Funding

Each year, the program awards three $10,000 fellowships. The fellowships are renewable for three years. These fellowships are competitive. Applicants to the program are automatically considered for these awards. Recipients of these fellowships are also prioritized for additional support in the form of a graduate assistantship (see below). Note: Fellowships are awarded in the late spring for the following academic year.

The Graduate Assistantship in English

The Department of English offers graduate assistantships for qualified students. The graduate assistant is awarded a $9,800 stipend for an academic year (two long terms) and qualifies for state health benefits. The typical assistantship is renewable for a total of six long terms. The graduate assistant usually works twenty hours a week. A graduate assistant will be assigned to one (or more) of the following positions each semester, depending on need and available openings. The Chair of the Department of English makes all graduate assistant assignments.

Academic Success Center Tutor

The Sam Houston State University Academic Success Center, to which a number of graduate assistants are assigned as tutors, offers help in writing to students, staff, faculty, and members of the community. After training, ASC assistants typically work twenty hours a week, usually one-on-one with freshman and sophomore students who need help in planning and writing essays for classes across the disciplines in the core curriculum. But they may also give advice on writing résumés, lab reports, and job and scholarship application letters.

For further information about working with Academic Success Center, contact Dr. Mary Catherine Breen, executive director of the Academic Success Center: mxb079@shsu.edu

Teaching Assistantship

Teaching assistants typically work their way up the rungs of freshman English classes:

ENGL 0331 (Developmental English)

The graduate assistant helps students who have not yet managed to meet the University’s entrance-level writing standards. In remediating these students, the instructor concentrates on the fundamentals of composition—grammar, sentence construction, mechanics, and the basics of organizing and developing a simple essay.

ENGL 1301 (Composition I)

After earning eighteen hours of graduate credit, as required by the University’s accrediting body, the teaching assistant may be assigned to a Composition I class, which concentrates on formulating and developing a single thesis through an essay and on English syntax, diction, and rhetoric.

ENGL 1302 (Composition II)

Some teaching assistants are given the opportunity to teach Composition II, which picks up with the basic skills mastered in English 1301 but helps the students in the course develop more complex modes or patterns of writing. It also concentrates on research writing across the disciplines.

Texas Review and Texas Review Press Assistantships

Some graduate assistants serve part-time editorial assistantships in the offices of either the Texas Review Press or the Texas Review, where they gain valuable professional experience in the day-to-day editing and publishing work of a literary journal and a university press, respectively. For further information, contact TRP director Dr. J. Bruce Fuller (jbf026@shsu.edu) or Professor Nick Lantz (nick.lantz@shsu.edu).

Research Assistantship

Depending upon need, some qualified graduate assistants serve as research assistants to faculty engaged in scholarly projects. Contact Dr. Scott Kaukonen (kaukonen@shsu.edu) for more information.

Qualifying for the Graduate Assistantship

The applicant for a graduate assistantship must:

• be a student accepted in regular admission status;
• submit an application for assistant instructor

Texas Review Press Fellowships

The Paul Ruffin Fellow in Publishing ($5,000/yr)

The Paul Ruffin Fellow in Publishing scholarship was established by Texas Review Press in memory of press founder and Director Dr. Paul Ruffin. This scholarship is for a graduate student in the MFA Program in Creative Writing, Editing, and Publishing in the department of English who has completed their first year of study, and who has demonstrated excellent ability as an intern for Texas Review Press. The scholarship will be fully funded for 20 hour per week interns and half-funded for 10 hour per week interns.

The TRP Marketing Fellow ($1,000/yr)

The TRP Marketing Fellow was established by Texas Review Press for a graduate student intern at Texas Review Press who has demonstrated ability in the press’s marketing and promotional efforts. This scholarship is for a graduate student in the Department of English and will be fully funded for 20 hour per week interns and half-funded for 10 hour per week interns.

The TRP Publicity Fellow ($1,000/yr)

The TRP Publicity Fellow was established by Texas Review Press for a graduate student intern at Texas Review Press who has demonstrated ability in the press’s publicity and social media efforts. This scholarship is for a graduate student in the Department of English and will be fully funded for 20 hour per week interns and half-funded for 10 hour per week interns.

The TRP Editorial Fellow ($1,000/yr)

The TRP Editorial Fellow was established by Texas Review Press for a graduate student intern at Texas Review Press who has demonstrated ability in editing and publishing. This scholarship is for a graduate student in the Department of English and will be fully funded for 20 hour per week interns and half-funded for 10 hour per week interns.

The Texas Review Editorial Fellow ($1,000/yr)

The Texas Review Editorial Fellow was established by Texas Review Press for a graduate student intern at Texas Review Press who serves as the assistant editor for the Texas Review literary journal. This scholarship is for a graduate student in the Department of English and will be fully funded for 20 hour per week interns and half-funded for 10 hour per week interns.

Additional Scholarships

Additional support may be found through the Scholarships4Kats resource center. For more information, visit the Financial Aid Office. Or call the Aid Office at 936-294-1774 (Toll Free: 1-866-BEARKAT).