Q: What is a UCA?
A: UCA stands for Undergraduate Course Assistant, and is one of many student worker positions within CICS. A UCA is a student who have taken and done well in particular courses (or have sufficient expertise in a field), and was selected to assist professors and TAs in administering and/or developing the course they took.


Q: In general, what does a UCA do?
A: This depends on the needs of the instructor and course structure. Here are some examples of what UCAs do:

  1. Attending lectures to help with in-class activities or be aware of course content
  2. Grading class assignments, labs, or exams
  3. Leading lab assignments or discussions
  4. Responding to student questions (in-person during office hours, email, Piazza, etc.)
  5. Proctoring exams


Q: What are the job expectations for UCAs?
A: UCAs are expected to work on course administration/development tasks as assigned by the instructor or TA, and attend orientation and periodic training sessions/check-ins. In addition, UCAs should regularly communicate with their assigned professor regarding course logistics, grading, and/or any duties assigned.


Q: Is this a paid position?
A: Yes! UCAs are paid approximately $1000/semester on a standard 5 hour/week contract.


Q: How much will I be expected to work for?
A: UCAs are paid with the expectation that the professor or TA gives out tasks and duties that average out to 5 hours/week. Keep in mind that this may not be spread evenly (i.e. you may have 8 hours of work one week, and 2 hours of work the next).


Q: Can I know what the duties of each class is before filling out my preferences?
A: Unfortunately, since instructors shift every semester for many courses, it’s difficult for us to provide any general information on how a particular instructor will run a course and what the expected role of the UCAs will be. Some professors prefer that their UCAs stick to grading only, while others have UCAs hold office hours, or work on assignment infrastructure. If you have specific questions about a specific class, you can always email the UCA coordinators, talk to the course instructor, or a current UCA for that class.


Q: How do I apply? When will I know whether I’ve been selected?
A: We generally release applications around the mid-semester date for the following semester. When applications are live, they can be found here. For Spring 2021, we plan to release decisions by early-mid November, but due to the volatility of next semester this date may be moved later.


Q: I am a current UCA. Is there any way I can get more involved?
A: Share your wisdom! It would be really helpful for UCAs in the years after to have a reference document or guide on how the course has been traditionally run, or any tips and tricks you’d like to share. We would love to keep track of and distribute these documents, so that there is more consistency between semesters in how courses are run. In addition, we occasionally have openings for the UCA coordinator position.


Q: Who should I email if I have more questions?
A: You can reach out via email to the UCA coordinators, Serena (tszkeiserena at umass.edu), Jack (jbachman at umass.edu), and Renos (rzabounidis at umass.edu).