Teaching assistantships
Teaching-related activity is an important aspect of graduate education, because it provides invaluable practice in clearly formulating concepts and conveying ideas.
TAs are funded by the Faculty of Mathematics and assigned by the department.
MMath students
Full-time MMath students are entitled to up to 3.50 TA units over the course of their 2-year program.
Students in the co-op program will not receive a TA during their work term. Any TA entitlement during their work terms is considered forfeited and cannot be deferred to a later term.
| Term | F | W | S | F | W | S | F | W | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MMath (Fall Start Term) | 0.75 | 0.75 | 0.50 | 0.75 | 0.75 | 0.00 | -- | -- | 3.50 |
| MMath (Winter Start Term) | -- | 0.75 | 0.50 | 0.75 | 0.75 | 0.00 | 0.75 | -- | 3.50 |
| MMath (Spring Start Term) | -- | -- | 0.50 | 0.75 | 0.75 | 0.00 | 0.75 | 0.75 | 3.50 |
Students who started prior to Fall 2026 will have a combination of the revised TA unit allocation and the previous TA unit allocations (e.g. 1.0 units) to fulfill the minimum funding commitment in their offer letter. While the TA unit allocation per term has changed, the total number of TA unit allocation will remain the same.
PhD students
Full-time PhD students are entitled to up to 8.00 TA units over the course of their 4-year program. PhD students admitted from a Bachelor's degree are entitled to up to 12.00 TA units over the course of their 6-year program.
Students in the internship program will not receive a TA while on internship. Any TA entitlement during their work terms is considered forfeited and cannot be deferred to a later term.
| Term | F | W | S | Summary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PhD from Masters | 0.75 | 0.75 | 0.50 | 0.75 + 0.75 + 0.50 = 2.0 Units 2.00 units per year x 4 years = 8.00 units |
| PhD from Bachelors | 0.75 | 0.75 | 0.50 | 0.75 + 0.75 + 0.50 = 2.0 Units 2.00 units per year x 6 years = 12.00 units |
Students can log in to Odyssey to view their TA unit allocations per term. Continuation of TA support is contingent on satisfactory performance in previous TA assignments.
TA Assignments
In the School of Computer Science, teaching assignments are determined and communicated by the CS TA Assignment Team.
Graduate students in their first and second terms will normally be assigned to first and second-year courses, and advanced students will be assigned to upper-year courses. Duties are specified at the beginning of the term through the Assignment of Duties (AOD) form and can include consultation with students, marking assignments and exams, preparing examples, or assisting with tutorial sessions. The workload varies depending on the course and the TA units assigned (e.g. a 0.5 TA unit is roughly 5 hours / week).
More information about TA assignments can all be found on the Instructional Support Group (ISG)'s website. For questions that are not found in the Teaching Assitantships (TA) FAQ, please contact us as CS-TA@uwaterloo.ca.
Teaching opportunities
Instructional Apprentice (IA) Positions
In recognition of the advanced skills of many graduate students, we have created IA positions as an alternative to standard TA positions. These positions have the same number of hours as a TA position and the same pay scale, but the duties are more diverse.
In contrast to a TA, who spends most hours marking assignments, an IA will spend time on other activities such as tutorial or lab instructors and holding office hours for consulting with students. Others will be responsible for coordinating and supervising TAs, or for creating assignment solutions and/or marking schemes.
Lecturing opportunities
While most graduate students will gain teaching experience through teaching assistantships, occasionally some senior graduate students may have the opportunity to be instructors. These assignments must be approved by the student's supervisor and the Director of the School.
TA Training Modules
New TA's must complete the following TA modules in LEARN within the first 8 weeks of their first term:
- Five standard Math Faculty modules: These five modules include three safety trainings (Employee Safety Orientation, WHMIS, and Workplace Violence Awareness); Accessibility Training; and Harassment and Discrimination (CMAHRO) training
- Cyber Awareness modules: Includes four modules on Cyber Awareness
To enrol in these modules, login to your LEARN account. Click the "Self Registration" tab, and search for the name of the training module.