Employment of Graduate Students

There are several employment opportunities for graduate students at the University of Windsor. Some of these are listed below along with important applicable policies.

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Total number of hours

The allowable number of hours of paid University-related employment for fulltime graduate students will be 240 hours total per academic term as follows:

  • Fall term: September 1 to December 31
  • Winter term: January 1 to April 30
  • Summer term: May 1 to August 31.

The 240-hour limit per term includes income from all employment sources within the University: GA, RA-employment income (not including RA-scholarship), Sessional instructor appointment, Work Study, Food Services, IT Services, Library, Residence Services, etc. and any other University-related employment.


Graduate and teaching assistantships are allocated by the student's academic department, to assist with teaching-related duties.

Full-time doctoral and Master's students in eligible programs may be offered a Graduate Assistantship (GA) for up to 140 hours per term. GA appointments are governed by a cupe4580 collective agreement.

Review more information and resources for Graduate and Teaching Assistants.

RAs are normally funded by a professor's research grant. Payment for RAs can be in one of two forms:  

  • salary 
  • scholarship  

If paid as a salary, an RA is considered employment.

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Sessional appointments are governed by the Windsor University Faculty Association (WUFA) Collective Agreement. If a student is employed as a sessional instructor the total time spent by the student in connection with the appointment includes time spent on preparation, reading, setting assignments, marking examinations, etc. Therefore, graduate students holding a sessional instructor appointment cannot be employed as Graduate Assistants (GAs) in the same term.


International students

International students must hold a valid Study Permit and must maintain full-time registration in order to be employed on campus. For more information, review the information posted on the websites of the International Student Centre and Citizenship and Immigration Canada.