WEST LIBERTY, W.Va., Aug. 23, 2018 — West Liberty University continues its growth in graduate degree opportunities, resulting in more graduate assistants working across campus.
Most recently, WLU added new graduate programs in clinical psychology and dental hygiene to the College of Sciences making a total of eight master degree programs to choose from. It now has 49 GAs working across campus.
“Graduate Assistantships offer ambitious students a chance to continue their education and earn advanced degrees as they prepare for their professional career. These positions offer financial advantages and real world experience, making it a strong path for success. We are proud to welcome our incoming class of graduate assistants,” said Sara Sweeney, director of the Office of Graduate Studies, located in Shaw Hall.
Graduate Assistants returned to campus about a week earlier than other students as they prepared for their roles with meetings and orientations.
The growing group of WLU GAs gather for orientation.
WLU’s graduate office is only two years old but the growth is easy to see.
“This fall total graduate enrollment will exceed 300 students which is more than a 10 percent increase from last fall. This increase in graduate students has led to the expansion of our graduate assistant program by 81 percent. As future graduate programs are developed, I am confident our graduate student population will continue to increase,” Sweeney added.
There are GAs everywhere, teaching, researching, coaching and working in administration. GAs work closely with faculty and administrators, which adds valuable work experience to the students’ resumés.
2018 – 2019 GAs include:
Patrick Allison, Riley Aulick, Olivia Best, Joseph L. Bitonti, Zachary Brown, Zach Budreau, Sam Canfield, Ashley Cole, Elliot Collins, Alison Comack, Ramsay Core, Laura Denning, Chris Doran, Alecia Ford, Evan French, Kinsey Guthrie, Kristen Haggerty, Danielle Hasson, James Healy, Emily Hosler, Joel Jarrett, Sarah Johanson, Kelsi Johnson, Sara Johnson, Tanya Khan, Sydney Longworth, Parker Lynn, Nur Masarwa, Dan Meyer, Brandon Morrison, Jacob Persinger, Andrea Puga, Morgan Rice, Nicole Sadecky, Shelby Sands, Riley Schenk, Kylin Sheets, Charles Simons, Daisy Simms, Audrey Sykes, Katlyn Talkington, Eric Tidmore, Christopher Vopal, Kayla Waialae, Mason Werner, Haley Wetzel, Nicholas (Hunter) White, Chelsea Williams, and Brian Wells.
Each year, Sweeney’s office offers a limited number of graduate assistantships to qualified graduate students. This includes graduate teaching assistantships (GTA), graduate research assistantships (GRA) and graduate service assistantships (GSA).
GAs receive tuition remission for a maximum of 18 credit hours of graduate coursework per academic year regardless of in-state or out-of-state tuition rate. GA students living on campus also receive free housing and some positions may also include a stipend. Graduate assistantships last no more than two calendar years.
Graduate programs include the Master of Arts in Education, the Master of Science in Physician Assistant Studies, the Master of Professional Studies, MA/MS in Biology, the Master of Science in Dental Hygiene, the Master of Arts in Clinical Psychology and two online degrees, the Master of Science in Criminology and the MBA.
To find out more about WLU’s graduate program, please visit westliberty.edu/graduate-programs or call 1.866.WESTLIB or contact Sweeney at 304.336.8545.
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