Graduate Student Appointments and Financial Award Scenarios

Select Scenario Examples for the implementation of Policy 502

https://policy.rice.edu/502

Please find below several scenarios to provide guidance for the implementation of Policy 502, which states:

The University requires graduate student appointments to be assigned and processed accurately and in a timely manner, as described in this policy. Each school and department is expected to work with its students and faculty advisors/principal investigators (PIs) to ensure the correct appointment type is assigned. The students’ appointments should be based on whether there is an expectation of service in return for payment; the appointment should not be determined by the funding source. (See Policy 305 - Tuition Remission).

While students may hold more than one appointment simultaneously, a student is generally not permitted to hold a combination of fellowship appointments with RA, TA, and/or Instructor appointments. However, an exception can be granted if a student receives a fellowship that provides partial support. Other exceptions to this policy must be submitted to GPS and will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis.

It is not uncommon for graduate students to hold different types of appointments throughout their academic journey. However, once a student has been assigned to a research advisor and there is an expectation of service, their appointment should not revert to a graduate fellowship unless the student receives a competitive external fellowship award (i.e., NSF GRFP, GEM, NIH, NRSA), or internal fellowship award (including, but not limited to, a university, school or department fellowship). Without such competitive fellowship awards, the student's appointment should remain in the capacity of a research assistant or other relevant appointment type.

These examples are given names such as “Alberto” and “Debby” for easier reference among administrators. These names do not have additional meaning. Questions may be addressed to Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies, addressed to Kate Cross and Brooke Woosley (kw6@rice.edu, bw30@rice.edu).

ALBERTO
First Year Student without Advisor or Teaching Responsibilities
This person should be paid as a fellow assignment on an Individual Compensation Plan (ICP).

BERYL
First Year Student without advisor or teaching responsibilities has an ongoing bonus (paid over the course of a full year) from GPS or another source
This person should be paid as a fellow assignment on an ICP; the ongoing bonus must be paid on the fellow assignment as an ICP. There could be two ICPs.

CHRIS
First Year Student coming early to work with an advisor
If the student is an Early Matriculant and will be earning credits over the summer, they should be hired as a Research Assistant (RA) and paid as a Graduate Assistantship (GA) with Labor Distribution (LD) used to designate payment as a RA. In the Fall, they should convert to be paid based on how their peers with similar responsibilities are paid.

DEBBY
Student with obligations to research for an advisor or on a journal in the Humanities
This person should be hired as a Research Assistant (RA) and paid as a Graduate Assistantship (GA) with LD used to designate payment as a RA. Student may also be paid a supplement or on an hourly basis for work above and beyond the standard graduate student payment.

ERNESTO
Student with an advisor and research/teaching responsibilities has an ongoing bonus (paid over the course of a full year or multiple years) from GPS or another source
This person should be hired as a Research Assistant (RA) and/or Teaching Assistant (TA) and paid as a Graduate Assistantship (GA) with LD used to designate payment as a RA and/or TA; a newly started bonus must be paid on the GA assignment as an ICP. Any existing unpaid bonus must also be moved to the new GA assignment. . There could be two ICPs.

FRANCINE
First Year Students that are assigned to an advisor or who have teaching responsibilities as a teaching assistant (TA) or instructor of record (IoR)
This person should be hired as a Research Assistant (RA) and/or Teaching Assistant (TA) and or Instructor of Record (IoR) and be paid as a Graduate Assistantship (GA) or Instructor of Record (IoR) with an LD used to designate payment as a RA, TA, or IoR.

GORDON
First Year Student either already assigned to an advisor or who has teaching responsibilities and who was given an ongoing bonus (paid over the course of a full year)
This person should be hired as an RA and/or TA and paid as a GA with LD used to designate payment to RA and/or TA. The bonus must be paid on the GA assignment with an ICP.

HELENE
Student with an external fellowship paid through Rice
This person should be paid as a fellow assignment with an ICP.

ISAAC
A student with an external fellowship paid through Rice (such as NSF-GRFP) that has an ongoing recruiting bonus (paid over the course of a full year) from GPS or another source other than their advisor
This person should be paid as a fellow assignment only on an ICP; the bonus must also be paid with the fellowship as ICP. There could be two ICPs.

