SAIC CAREER + CO-OP CENTER
Becoming a
Teaching Assistant
Instructions for Teaching Assistant Applications
STEP 1: PREPARING TO APPLY
You must have an SAIC Launch account to see TA postings
• To create one, visit www.saiclaunch.com and Click here to register at the bottom of the page
• Follow the instructions to create your account
* By the end of the next business day, you’ll get a password and log-in information via email
Once you get your password or if you already have an SAIC Launch account
• Log in, click My Account > My Profile on the homepage
• Complete and/or update your Demographic Information
• Click on the Demographic Information tab
• Select Graduate Student as your Year in School/Function at SAIC
• Select your program from the Degree Seeking or Attained pull down menu
• Click the Save button at the top
STEP 2: DECIDING WHAT TO APPLY FOR
• Click on Job Search
• On Position Type select SAIC Teaching Assistant (CURRENT SAIC GRADUATE STUDENTS ONLY)
• Click the Search button and wait for the results
Click on each listing that interests you
Some departments have one listing that covers all their TA offerings; other departments have
a separate listing for each position. (Save a listing to My Favorites so you can return to it quickly.)
Read the posting carefully and follow the instructions exactly – they will tell you what you need to
submit, how to format it and how/where you need to turn it in.
STEP 3: BEFORE APPLYING
Most positions require you to submit resume, cover letter, etc. via Launch
• Combine cover letter and resume into 1 PDF and upload it to your profile: My Account > My Documents
• Include your last name and the department name in your Document Name
* You can have many PDF documents attached to your profile, but you can submit only per posting
Note: You will not see the Apply Now button on a listing until you have uploaded your documents
STEP 4: APPLYING
Choose the position you want to apply for
• Click on Apply Now under the position title at the top of the page
• Follow instructions for selecting and uploading your document from My Account
• Click the Submit button
* If you do not upload the requested documents, your application will not be considered by the department
The Career + Co-op Center
Lakeview Building,
116 S. Michigan Ave., suite 1400
www.saic.edu/careers
Teaching Assistant Resources You May Need
Every TA should be familiar with OFFICE of STUDENT AFFAIRS, WRITING CENTER, COUNSELING
SERVICES. and the DISABILITY AND LEARNING RESOURCE CENTER (DLRC)
Writing Center
MacLean Center Basement
112 S. Michigan Ave., B1-03
Coordinator Contact Information: Leila Wilson, lwilson@saic.edu, (312) 345-3588
Fall and Spring Semester Hours
Monday - Thursday: 10:00 AM - 7:15 PM
Friday: 10:00 AM - 5:15 PM
The Writing Center is open during the winter interim and summer sessions with limited hours.
SAIC offers free, hour-long writing tutorials at the Writing Center, which is located in the
basement of MacLean. Tutors are available to assist all currently enrolled students with any
stage of the writing process, including the following:
• Getting started with writing
• Forming a claim or thesis statement
• Developing ideas
• Strengthening organization
• Improving writing style
• Revising drafts
• Correcting grammar, spelling, and punctuation errors
• Addressing MLA, CMS, and APA style questions
• Citing references
Writing Center tutors work with students to help them find their own solutions to questions.
Rather than correcting or editing papers for students, tutors work with students to help them
identify issues that need further attention. Tutors may ask students to discuss their ideas
as a way to specify, clarify, or deepen them. Tutors may also offer feedback on drafts,
suggest writing approaches, review information, and help students analyze their own
writing. Ultimately, the goal in the Writing Center is to help students become more proficient,
independent writers.
Appointments:
To schedule an appointment with a Writing Center tutor, students first need to create an
account on our on-line sign-up system: www.supersaas.com/schedule/saic/writing center.
Once students have set up their own account, they may sign up for appointments. Weekly
standing appointments are available upon request. When students come to their tutoring
appointments, they should make sure to bring their assignments with them.
Online schedule instructions are available outside of the Writing Center suite
(in the hallway outside of MC B1-03).
The Career + Co-op Center
Lakeview Building,
116 S. Michigan Ave., suite 1400
www.saic.edu/careers
SAIC Counseling Services
116 S. Michigan Avenue, 13th Floor, (312) 499-4271
Joe Behen, Ph.D., Director and Clinical Psychologist, (312) 499-4272
Nancy Easton, Psy.D., Training Director, (312) 499-4273
Cheryl O’Toole, M.S.W., Psy.D., Clinical Director, (312) 499-4275
Why do students come to Counseling Services?
