Associates in Teaching Program

There are three categories for eligibility, pertaining to the graduate student, the faculty co-instructor, and the course itself.

Eligibility of graduate students:

You are eligible to apply for the program if you are a Ph.D. student in the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences (GSAS), and if you meet the following qualifications:

• You will have advanced to candidacy by the time the course will be taught (note: the application may be made before advancing to candidacy).
• Your thesis advisor and Director of Graduate Study (hereafter, DGS) have agreed to submit written approval.
• You demonstrate a commitment to effective teaching through your statement about why you wish to teach in the program .
• You are in good academic standing, as confirmed by the DGS.
• You will complete your teaching in the program by the end of your sixth year of GSAS funding (or within the COVID-extension, if applicable).
• You have taught for at least one semester (at Yale or elsewhere) before the semester in which you plan to teach through the AT program.

Funding and Notation Details: The AT program substitutes for one semester of required or stipendiary teaching within the graduate student’s regular stipend years (note: it does not extend the funding clock). Graduate students will be appointed at the rank of Part-Time Acting Instructor (PTAI), which makes them instructors of record alongside the collaborating faculty member.

At the conclusion of the course, the notation “Associate in Teaching” and the title of the course will be recorded on your transcript.

Eligibility of faculty members: 

Both instructional and ladder faculty are eligible to teach courses through the AT program. Faculty must provide evidence of success in teaching and working with teaching fellows in the portion of the application describing a history of effective mentoring (see Section 1, Application Materials), and through the DGS’s letter of support. Visiting faculty members, regardless of rank, are not eligible to participate in the AT program.

Eligibility of proposed course: 

Undergraduate courses of all types and formats, with the exception of First-Year Seminars, are eligible for the AT program. The course:

• may be new or existing, if the course is going through a significant redesign;
• must divide the work of course design equally between the faculty member and you, regardless of whether the course is new or redesigned;
• must have a high likelihood of enrollment, and the proposal must provide strong evidence or rationale to that effect;
• must be taught in a truly collaborative fashion between the faculty member and you, with the faculty member mentoring you throughout the semester to ensure teaching happens at a co-equal level.

Note: Many graduate students choose to teach courses closely related to their dissertations. However, because experience designing and teaching introductory and intermediate courses is highly beneficial for graduate students on the academic job market in most fields, we encourage you to consider courses at that level in order to gain broader teaching experience in your fields.

The deadline for Fall 2026/Spring 2027 courses is January 16th, 2026. Please note that this deadline applies to both semesters, and it also pertains to all materials. That includes:

• The Application
• Thesis Advisor Approval
• DUS Approval
• DGS Letter
• Letter of Recommendation (Please submit only one letter of recommendation.)

Please note, Directors of Graduate and Undergraduate Studies may nominate as many courses as they choose.

The selection committee evaluates all applications using the Associates in Teaching Course Proposal Scoring Rubric. Especially important is the degree to which it is evident that you and the faculty member collaborated on the application and course design, as well as your plans for collaboration throughout the semester. 

Procedure for Submission

Thank you for applying to the Associates in Teaching (AT) Program! To complete this application, you will need:

