At the time of this writing, standard funding packages for Ph.D. students do not include summer funding. Don’t fret though, there are several ways to make sure you can eat and have a place to live over the summer!
Many students find summer TA positions through the math department. Unless you’ve advanced to candidacy (and maybe even if you haven’t), these are TA jobs in one of the two summer sessions. These positions can fill up quickly, so if you’re interested, keep an eye open for the announcement.
Some students’ advisors have money to support students over the summer. This can be very helpful for accomplishing research over the summer. Having nothing to do but your own math can make for a very productive couple of months.
Your total funding for the summer cannot exceed 100%. (During the school year, the limit is 50%.) Some students may receive a Graduate Student Researcher (GSR) position from their advisor during the summer. If you’re lucky enough to receive a GSR position, you can also TA. But please be aware that, while you are allowed to work both types of jobs simultaneously, your total employment can’t exceed 100%. So check with your advisor about the percentage of your GSR position before accepting any TA positions.
In the Fall, students may apply to become a Summer Graduate Teaching Scholar for the following summer. This is different from an associate instructorship, in that it is a university wide program to teach a course in the summer. It is an open competition, and you need to fill out an application form, have a faculty person agree to be your teaching mentor, and have strong teaching evaluations.
It is an open competition, and you need to fill out an application form, have a faculty person agree to be your teaching mentor, and have strong teaching evaluations. The Math Department often gets two of these slots, partly because we are an impacted department where we have over 6,000 undergraduates per quarter taking our math classes. The Summer Teaching Fellow gets paid slightly more than an Associate Instructor during the year. Also, the Faculty Mentor gets a small honorarium.
