Faculty Supervisor Roles and Responsibilities

September 15, 2025

As Fall Quarter approaches, we are writing with some important reminders about the responsibilities of faculty who supervise graduate student employees engaged in instruction or research.

Faculty who teach courses with Teaching Assistants, Remedial Tutors (also referred to as undergraduate learning assistants), or Readers are the Instructors of Record. As such, they bear sole and final responsibility for all aspects of the course, including content, assignments, evaluations, exams, grading, grade submission, and the learning environment. 

Department Chairs are responsible for ensuring that all Associate Instructors (Teaching Associates) are assigned a faculty supervisor. These faculty supervisors additionally hold the final responsibility for the content and conduct of courses, including the submission of grades.

In light of these responsibilities, it is essential that faculty Instructors of Record and supervisors:

• Provide Academic Student Employees (ASEs) (i.e., Teaching Assistants, Remedial Tutors, Readers, Associate Instructors) with a description of duties that outlines expectations for the appointment at least 30 days prior to their start date. 
• Ensure that all ASEs fulfill the responsibilities outlined in the description of duties in a timely manner, consistent with the nature of their position (e.g., grading, recording grades, holding scheduled office hours, etc.).
• Confirm that ASE workload is consistent with the number of hours associated with appointment (e.g., for a .5 Teaching Assistant appointment, an average of 20 hours per week, 220 hours per quarter.).
• Meet with ASEs regularly and provide feedback on performance listed in the description of duties.
• Confirm that ASEs submit their timecards accurately via the Electronic Timekeeping System, including missed time, vacation time, and sick time. 
• Maintain access to all grades, assignments, and attendance records.
• Maintain access to course management sites (e.g., Canvas). Faculty who are supervisors of Associate Instructors will need to be granted access; for assistance with this or other Canvas issues, contact: help@collaborate.ucsb.edu.

As the supervisor of a Graduate Student Researcher (GSR), faculty members are responsible for training, managing, and overseeing GSRs on assigned research tasks that might include duties such as preparing resources, equipment, and materials; documenting results, writing, and archiving; and performing other efforts in support of research. Such research and employment duties should be clearly distinguished from a student’s academic responsibilities and progress.

Faculty supervisors of GSRs are responsible for:

• Providing GSRs a description of duties 30 days prior to their start date that outlines expectations for the period of employment.
• Meeting with GSRs regularly and providing feedback on performance listed in the description of duties.
• Confirming that GSRs submit their timecards accurately via the Electronic Timekeeping System including missed time, vacation time, and sick time.
• Maintaining access to all materials, data, results, equipment, work products, etc. 

Fulfilling these responsibilities will help ensure that we maintain the excellence of undergraduate instruction and faculty research, comply with funding agency requirements, support the training and professional development of graduate students, and assist graduate student employees in fulfilling their contractual obligations. Thank you for your cooperation.