Course Assistants for Math 22 and Above
In our math courses, undergraduate CAs hold an essential role in supporting students throughout the curriculum. In addition to running problem sessions and/or holding office hours, CAs have the important task of grading problem sets and providing feedback to both their students and the instructor. While the role may vary course to course, students regard CAs as one of the most important influences on their course experience. If you are interested in supporting students, we hope you will consider applying!
Job Responsibilities
While every course has specific needs of its CAs, there are common responsibilities across the courses:
- CAs attend all classes. This keeps the CA connected with the material being taught in class and facilitates the collection and return of graded work.
- CAs grade all of the homework. CAs are responsible for maintaining a gradebook and should be keeping the instructor up-to-date on common challenges for students as well as reporting any concerns about particular students./li>
- CAs run problem sessions and/or office hours. One of the key responsibilities for CAs is providing support to students working on assignments. Many CAs hold their office hours during Math Night. (The number held depends on course need and individual schedules.)
- CAs offer feedback to the course instructor. In line with the other responsibilities above, CAs are typically in one of the best positions to communicate course issues to the instructor, whether they’re for individual students or large portions of the class.
In some courses, you may be asked to write homework solutions, post materials to the course website, or run sections. At the start of each semester, we run a training to prepare CAs for their role.
Pay Scale
For a full-time CA, the job usually requires, on average, 12-15 hours per week. The pay rate for a full-time CA is $19 per hour. CAs are paid on a weekly basis.
Prerequisites
All course assistants must be current Harvard University undergraduate students who are enrolled in courses full-time, either on campus or remotely. CAs must have completed at least two full semesters at the university. We do not hire first-year undergraduates as CAs, since we want to encourage first-year students to focus on their studies and acclimating to life at Harvard before taking on such a large responsibility. All CAs must be in good standing with the college, academically and otherwise, with a GPA of at least 3.0.
How To Apply
To apply for the upcoming semester, please fill out a CA Application Form on this website.
There will be a tentative lineup in May. The final hiring will be finalized once the enrollment numbers are known.
If you have any questions about CA positions for Math 22 or above, please reach out to Oliver Knill knill@math.harvard.edu.