1. Graduate Assistant ePAF* Pre-Training
Graduate School
Welcome to the Graduate School’s EPAF Pre-Training Workshop. The purpose of this workshop is to provide background information on appointments and student eligibility in order to better assist you in completing graduate appointment epafs. The formal EAPF training which follows this workshop will explain in detail the EPAF process.
*ePAF Electronic Personnel Action Form
(c) Wichita State University rev.11/24/09

2. Things to know BEFORE you start the ePAF:
Type of Graduate Assistant (GA)
Is student eligible to hold a GA appointment
Contractual terms of appointment (work dates, pay period dates, weekly hours & stipend levels)
Who is the student’s appointment supervisor
Where will the work be performed
Funding source and does the organization have appropriate funding for the appointment.
(c) Wichita State University rev.11/24/09

3. Graduate Assistantship (GA) Types
Graduate Teaching Assistant (GTA) – Direct
account code 1150 (115 ICAA)
instructor of record for a course(s), can assign grades in Banner
supervisor: department chair or graduate coordinator
Course subject, catalog number, crn & credit hours
Graduate Teaching Assistant (GTA) – Assisting (Indirect)
account code 1120 (112 ICAA)
assist faculty member(s) in preparation and execution of a course(s), cannot enter grades in Banner
supervisor: faculty (chair or graduate coordinator)
Graduate Research Assistant (GRA)
account code 1130 (113 ICAA)
assist faculty in their scholarly and/or creative activities
supervisor: faculty, PI
Graduate Staff Assistant (GSA)
account code 1140 (114 ICAA)
assist in non-teaching and non-research activities
supervisor: unit representative, chair or graduate coordinator.
(c) Wichita State University rev.11/24/09

4. (c) Wichita State University rev.11/24/09
GA Eligibility:
Must be a degree bound graduate student
major code begins with the letter G and ranges from G10A thru G39Z, cannot be non-degree (G40A thru G60Z)
current versus future degree bound status
Must be in good academic standing
Cumulative GPA 3.00 or higher
cannot be on probation (academic or admission)
academic probation: student is not on admission probation and their Cumulative GPA has fallen below 3.00
admission probation:
student must complete 9 hours of graduate coursework with a Cumulative GPA of 3.00 or higher before removal from probationary status
Admitted Probation Codes: P1, P2, PK, PR, TB, TP, TR, TS
(c) Wichita State University rev.11/24/09

5. (c) Wichita State University rev.11/24/09
GA Eligibility:
Must be enrolled full-time (9 hours) during Fall/Spring
Departments have the discretion to designate as little as 6 hours of enrollment if a student’s cumulative appointments total .5 fte
Summer GTA’s are required to be enrolled in 3 hours unless student held an appointment in the preceding spring semester
GRA’s & GSA’s may not be enrolled during summer & semester breaks but must be admitted degree bound
Cannot work more than 20 hours per week concurrently across all active appointments [summer and breaks are excluded]
Domestic students with approved exception cannot work more than 30 hours per week
International students are prohibited from working more than 20 hours per week by INS regulations.
(c) Wichita State University rev.11/24/09

6. (c) Wichita State University rev.11/24/09
GA Restrictions:
GA Appointments are semester/term specific and cannot overlap semesters/terms
Fall & Spring are 20 week terms, summer is 12 weeks
the Graduate School will not approve ePAFs until student registration opens for the term of appointment
Graduate Teaching Assistantships (direct 1150 & assisting 1120)
must have passed their Spoken English Screening Form (SESF)
non-native speakers must also have a score of 50 or higher on the TSE or SPEAK test, or a score of 23 or higher on the Speaking portion of the iBT TOEFL
have completed their Graduate Liability Training (GTA Orientation Workshops).
(c) Wichita State University rev.11/24/09

7. How to Check for Eligibility:
Enrollment Verification Report
located in the Reporting Services “HR ePAF Reports” folder
GA factors of interest on report
registration/enrollment status
major code
academic standing
current appointment status if active
If student is not listed in the Enrollment Verification report, contact the Graduate School.
(c) Wichita State University rev.11/24/09

8. Example of the Enrollment Verification Report:
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9. (c) Wichita State University rev.11/24/09
Eligible to hold appointment (GRA or GSA): Student is enrolled FT (9 hrs), degree bound major (G20F) & is not on admission or academic probation (A1, 3.56). However, they have not completed and passed the SESF so cannot be a GTA.
(c) Wichita State University rev.11/24/09

10. (c) Wichita State University rev.11/24/09
NOT Eligible to hold appointment: Student is on admission probation* (P1) & even though she has a Cumulative GPA of 3.71, she has not completed 9 hours of graduate coursework
*Admission probation latest decision codes include P1, P2, PK, PR, TB, TP, TR & TS. To be removed from admission probation student must complete 9 hours of graduate coursework with a Cumulative GPA of 3.00 or higher.
Note- there may be instances where a student may remain on probation even though the GPA appears to meet the requirements for removal of probation. If unsure on whether probation has been cleared, contact the Graduate School.
(c) Wichita State University rev.11/24/09

11. (c) Wichita State University rev.11/24/09
NOT Eligible to hold appointment: Student is on academic probation (Cumulative GPA under 3.00).
(c) Wichita State University rev.11/24/09

12. (c) Wichita State University rev.11/24/09
Eligible to hold appointment (GRA & GSA, not GTA until SESF): This is a new student so there is no Cumulative GPA. Since the latest decision does not show being admitted on probation (P1,etc.) it means the student is not on probation.
(c) Wichita State University rev.11/24/09