• To get support as you make a transition (e.g. starting grad school, moving to a new city or country).
• To discuss family difficulties.
• To talk about feelings after the break-up of a relationship.
• To get help managing depression, loneliness, anxiety, trouble sleeping, or eating problems.
• To talk about a friend, family member, or roommate about whom you are worried.
• To deal with the aftermath of trauma, abuse, discrimination, gay bashing, or sexual assault.
• To learn how to better manage stress and create more balance in your life.
• To talk openly about drug use and learn ways to reduce excessive use.
• To break out of a creative block.
• To discuss core aspects of your identity, such as sexuality, in a safe environment.
• To help manage feelings of anger.
Counseling Services is a CONFIDENTIAL service: information communicated to SAIC
counselors will not be disclosed to anyone outside the Counseling Service without written
consent from the client. There are rare exceptions to this policy, such as when a therapist has
a concern an individual is at risk of seriously hurting him/herself or someone else. Counseling
Services are free to all currently enrolled degree-seeking students. Students may receive up
to 16 sessions per degree program.
Counseling Services psychologists are available to faculty administration, academic
department heads, full and part-time faculty and departmental staff for consultations
regarding distressed students. Each year Counseling Services maintains an active
consultative role to the SAIC community, and is available for both individual consultations
and ongoing consultative relationships. As faculty members are in an excellent position to
identify and respond to troubled students, consultation topics often include:
• Emotional / psychological / mental health & illness issues affecting academic performance
• Coping with various disorders (e.g. bipolar disorder, substance abuse & dependence)
• Response to personal crises
• Adjustment to transitions, such as the first semester in Chicago & at SAIC and graduation
• Responding to others’ distressing behavior
(e.g. public intoxication, students involved in self-destructive behavior)
• Topics affecting specific populations within the SAIC community, such as the unique
challenges and stresses faced by International students and Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual,
and Transgender Students
Counseling Services members are also available to provide information about mental health
resources throughout the Chicago area to interested faculty. Visit Emotionally Distressed Students: How
Faculty and Staff Can Help below at,
http://www.saic.edu/lifeatsaic/wellnesscenter/counselingservices/forfacultyandstaff/
The Career + Co-op Center
116 S. Michigan Ave., suite 1400
www.saic.edu/careers
Office of Student Affairs
Sullivan Center 12th Floor, (312) 629-6800
The Office of Student Affairs enhances the student experience at the School and oversees
many areas and departments including Academic Advising, Career + Coop Center,
Wellness Center, International Affairs, Multicultural Affairs, Off-Campus Programs, Residence
Life, Campus Life and Student Government. This network of student services is a resource for
faculty who have concerns about a student’s academic or personal well-being. The faculty,
staff and students who comprise this office are interested partnering with you to create a
rewarding campus community experience for all SAIC students.
Student Affairs, (312) 629-6800
Felice Dublon, Vice President & Dean of Student Affairs, 629-6800
Debbie Martin, Dean of Student Life, 629-6804
Rachel Buckmaster, Asst Director of Student Affairs, 629-6803
Anna Brown, Diretor of Student Outreach, 629-6825
Academic Advising, (312) 629-6800
Paul Jackson, Asst. Dean of Student Affairs for Academic Advising, 629-6826
Hank Leftwich, Director of Student Support, 629-6894
Korean Academic Advising, (312) 629-6800
Cheeyon Cha, Asst Director of Student Affairs, Korean Student Advisor, 629-6836
Campus Life, (312) 629-6880
Patrick Spence, Asst. Dean of Student Affairs for Campus Life, 629-6872
Chinwuba Okafor, Director of Campus Life, 629-6884
Career+Coop Center, (312) 626-6820
Vicki Engonopoulos, Co-Director of Career + Coop Center, 629-6812
Kate Schutta, Co-Director of Career + Coop Center and Asst. Dean, 629-6821
International Affairs, (312) 629-6830
Saskia Hofman, Director of International Affairs, 629-6835
Multicultural Affairs, (312) 629-6870
Rashayla Marie Brown, Assitant Director of Multicultural Affairs, 629-6869
Residence Life, (312) 629-6870
Jenn Lindsay, Asst. Dean of Student Affairs for Residence Life, 629-6874
Abigail Holcomb, Director of Residence Life, 629-6873
Wellness Center, (312) 499-4278
Counseling Services, Disability and Learning Resource Center (DLRC), Health Services
Joe Behen, Executive Director of the Wellness Center, 499-4272
Valerie St. Germain, Director of the DLRC, 499-4286
The Career + Co-op Center
116 S. Michigan Ave., suite 1400
www.saic.edu/careers
Disability and Learning Resource Center (DLRC)
Office: 116 S. Michigan Ave., 13th floor
Phone: (312) 499-4278, TTY: (312) 499-4287. Fax: (312) 499-4290
DLRC Staff Contact Information
Director: Valerie St. Germain vstger@saic.edu (312) 499-4286
Mission Statement
The mission of the DLRC is to:
• Deliver innovative and high quality services to SAIC students with disabilities.