• To complete our Qualtrics application form which contains:
  • Four statements. Please work with faculty to partner to answer the statements where possible and being mindful of word allowances. The material in the text boxes may not be saved between sessions, so we recommend submitting all your answers at once. You may want to write them in another document and copy and paste them in. For a complete description of the all parts of the application form see our AT Application Form Replica document.
  • Provisional Syllabus (see link to upload syllabus)
  • Optional materials that give evidence of teaching effectiveness (see link to upload optional materials)
  •  Approval from the graduate student’s thesis advisor (see the approval form linked to share with your thesis advisor and then upload to the Qualtrics application form).
  • Approval from the Director of Undergraduate Studies (DUS) from the department that would host your course (see the approval form linked to share with the DUS and then upload to the Qualtrics application form). 
• A letter of support from your Director of Graduate Studies (DGS) (see link to send to DGS to upload their letter)The letter of support should be no more than 300 words and should contain:
  1. The DGS should describe the course’s role within the departmental curriculum (in particular, the potential for enrollment and gaps that the course fills within current offerings)
  2. The DGS should confirm that you, the graduate student, are in good academic standing.
  3. The DGS should describe the faculty member’s experience as a mentor and instructor.
  4. If the DGS is in a position to recommend you, the graduate student, that should come in the form of a separate letter of support (in addition to their 300-word approval), described below.
• Please format file name as, ”Student Applicant Last Name Student Applicant First Name DGS Letter”
• The graduate student applicant must share all relevant information with their DGS about the deadline, where to upload the letter, the format of the file name, and the contents of the letter (see below). 
• A letter of recommendation from someone who can speak to your teaching  (see link to send to faculty recommender to upload their letter)
  • The letter of recommendation should describe the graduate student partner’s preparation for teaching. Please note:
    1. These letters can come from individuals outside the department and/or institution.
    2. Your DGS can be one of your recommenders, but their letter of support for you must be in addition to the 300 words they write in approval of the proposed course.
  • Please submit only one letter of recommendation. If you submit more than one, we will contact you to see which letter you would like to use.
  • Please format file name as, “Student Applicant Last Name Student Applicant First Name Letter of Recommendation”
  • The graduate student applicant must share all relevant information with their recommender about the deadline, where to upload the letter, and the format of the file name. 

Your application will not be considered complete until we receive the appropriate materials from these individuals and you have completed the Qualtrics application form in full. All materials are due on January 16, 2026.

All student applicants will receive updates on December 12th and January 6th about their application status and what materials if any still need to be submitted (i.e., letter of recommendation, DGS letter). Any requests for updates, will be answered on December 12th and January 6th.   

A selection committee composed of former AT faculty and Poorvu Center for Teaching and Learning staff will review all applications and notify applicants by mid-March 2026. Please contact the Poorvu Center (askpoorvucenter@yale.edu) if you have questions about the program.

Below, we outline the responsibilities for graduate student and faculty participants.

Expectations for Graduate Students:

As a graduate student participating in the AT program, you should….

1. Play a significant role in planning and designing the course rather than simply participating in the delivery of a course that has been fully designed prior to your involvement. In the case of teaching existing courses that are being redesigned, you might participate in:
   • refining and/or reconceptualizing the learning goals of the course;
   • decisions about texts and topics;
   • development of lectures, in-class discussions and activities;
   • development of written assignments, problem sets and labs;
   • development of tests, quizzes, and papers;
   • and/or the development of instructional technology.
2. Play a significant role in the delivery of the course. In the case of a lecture course, this will mean preparing and delivering a reasonable number of the lectures for the semester (typically about half). In the case of a seminar course, you will take responsibility for a reasonable percentage of discussions. Wherever possible, you should co-lead discussions or share in the delivery of lectures.
3. Attend all class meetings to observe and reflect on the faculty member’s teaching. Regular attendance allows you to participate in discussions about teaching.
4. In lecture courses that use teaching fellows, you should not supervise teaching fellows nor in any way replace the supervisory responsibilities of the faculty member. You should, however, participate in all scheduled meetings of the course, including team meetings with teaching fellows, even if not in a supervisory capacity.

Expectations for Faculty:

Faculty members should…

1. Fully involve you, the graduate student applicant, in designing or redesigning the proposed course. This process should begin no later than the beginning of the semester immediately preceding the teaching of the course and include:
   • refining and/or reconceptualizing the learning goals of the course;
   • decisions about texts and topics;
   • development of lectures, in-class discussions and activities;
   • development of written assignments, problem sets and labs;
   • development of tests, quizzes, and papers;
   • and/or the development of instructional technology.
2. Fully involve you in the delivery of the class. This may mean allowing you to prepare (with guidance) and deliver some percentage of lectures, or lead a meaningful number of class discussions (typically about half). When possible and appropriate, faculty members may want to lead class together. In any case, the faculty member should always be present and remain attentive to your teaching. Joint feedback and reflection should occur on a weekly basis.
3. Assume ultimate responsibility for the logistical aspects of the course in line with Faculty of Arts and Sciences guidelines, including:
   • acquiring a room,
   • ordering books,
   • and preparing resources. 
4. Shepherd the course through the university course review process and make sure the course is appropriately listed and advertised.
   • The faculty member should arrange for a new course to be approved through the Course of Study Committee (a process that should be coordinated through the hosting department)