Applications forms can be obtained at:

Department of Languages, Literatures and Cultural Studies
5th floor of the Arts Building, Room 523. 
Hours: 8:30-4:30

At the time of applying, students should submit a course schedule which clearly outlines the times when have their own classes or other time commitments and are therefore unavailable for tutorial work. They may also wish to submit a letter outlining any particular day or time preferences they may have, as well as the number of tutorials which they would like to teach. Although the selection committee may not be able to always accommodate such preferences, it will do so whenever possible.

All inquiries related to details on the type of work involved should be directed to the following people:

French
Prof. Romain Chareyron, French Tutorial Coordinator
roc104@usask.ca 

Spanish
Prof. Julio Torres, Spanish Coordinator
julio.torres@usask.ca

Students should apply as early as possible once they have finalized their own course schedule for the term since they will be asked to provide this along with their application form. Tutorial leader selections usually take place during the first week and a half of classes of the fall and winter terms.

Hiring and Tutorial Schedules:

• Regular Fall and Winter Terms

The hiring process, including interviews, usually takes place during the first few weeks of classes of the fall and winter terms and tutorials usually begin in the 3rd week of the regular academic terms. During the regular fall and winter terms, language tutorials take place once a week for each course and run for ten weeks.

• Intersession and Summer Session

Students interested in applying for tutorials for Intersession and Summer Session should apply by April 10th. Intersession and Summer Session tutorials entail 10 sessions and usually begin on the 2nd day of classes.  They are given three or four times a week during a 3 week period.

Selection Process & Criteria:

Tutorial leader selection is determined by the Department’s Tutorial Selection Committees. The following factors are taken into consideration by the selection committee:

• oral fluency and pronunciation
• clarity and pace of speech
• interpersonal and leadership skills
• previous experience in any teaching or leadership role
• value of the tutorial work experience to the student’s program of studies
• the student’s own course schedule and availability 

Tutorial Preparation and Class Time

As previously stated, the 1.5 hours of weekly pay per tutorial includes 50 minutes of class time plus 40 minutes of preparation time. In many cases, a lot of the material for tutorials has already been prepared ahead of time, although students are usually invited to complement this with their own ideas and creativity and to prioritize the activities with which they feel most comfortable and which best achieve the tutorial’s objective. The goal of all language tutorials is to encourage students to speak and practice their oral language skills as much as possible. Tutorial leaders are expected to create a warm and welcoming class atmosphere which puts their students at ease. An atmosphere conducive to learning should be both relaxed and friendly, while remaining professional and efficient at all times. Excellence in this type of work is usually linked to the tutorial leader’s ability to make the tutorial experience interesting, effective and enjoyable. It should be remembered that, in the classroom as in any other situation, enthousiasm on the part of the tutorial leader is contagious, as is lack of it.

Tutorial Workshop

Once hired, tutorial leaders will likely be asked to attend a tutorial workshop held a few days prior to the starting date of their tutorials.

Benefits of this type of work to students:

There are many benefits in this type of work which can far outweigh the purely financial ones:

• Teaching experience at the university level within the framework of tutorials can be an important asset in a student’s C.V.
• This work provides students with valuable teaching experience and could therefore be of particular interest to those who are thinking of entering the field of education upon completion of their degree and who would like to get a sense of what such work entails.
• Such opportunities help all students to develop self-confidence and leadership skills in the classroom. These skills and traits will prove to be useful to students during their studies and in most subsequent careers, both in the field of Education and beyond it.
• Tutorial programs are a good initiation into teaching insofar as a great deal of material, support, suggestions and structure is usually provided to tutorial leaders.

Rate of Pay

Students are paid for 1.5 hours a week for each tutorial, which includes 50 minutes of class time and 40 minutes of preparation. Students will be hired for a minimum of two tutorials weekly. Depending on the student’s preference and availability, as well as the number of suitable applicants and available tutorials, more than two tutorials may be assigned to each student. During the ten weeks of tutorials, student pay rate is determined by university-wide student pay standards which are calculated according to the student’s status as either Graduate or Undergraduate, as well as the number of years of university study which they have completed. A table of current pay rates is available for consultation at the University of Saskatchewan’s Human Resources website at the following link:

http://working.usask.ca/documents/salaries/salarydetails/studentratesofpay.pdf