Post-secondary teaching and research assistants
Career Overview
Post-secondary teaching and research assistants provide support to university professors, college teachers and other faculty members. Usually, they are enrolled in a master’s or doctoral program in the same department at the university or college where they work.
Job Titles
Duties
Post-secondary teaching assistants:
- Organize visual aides and other lecture materials
- Hold seminars, tutorials, discussion groups, studio sessions and labs to supplement lectures
- Help prepare and give exams
- Assist grade student work
- Help students during office hours
- Teach classes when the lecturer is away
- Help manage online learning systems
Post-secondary research assistants:
- Carry out literature reviews, surveys, experiments and other research for use in articles/research papers
- Compile and help analyze research results
- Help prepare journal articles and research papers
- Manage web-based materials, such as social media accounts
- Assist in planning conferences
Earnings
Earnings is income that workers receive in exchange for their labour. Depending on the type of employment, earnings can be in the form of wages (hourly), salaries (fixed monthly or annual) or self-employed earnings.
Work Environment
# Workers Employed
11,250% Employed Full Time
40%Post-secondary teaching and research assistants work on university and college campuses. They perform their teaching or research duties while they study toward their degree.
Large classes may have multiple teaching assistants who work together. Small classes usually have a single assistant.
Post-secondary teaching and research assistants typically work in an office or lab. They may have access to their supervising professor’s office. More often, they share a larger office with other graduate students. Some may work from home.
Work levels vary and at times can become stressful, depending on the assistant’s own course load. Positions tend to be seasonal, with fewer opportunities from May through August.
Teaching and research assistants use technology, including online learning platforms. On-the-job technology-related training is usually provided.
Career Pathways
Working as a teaching or research assistant is a valuable stepping stone for graduate students to gain teaching and research experience. Senior teaching assistants (TAs) can add to this experience by mentoring and training junior TAs.
Teaching and research assistants typically view these jobs as temporary. After earning their graduate degree, they may apply for positions as university or college faculty members. Some are hired for part-time or sessional work. Those with fewer qualifications may be hired to teach on a course-by-course basis. Some continue in their roles as teaching and research assistants even after they have completed their studies.
Related Careers
Occupational Interests
It’s important to understand what kinds of occupations align with your interests.
For more about occupational interests visit Skills for the Future Workforce > Characteristics.
Here are the top occupational interest(s) for this career profile:
Education, Training and Skills
Most post-secondary teaching and research assistants hold a bachelor’s degree and are registered in a master’s or doctoral program at the school where they work. Some are working toward an undergraduate degree.
Most jobs require previous teaching experience or coursework in education as well as experience in the course being taught.
Education programs in B.C.
Skills
Every job calls for a certain set of skills. Knowing those skills is the first step in finding a good career fit.
Here, you will find the 10 most relevant workplace skills. Some are more important to achieving success in a certain career than others. These skills may come naturally to you or you may need to gain them through education, training and experience.
See the list of work-related skills below, ranked in order of importance for this career. Check out the list and see if this career matches your skills—take that first step!
Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents.
Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
Talking to others to share information effectively.
Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
Choosing and using training, instructional methods and procedures appropriate for the situation when learning or teaching new things.
Teaching others how to do something.
Being able to solve novel, ill-defined problems in complex, real-world settings.
Being aware of others’ reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
Understanding how new information could be used to solve current and future problems in making decisions.
Labour Market Statistics
Discover data, facts and information that have been gathered and analyzed. Learn about the characteristics of the economy and labour market in B.C.
Employment
Find out about employment types and trends by region and industry.
Employment
11,250Employment by Region
| Region | Employment | % Employment of this Occupation |
|---|---|---|
| Cariboo | 150 | 1.3% |
| Kootenay | 105 | 0.9% |
| Mainland/Southwest | 8,580 | 76.3% |
| North Coast and Nechako | 40 | 0.4% |
| Northeast | 20 | 0.2% |
| Thompson-Okanagan | 880 | 7.8% |
| Vancouver Island/Coast | 1,470 | 13.1% |
Labour Market Outlook
The B.C. Labour Market Outlook is a 10-year forecast of the expected supply and demand for labour in the province. It’s usually updated every year. The purpose is to provide British Columbians with the knowledge to make informed decisions on careers, skills training, education and hiring.
Forecasted Job Openings (2024-2034)
2,750Forecasted Job Openings
Forecasted Employment Growth Rate
Composition of Job Openings
Job Openings by Region (2024-2034)
| Region | Job Openings | Avg. Annual Employment Growth |
|---|---|---|
| Cariboo | 70 | 1.0% |
| Kootenay | 60 | 1.6% |
| Mainland/Southwest | 1,710 | 0.6% |
| North Coast and Nechako | 40 | 2.0% |
| Northeast | 0 | -1.9% |
| Thompson-Okanagan | 500 | 2.3% |
| Vancouver Island/Coast | 370 | 1.0% |
Industry Highlights
Learn about the opportunities in B.C.'s major industries, including employment trends, earning potential, locations of work and more.
Forecasted Job Openings by Industry
| Industry | Job Openings (2024-2034) |
|---|---|
| Educational Services | 2,490 |
| Professional, Scientific and Technical Services | 110 |
| Health Care and Social Assistance | 80 |
| Public Administration | 20 |
| Retail Trade | 20 |
Insights from Industry
Most teaching and research assistants leave their position once they earn their graduate degree. This creates job openings for other students.
The switch to online teaching during the COVID-19 pandemic greatly increased the demand for teaching assistants in the short term.
Demand for teaching and research assistants is also increasing as undergraduate enrolment rises. In particular, demand for assistants with science and engineering specializations is expected to increase as undergraduate interest in these areas grows.
Increasing undergraduate enrolment can also add to the workload of existing assistants. Moreover, larger class sizes can mean that teaching assistants do more grading.
Non-research-based institutions tend to hire more non-student research assistants. Because B.C. has a limited number of research universities, a relatively small number of research assistant positions are available to students.
Resources
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CUPE 2278, Teaching Assistants and Markers at UBC and UNBCcupe2278.ca
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Government of B.C. – Find an Institutionwww2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/education-training/post-secondary-education/find-a-program-or-institution/find-an-institution
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Research Universities’ Council of British Columbia (RUCBC)rucbc.ca
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The Teaching Support Staff Union (TSSU), Simon Fraser Universitywww.tssu.ca
