should include the expected hours of work and rate of pay, the academic level being supported, the purpose and duties of the role, and the required training, qualifications, knowledge, skills, experience and attributes. The advertisement should include the relevant generic role descriptor (see above), supplemented (if required) with departmental/role-specific information. The advertisement should also include details of the selection process and selection criteria. 

Selection process

45. There should be a clear and transparent process for GTA selection, which enables departments to identify which applicant is best suited to an advertised GTA position. The selection process can also be used to identify any PGRs who may need particular support or training if they are to meet the GTA selection criteria in future. 

46. Prospective GTAs should be invited to submit (by an advertised deadline) a statement (either by letter or email) on how they meet the requirements of the advertised position. Departments may choose to ask for supplementary information such as a CV and references. Applicants should provide evidence that their supervisor(s) supports their application (#94), that they have undertaken the required training (#56), and that they have the required English language skills (see #50).   

47. Where GTA positions require direct interaction with students (whether face-to-face or virtual), the selection process should include a means of judging an applicant’s ability to engage effectively with students eg through interview and/or a presentation and/or a mock teaching session. Where a GTA role involves marking and giving qualitative feedback on non-numerical work it is recommended that the selection process includes a practical exercise in which a PGR’s potential to meet the department’s standards, with respect to marking and giving feedback, can be assessed. 

48. Applicants should be judged against explicit selection criteria based upon the requirements for the advertised position. All applicants for a GTA position should, where possible, be considered together.

49. In accordance with the Equality Act 2010, all applicants should be asked if there are any particular arrangements or reasonable adjustments that could be made so that they can participate fully in the selection process.

English language skills

50. All GTAs should demonstrate a standard of English language communication skills appropriate to the role. Language competence must be checked by the department as part of the selection process. Where GTA positions require direct interaction with students, and/or marking and giving qualitative feedback on non-numerical work, GTAs who are non-native speakers of English must have IELTS 7 or above or demonstrate performance at this level. For leading tutorials and seminars (and similar) GTAs should, in addition, have IELTS 7 or above in speaking or demonstrate performance at this level. A lower IELTS score can be justified only when GTAs are engaged solely to mark numerical work and this must be approved by the Board of Studies. Departments, through their Board of Studies, may opt to set a higher English language requirement for their GTAs than those specified here. Departments may find it helpful to inform prospective PGR students where their GTA English language requirements are higher than those set for entry to their PGR programmes to avoid disappointment. 

Unsuccessful applicants

51. Unsuccessful applicants should be offered an opportunity for feedback, and signposted to appropriate development opportunities. PGRs who do not meet the English language requirement should be encouraged to improve their English language skills.

Appointment

52. An offer of a GTA position should always be made in writing. For GTAs engaged as casual workers, the offer letter and Statement of Casual Engagement sets out the terms of the relationship between the department and the GTA and should include:

  • a brief description of the role 
  • the duration of the appointment
  • the duties of the role
  • any required training and/or induction activities 
  • the hours of work (per week and in total) including, where applicable, the estimated time to be allocated to different responsibilities (eg preparation, contact and marking) 
  • the rate or rates of pay, and the intervals at which remuneration will occur
  • details of the academic staff member(s) with responsibility for supervising, line-managing and mentoring the GTA
  • details of where the GTA can access the department’s policy on GTAs and departmental information for GTAs
  • any legal obligations that work as a GTA in a specific department may entail.