This position is a limited availability position.
Applicants must apply and submit material through careers.umich.edu. Please, include the following in a single PDF document:
1) A cover letter addressing interest and qualifications for the course(s) and the hours of availability for discussion sections as listed here.
2) A resume or curriculum vita
3) Unofficial graduate and undergraduate transcripts of relevant coursework 
4) Previous UM teaching evaluations or teaching history, as applicable
5) List (and short description, if available) of COURSEWORK IN THE FIELD OF LINGUISTICS (not languages or a general interest in language, but actual linguistics coursework)

 

The Linguistics Department is looking to hire 1 GSI in the Fall 2025 term to lead discussion sections, grade, and hold office hours in the following course:

LING 137: Epic Grammar Fails.
 

Do you ever feel like correcting things you read or hear: signs, menus, emails, web pages, song lyrics, fortune cookies?

Or have you been the target of someone who acts like the 'Grammar Police'?

This course traces protests over English usage, such as the non-literal use of literally and when to use an apostrophe in its vs it's (and why auto-correct chooses it). We will look at these common issues and what underlies them. We will also look at detractors and defenders of language changes, slang, and dialects. Finally, we will discuss what merit such complaints might have, as well as what problems they might pose. In so doing, we will be asking a fundamental question: Who decides what is 'right' and 'wrong' about language?

As a fundamentally interdisciplinary course, we touch on some classically 'humanistic' concerns, such as how meaning works and the nature of written and spoken language; some classically 'natural science' concerns, such as the biological foundations of cognition and the physical properties of language; and some classically 'social scientific' concerns, such as observing, interpreting, and analyzing social behavior.
 

• Attend all lectures and scheduled discussion days for the course. Verify your own course schedule against the schedule for the course to which you are applying as a GSI. All GSIs are required to attend the lecture and assigned discussion sections. Note that both lecture and some discussion sections are scheduled as in-person instruction.
• Hold at least 2 office hours each week.
• Make discussion section plans and lead the sections as instructor.
• Grade assignments, per lead faculty instruction.
• Meet weekly with the teaching team and respond promptly to emails.
• Additional items listed in fraction calculation form
  
   

• Enrolled in good standing as a graduate student at the University of Michigan
• Available to teach the needed Thursday afternoon and Friday section times
• Have previously taken courses in linguistics. 
• Experience with Canvas
• If the language of instruction at a students undergraduate institution was not English, the student must be evaluated by the English Language Institute (ELI) for English proficiency and either pass the GSI-OET or have this test waived by the ELI before they can be eligible for a GSI appointment in LS&A.
  
   

• Previous experience as a GSI is desired
• LSA graduate students are preferred
  
   

Positions that are eligible for hybrid or mobile/remote work mode are at the discretion of the hiring department. Work agreements are reviewed annually at a minimum and are subject to change at any time, and for any reason, throughout the course of employment. Learn more about the work modes.

For questions about how to apply for the position, please contact linguistics-ssc@umich.edu

The Linguistics Department Graduate team will make decisions about teaching assignments with the approval of the course instructor.

Applications are reviewed, and decisions made, based on each applicants knowledge, experience, and past teaching record. Preferential consideration will be given to applicants with relevant academic preparation for teaching the course material.

The University will not discriminate against any applicant for employment because of race, creed, color, religion, national origin, ancestry, genetic information, marital status, familial status, parental status or pregnancy status, sex, gender identity or expression (whether actual or perceived), sexual orientation, age, height, weight, disability, citizenship status, veteran status, HIV antibody status, political belief, membership in any social or political organization, participation in a grievance or complaint whether formal or informal, medical conditions including those related to pregnancy, childbirth and breastfeeding, arrest record, or any other factor where the item in question will not interfere with job performance and where the employee is otherwise qualified. The University of Michigan agrees to abide by the protections afforded employees with disabilities as outlined in the rules and regulations which implement Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Information for the Office for Institutional Equity may be found at https://oie.umich.edu/ and for the University Ombuds at https://ombuds.umich.edu/

Unsuccessful applications will be retained for consideration in the event that there are last minute openings for available positions. In the event that an employee does not receive their preferred assignment, they can request a written explanation or an in-person interview with the hiring agents(s) to be scheduled at a mutually agreed upon time.

This position, as posted, is subject to a collective bargaining agreement between the Regents of the University of Michigan and the Graduate Employees' Organization, American Federation of Teachers, AFL-CIO 3550.

Standard Practice Guide 601.38, Required Disclosure of Felony Charges and/or Felony Convictions applies to all Graduate Student Assistants (GSAs). SPG 601.38 may be accessed online at https://spg.umich.edu/policy/601.38 , and its relation to your employment can be found in MOU 10 of your employment contract.

The University of Michigan is an equal employment opportunity employer.