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Distinguished Research Assistantships

Each semester, the Economics Department offers several paid Undergraduate Research Assistantship positions. Individual Faculty members who are in need of such research assistants inform the EcoTeach Center which then solicits highly qualified undergraduates for interviews. If a faculty member has identified a particular student with whom he/she wants to work, special preference will be given to such students assuming they have made substantial progress in their major and have demonstrated strong academic performance. It is not possible to apply for a Research Assistantship. When positions become available, EcoTeach will send an interview offer to qualified undergraduates.

Undergraduate Teaching Assistantships
The Economics Department believes that serving as a teaching assistant can be a valuable complement to an undergraduate education because teaching always involves a deepening understanding of the particular subject matter and and enhancement of general presentation and public speaking skills that may be valuable in many settings after graduation. In addition, serving as a teaching assistant can help forge closer ties between advanced undergraduates and faculty. For these reasons, we frequently invite advanced undergraduates to participate in the teaching of some of our undergraduate courses -- especially Economics 1D/51D, Economic Principles, and Economics 55D, Intermediate Economics I.

UTAs are selected through an interview process with the Director and/or Associate Director of Undergraduate Studies and the instructor for the course seeking UTAs. This process is undertaken twice-annually with interviews for Fall assignments conducted in April and interviews for Spring assignments conducted in November. Preference is given to returning UTAs and there are typically fewer positions available for the Spring term than for the Fall term. Preference is also given to students who have completed the economics core course sequence (Econ 1D/51D, Econ 55D, Econ 105D, Econ 110D and Econ 139D) and to upperclassmen.

Candidates for the interview process are sometimes identified by the instructor seeking UTAs, but we also encourage undergraduates to self-express their interest in the positions. To express an interest, please send an e-mail to uta@econ.duke.edu, indicating your preference for macroeconomics (Econ 1D/51D) or microeconomics (Econ 55D) or your willingness to work in either capacity. Also include your graduation date. Candidates will be pre-screened by the Director of Undergraduate Studies and those who have earned quality grades in the core sequence will be invited via email to interview. It is very difficult to conduct interviews with students who are on study abroad, so we ask that students apply for a UTA position before leaving for their abroad experience. Qualified students may then defer acceptance, need permitting, to the term in which they will return to Duke.

Outstanding performance as a teaching assistant is recognized annually at the end of the Spring term with Undergraduate TA Awards based on student feedback and instructor recommendation.

For further information on being a TA, contact uta@econ.duke.edu.

Administrative Work Study Positions
The EcoTeach Center and the Department's Chair's Office routinely hire undergraduates to support a variety of administrative functions, including reception, data entry, records, filing, and web site editing. Applicants must have work study funding. Most positions start at $9/hour with 8-10 hours expected per week. Students who are interested in these positions should contact ecoteach@econ.duke.edu.