• Facilitate and advocate for reasonable accommodations so that students have equal access
to all programs, activities, and services of the institution.
• Cultivate opportunities for students to articulate their strengths and empower them to
advocate for their own learning needs.
• Identify and respond to the dynamic nature of student needs and learning environments.
What is a Disability?
The Americans with Disabilities and Amendments Act 2008 (ADAAA) considers a person with a
disability to be someone who has (or has a record of having, or is perceived to have) a physical or
mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities such as walking, speaking,
seeing, hearing, learning, concentrating, and working.
Names of disabilities include: Learning Disabilities (LD), Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
(ADHD), Deaf and Hard of Hearing (D/HH), Blind or Visually Impaired. Mental health disorders and
physical impairments can also be considered a disability.
What is an Accommodation?
An accommodation is an adjustment or modification in the academic environment that enables
an individual to have the benefit of equal access to all programs, services or activities. Examples
of academic accommodations include, but are not limited to, alternative testing, extended time,
interpreters, distraction-reduced study environments, Braille materials, recorded lectures, and closed
captioning.
The provision of auxiliary aids may be an accommodation as well. Auxiliary aids are effective
methods of making academic materials available to students with disabilities. Examples of auxiliary
aids include, but are not limited to, note takers, talking calculators, Braille keyboards, readers,
assistive listening devices, raised line drawings, adaptive software, and screen magnifiers.
Resources on the Web
Disability Policies and Procedures Handbook: TA 101
http://www.saic.edu/dlrc
Disability-related Adjustments to Attendance Requirements
http://www.saic.edu/dlrc
Disability and Learning Resource Center
http://www.saic.edu/dlrc
The Career + Co-op Center
116 S. Michigan Ave., suite 1400
www.saic.edu/careers
Disability and Learning Resource Center (DLRC) Continued
Faculty Role
In order to best support students with disabilities, we encourage faculty to:
• Notify all students that accommodations may be available to them and tell students how to
contact DLRC.
• Use the following syllabus statement:
Accommodations for Students with Disabilities
SAIC is committed to full compliance with all laws regarding equal opportunities for students with
disabilities. Students with known or suspected disabilities, such as a Reading/Writing Disorder, ADD/
ADHD, and/or a mental health or chronic physical condition who think they would benefit from
assistance or accommodations should first contact the Disability and Learning Resource Center
(DLRC) by phone at 312.499.4278 or email at www.dlrc.saic.edu. DLRC staff will review your disability
documentation and work with you to determine reasonable accommodations. They will then
provide you with a letter outlining the approved accommodations for you to deliver to all of your
instructors. This letter must be presented before any accommodations will be implemented. You
should contact the DLRC as early in the semester as possible. The DLRC is located on the 13th floor of
116 S Michigan Ave. (Use contact info and address at the top of this handout.)
• Provide and/or allow approved accommodations outlined in the letter from DLRC; if
accommodations conflict with essential course requirements, or if there are questions
or concerns about approved accommodations, faculty should contact the
DLRC. If the instructor does not receive a letter from the DLRC, he or she is not
obligated to provide accommodations and should refer the student to
the DLRC. Accommodations are not retroactive.
• Remember that it is the student’s choice whether to disclose his or her specific disability/
diagnosis to instructors.
• Refer to DLRC any student who reports a disability or requests an accommodation or
modification.
DLRC Role
The DLRC accomplishes its mission by:
• Providing services, accommodations, and support to individual students with disabilities in
keeping with all course requirements and program standards.
• Thoroughly review disability documentation and approving accommodations that are
supported by the documentation.
• Provide students with a letter that lists and describes the approved accommodations in a
timely manner.
• Collaborate with faculty and staff on disability concerns especially as they relate to academic
performance and overall student success.
• Offer educational programming for the SAIC community on disability topics.
• Offer guidance and recommendations on use of adaptive technology.
The Career + Co-op Center
116 S. Michigan Ave., suite 1400
www.saic.edu/careers