Graduate Assistantships
Through many types of graduate assistantship, you will enhance your academic experience at RISD and professional trajectory after graduation. Learn more below.
What is an assistantship?
Most graduate assistantships originate in academic departments or divisions with graduate programs and are assigned to students by their home department’s graduate program director (GPD). We also encourage departments that do not have majors or only offer an undergraduate degree, as well as other campus offices that wish to hire a graduate assistant, to post on-campus jobs on a centralized job board.
Regardless of assistantship type, your position should enhance your professional and scholarly development, while also filling an operational need for the hiring department or office. Assistantships support faculty teaching and scholarship, as well as departmental, divisional and institutional initiatives and priorities.
Graduate assistantship FAQs
Who is eligible for an assistantship?
Graduate students currently enrolled at RISD and who are studying in Rhode Island are eligible for graduate assistantships.
What type of employment is an assistantship?
Graduate assistantships are compensated student employment. They are not financial aid, scholarships or tuition support.
Assistantships must involve actual work assigned by a department, program, faculty member or campus office. Depending on the position, students may be asked to support teaching, research, technical, programmatic, departmental or institutional work.
Students may not begin work until all required hiring and onboarding steps are complete, including the Form I-9 process when required. Learn more about the onboarding process below.
What is not an assistantship?
Student positions that are not considered graduate assistantships include on-campus hourly positions that do not require a bachelor's degree or equivalent and/or are not closely aligned pedagogically aligned with the student's area of study.
Payroll schedule
Graduate assistantship payments are generally processed on or around the 20th of the month. Preparation for that payroll closes around the 15th of the month.
- If your assistantship is entered after the 15th, or if you complete required onboarding after the 15th, your first payment may be delayed until a later payroll.
- If you also hold an hourly student job, that position will follow a separate biweekly payroll schedule and require time tracking in Workday.
2025–26 grad assistantship payroll schedule
Can a graduate assistantship be used to provide financial support if no work is required?
No. All graduate assistantships must involve actual work and cannot be used solely as a form of financial support. Assigning a student to a job with no duties (“ghost job”) is not compliant with institutional, state or federal regulations. This also has tax implications and may endanger visa status for international students.
Understand your employee responsibilities
Our guide to student employee rights and responsibilities will help set you up for success in your new role.
Take your next step
Learn more about graduate assistantship opportunities at RISD.
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Types of graduate assistantships
Graduate assistantships support a range of work at RISD, including teaching, research, technical, programmatic, departmental, and institutional work. Specific duties, setup, and payment requirements may vary by position.
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Hiring and onboarding
Learn more about the steps you need to take for starting your graduate assistantship at RISD.
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Contracts and payment
Learn more about what to expect when you start your graduate assistantship position.