Aspiring artists often want to pursue a Master of Studio Arts degree, one of the 50 highest paying master’s degrees, to develop their own art skills. They don’t always want to be teachers. However, many graduate school programs require students to work as a teacher’s assistant, also known as a TA. Prospective graduate art students should consider whether experience as a TA is right for them and look for a school that matches their preferences. Some graduate art schools make more use of graduate teacher’s assistants than others.
The Use of Graduate Students as Teaching Assistants
Graduate students are sometimes hired as TAs who instruct or assist with instructing undergraduates. Some TAs shoulder primary responsibility for instructing an undergraduate course, going so far as to develop their own syllabus and get it approved by supervising faculty. Other TAs are only assistants who help a more experienced and more highly credentialed professor perform tasks like grading.
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Just because you are accepted into a Master of Studio Arts degree program doesn’t mean that you must work as a TA. In many programs, teaching assistantships are opportunities offered to promising students, not an obligation that all enrolled students must fulfill. However, certain Master of Studio Arts programs that emphasize teaching may include some form of mandatory teaching assistantship experience for all students. It’s important for students to understand before they enroll what specific TA experiences are offered or required by an individual graduate degree program. If you don’t want to be a teaching assistant, there are plenty of Master of Studio Art programs where you won’t have to. If you do want this experience, it’s a good idea to look for a program where assistantships are offered to all students.
Some graduate fine arts programs offer teaching assistantships to all new graduate students. Students who accept the teaching assistantship may undergo some training to teach a foundation-level undergraduate studio art course that fits their strengths.
The Benefits of a Teaching Assistantship
Why would a graduate art student want to work as a TA? Teaching assistantships offer some great benefits. First of all, teaching assistants are often employees who receive a financial stipend from the school. Sometimes they receive some sort of tuition discount or waiver, making their graduate education a lot more affordable.
Then, of course, there’s the value of experience. If you aspire to be an art teacher, your graduate teaching assistantship can be your first step toward your new career. Teaching your students the foundation of artistic techniques and critiquing their work also serves to deepen your own knowledge of your art.
As a TA, you also have the opportunity to make an impact on the next class of emerging art students.
How to Succeed as a TA
If you do decide to take on a teaching assistantship, you will need some training and a lot of dedication. The better a Master of Studio Arts program can prepare students for their teaching assistantship role, the better position the TA is in to succeed. Many graduate teaching assistants are required to complete workshops and training in the development of teaching skills along with training in academic honesty and in discrimination and harassment. You may also be required to meet with your faculty supervisor a minimum number of times or to undergo periodic observations in the classroom.
For graduate teaching assistants in any content area, facing this dual role of student and instructor is challenging, the National Academy of Sciences reported. Graduate students naturally don’t have as extensive knowledge of their subject area as instructors who have completed their master’s degrees. It’s also important that TAs are neither so lenient that students’ learning is compromised nor so harsh in their grading and critiques that students give up and drop out or change majors.
If you don’t get chosen for a teaching assistantship, you might also find other graduate assistantship opportunities that may be available to you. Graduate assistantships are usually very competitive. Graduate assistantships for art students may also include work in printmaking studios, media laboratories, galleries, libraries and administrative departments across campus.
One of the recommendations TAs often receive is to take proactive steps to get to know their students. Often, this means finding a balance, such as requiring one-on-one meetings and conferences with a frequency that meets the needs of both the TA and their students.
Additional Resources
Can I Study Two Different Areas in Most Master of Studio Arts Programs?
Do I Need to Have a BFA in Order to Apply for a Master of Studio Arts?
Are My Undergraduate Grades Very Relevant When Applying for a Master of Studio Arts Degree?