Know Your Funding, Know Your Responsibilities

Cornell is proud to provide multiple, robust forms of graduate student funding. During a doctoral program, a student may receive support through fellowships or assistantship appointments, and will likely switch back and forth during different semesters. Because different forms of support come with different expectations and responsibilities, it is important to understand the distinctions among them.

Fellowships and Assistantships are Different Types of Support

Fellowships

A fellowship is financial support for your academic progress and degree completion. It is analogous to a scholarship. When you are funded through a fellowship:

You do not hold a job appointment.
You do not have work obligations tied to the funding.
Your primary responsibility is to make progress toward your academic and scholarly goals.
You are not part of the bargaining unit represented by CGSU-UE during the fellowship period.

Assistantships

By contrast, when you hold a Policy 1.3 assistantship appointment (such as a teaching assistant or graduate research assistant appointment):

You hold a university job appointment and are designated as a graduate student worker.
You are required to make a choice with respect to union membership and dues. The contract with CGSU-UE provides three different choices:
- Union membership
- Agency fee
- Charitable contribution
You have specific work responsibilities associated with that appointment.
You are part of the bargaining unit represented by CSGU-UE, for the duration of the appointment.
You are covered by the university’s contract with CGSU-UE, which establishes rights, protections, benefits, and responsibilities related to that employment relationship.

The Union Contract Applies to Policy 1.3 Assistantship Appointment Holders

The collective bargaining agreement governs the terms and conditions of employment for graduate students who hold assistantship appointments. If you hold an assistantship appointment, it is important to understand that the contract applies to your role as an employee, not to your status as a doctoral student.

During some semesters you may be supported by a fellowship. During others, you may hold an assistantship appointment with employment responsibilities.

Regardless of your funding, you are a Cornell student, and the guidance and protections of the Graduate School Code of Legislation and the Student Code of Conduct apply.
When you are in an assistantship appointment, the contract’s employment-related rights and provisions also apply.
When you are in fellowship status and do not hold a bargaining-unit appointment, the contract’s employment provisions do not apply because you are not serving in an employee role during that period.

Understanding not only what the contract provides, but also when those provisions apply, is an important part of navigating your graduate funding and appointments.