How To Become A Graduate Instruction Assistant: What It Is and Career Path

What is a graduate instruction assistant and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

2 min read

Quoted expert

Dr. Cheyrl Ensley

There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being a graduate instruction assistant. For example, did you know that they make an average of $28.88 an hour? That's $60,078 a year! Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 2% and produce 5,400 job opportunities across the U.S.

What general advice would you give to a graduate instruction assistant?

Dr. Cheyrl Ensley

Interim Head, Associate Professor, Grambling State University

Flexibility is important. The graduate must be prepared and flexible! The graduate must be prepared to teach effectively and efficiently, regardless of the delivery method and flexibility regarding reporting to the school or working from home. Be prepared and accepting of the fact that what is required of you may change unexpectedly. In this age of uncertainty, the graduate must be flexible enough to perform as needed and remain focused on student growth.

ScoreGraduate Instruction AssistantUS Average

Salary

4.7

Avg. Salary $60,078

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

3.7

Growth rate 2%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

10.0

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 1.11%

Asian 7.21%

Black or African American 11.84%

Hispanic or Latino 18.72%

Unknown 4.66%

White 56.46%

Gender

female 49.84%

male 50.16%

Age - 45

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 45

Stress level

3.7

Stress level is moderate

7.1 - high

Complexity level

5.8

Complexity level is intermediate

7 - challenging

Work life balance

8.0

Work life balance is good

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a graduate instruction assistant

Explore graduate instruction assistant education requirements

Most common graduate instruction assistant degrees

Bachelor's

67.9 %

Master's

24.3 %

Doctorate

4.8 %

Start to develop specific graduate instruction assistant skills

Skills	Percentages
Classroom Management	20.62%
Course Curriculum	7.64%
Undergraduate Courses	6.36%
Course Syllabus	5.40%
Literature	4.35%

Research graduate instruction assistant duties and responsibilities

Develop and manage syllabus material; evaluate students' performance relative to standardize learning objectives.
Develop and teach a workshop on best practices for PowerPoint presentations.
Gain valuable teaching experience through the instruction of mathematics in a college classroom.
Develop innovative PowerPoint lectures with maps, charts, tables, and video clips that engage students with assign course texts.

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