13. (c) Wichita State University rev.11/24/09
NOT Eligible to hold a appointment for the future semester/term: Student is eligible to hold an appointment for the current term but is NOT eligible to hold an appointment for the next term (201020) because they will be on probation.
(c) Wichita State University rev.11/24/09

14. (c) Wichita State University rev.11/24/09
NOT Eligible to hold a appointment for the future semester/term: Student has been admitted for the next term (201020) and would appear eligible to hold appointment BUT the Graduate School will not approve future appointments until student provides final transcript reflecting the ward of their degree.
(c) Wichita State University rev.11/24/09

15. (c) Wichita State University rev.11/24/09
NOT Eligible to hold appointment: Student is not a degree bound student (G40W).
(c) Wichita State University rev.11/24/09

16. (c) Wichita State University rev.11/24/09
NOT Eligible to hold an additional appointment during current semester/term without an approved exception: Student is currently working the maximum hours (20) so cannot accept an additional appointment during this semester.
(c) Wichita State University rev.11/24/09

17. Defining the contractual terms of the appointment
Contractual terms include
Work (Personnel) start and end (termination) dates
Pay period start and end dates
Hours per week (or hours per pay in ePAF)
Stipend
Contractual terms must be considered simultaneously in order to avoid falling below the minimum hourly rates established by the University.
(c) Wichita State University rev.11/24/09

18. (c) Wichita State University rev.11/24/09
Example Appointment contract (highlighted text comes from ePAF & Banner, contract may include addition information on in-state rates)
(c) Wichita State University rev.11/24/09

19. Contractual terms continued:
Work dates (called ‘personnel date’ in ePAF)
dates in which work is actually performed
will appear on the student’s contract
may not match the pay period dates but shouldn’t diverge by more than 2 weeks
Payroll dates (called ‘pay period’ in ePAF documentation)
do not appear on student’s contract
pay period dates do not reflect work dates but are instead based on fixed payroll cycles
to avoid having Banner report the appointment stipend as below the federal minimum wage, you may need to adjust the pay period dates
Hours per week
cannot exceed 20 across all active appointments
must be one of the following: 5, 10, 16, 20 (will be multiples of 2 for ePAF entry)
one time payments should be entered as 1
Stipends (called ‘annual salary’ in ePAF)
semester/term specific, total amount to be paid to student for appointment
must not fall below minimum hourly rates (see handout).
(c) Wichita State University rev.11/24/09

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Let’s say I want to have a GA start working on 1/18/2010 and end on 5/7/2010, what pay period dates do I choose:
(c) Wichita State University rev.11/24/09

25. (c) Wichita State University rev.11/24/09
05/01/2010
(c) Wichita State University rev.11/24/09

26. Reconciling Work (Personnel) and Payroll dates (Jobs Effective)
Review
Personnel dates are when work is actually performed and appear on the contract
Job Effective dates are fixed payroll cycles, do not reflect when work is performed and are not printed on the contract
As a general rule, if the work (personnel) start and/or end dates occur between Jobs Effective dates do the following:
for the Jobs Effective start date: choose the next available pay period date after the work (personnel) start date (pushing forward)
for the Jobs Effective end date: choose the previous available pay period date before the work (termination personnel) ending date (pulling backward).
(c) Wichita State University rev.11/24/09

27. Appointment’s Supervisor
The Appointment Contract will print the name of the student’s supervisor
The supervisor is responsible for making sure that the student abides by university regulations
In some cases, the student will be performing work for several individuals in which case the supervisor should be the primary contact person
The supervisor must be a university employee.
(c) Wichita State University rev.11/24/09

28. Work Location and Funding Sources
Work Department (called ‘Home Organization’ in ePAF)
The location in which the student performs their appointment
Normally this is the time sheet org of the department even in the case of grants and contracts administered by ORA
The work department, along with the supervisor, are responsible for making sure that the student abides by University regulations
Funding Source (called ‘Distribution Organization’ in ePAF)
Funding source may or may not be related to the work department
Funding sources include grants and contracts controlled by the Office of Research Administration (ORA)
Funding sources for graduate appointments come from pooled position numbers that are defined by both GA type and funding source codes (e.g., UGRA/Mill Levy funding, see handout).
(c) Wichita State University rev.11/24/09

29. (c) Wichita State University rev.11/24/09

30. REVIEW: Things to know BEFORE you start the ePAF:
Type of Graduate Assistant (GA)
Is student eligible to hold an appointment
Contractual terms of appointment (work dates, payroll dates, weekly hours & stipend levels)
Who is the student’s appointment supervisor
Where will the work be performed (timesheet org)
Funding source and does the organization have appropriate funding for the appointment.
(c) Wichita State University rev.11/24/09

31. (c) Wichita State University rev.11/24/09
Reminders :
student must have completed the criminal background check before appointment can be approved– see reporting services
HR – EPAF Reports: Background Check Results
“Cleared” ok to proceed
“Contact OHR” stop ePAF & contact OHR.
(c) Wichita State University rev.11/24/09

32. (c) Wichita State University rev.11/24/09
Reminders continued:
New hires or additional job ePAFs:
If the I-9 date on the Enrollment Verification Report is blank or more than 3 years old, the student must complete the hiring paperwork and personally deliver it to OHR for entry into Banner HR prior to entering the ePAF in Banner Self-service.
(c) Wichita State University rev.11/24/09

33. Steps involved in submitting the ePAF:
Criminal Background Check (Reporting Services)
Enrollment Verification Report (is student eligible to hold appointment, see Reporting Services)
GA ePAF Calculator (hourly minimum rate compliance)
Pay period dates
Home Organization & Distribution
Now you can begin the ePAF.
(c) Wichita State University rev.11/24/09

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Questions & Answers
(c) Wichita State University rev.11/24/09