JOYCE
A student with an external fellowship paid through Rice (such as NSF-GRFP) has additional compensation based on their responsibilities
This person should be paid as a fellow assignment on an ICP for the external fellowship portion only; payment for their other responsibilities should be consistent and allowable by the fellowship and paid for as a GA with LD used to designate the payment to RA and/or TA. These would be allowed to have both employer and non-employer relationships and require special permission of GPS through the Adobe Sign Workflow "GPS - Dual Assignment Type Exception Request for Policy 502."

KIRK
Any student with a welcome check or one-time recruiting bonus
A welcome check or one-time recruiting bonus must be processed as a non-standard disbursement (NSD through payables). Student must be set-up first as a supplier. Please note, GPS directly manages welcome checks paid by GPS.

LESLIE
Travel awards, housing assistance for a student to settle in
These are arranged directly with the travel agency or with graduate housing. No funds go directly to the student. GPS manages these for the GPS funded arrangements.

MILTON
A graduate student is given a one-time bonus based on the work performed within the department (by advisor or other supervisor)
These should be paid as employees through payroll. Bonuses are to be paid as ICPs on the employee assignment. Students may also be hired on an hourly basis for this additional work.

NADINE
Students with an external fellowship not paid through Rice (ex: Fulbright) that may receive a supplement paid through Rice
Any supplement for their income paid through Rice should be paid based on how their peers with similar responsibilities are paid.

OSCAR
Travel grants for research such as Wagoner or Expanding Horizons
These can be paid as a Pcard for pre-paying for travel expenses such as flights or hotel OR a scholarship/fellowship grant as an NSD, or as a hybrid of the two - at the discretion of the graduate program.

PATTY
Student paid exclusively on an internal fellowship (Vaughn, Autrey)
Paid as a fellow assignment on an ICP.

RAFAEL
Student paid on an internal fellowship (such as Vaughn/Autrey or a departmental fellowship) that is also supplemented by an advisor or graduate program. For example, if a student that is still guaranteed funding under their offer letter (4th year) won the Vaughn, they might receive $16,500 from the Vaughn and $21,000 from their advisor to bring the student’s total payments to $2,000 over the standard stipend for the student’s graduate program ($37,500 instead of $35,500)
The Vaughn/Autrey is paid based on the assignment from the advisor/graduate program under a single assignment based on how their peers with similar responsibilities are paid. The different funding sources are managed with the labor distribution fund in addition to an adjustment to the total salary. For GPS-managed fellowships such as McCollum, Autrey, and Vaughn please align these to match the assignment type of their other assignment.
Other University Fellowships not managed by GPS with an advisor supplement can only be allowed by special petition for the student to have both employer (RA/TA/IoR) and non-employer (Fellow) relationships and special permission of GPS through the Adobe Sign Workflow "GPS - Dual Assignment Type Exception Request for Policy 502." Otherwise please refer to the Vaughn/Autrey example above.

SARA
Student paid as a fellow by the graduate program or school based on their status as a student, as is typical of their peers. A student may take on additional responsibilities for additional income and be paid on an hourly basis
Student is paid as a fellow assignment on an ICP by the school. The student may also be hired as a student worker and paid on an hourly basis.

TONY
Student has an advisor but receives all or part of their standard funding as a Teaching Assistant or Instructor of Record based on a departmental need whether or not this is a degree requirement
These should be hired as employees through payroll as a TA or IoR and paid through GA or IoR assignment with LD designating the appropriate funding source.

VALERIE
Student receives a fellowship from their graduate program, which is common among their peers. The student takes additional responsibilities as a TA or Instructor of Record within their department for additional income
These should be paid as employees through payroll as a TA or IoR using the GA or IoR assignment. The once “fellowship” is also paid on the TA/GA or IoR assignment with the possibility of tuition remission being waived by the school in this scenario.

WILLIAM
A Student is a fellow and takes on additional responsibilities outside of their graduate program such as an REU mentor or as an instructor through a program such as FWIS
The student’s additional responsibilities should only be paid as an Instructor of Record, as an hourly student worker, or as a trainee through Payables.