Graduate Teaching Fellows
Graduate Teaching Fellows further their pedagogical development by developing or sustaining an initiative in their department around learning & teaching.
Overview
Graduate Teaching Fellows is a year-long program to support advanced graduate students in developing their pedagogical skills and knowledge and provide them with a learning community in which to discuss and discover strategies to strengthen the culture of learning and teaching at Northwestern.
Program Outcomes:
Throughout the program, Graduate Teaching Fellows deepen their pedagogical development through
- Implementing or sustaining an initiative in their department that amplifies teaching and learning and intentionally leverages Searle Center as a resource and support for graduate student instruction.
- Participating in an interdisciplinary learning community that promotes a culture of learning and teaching at the departmental and campus levels by attending monthly program meetings
- Developing and facilitating an interactive workshop for an interdisciplinary audience on a topic in learning and teaching in collaboration with and with support from the Searle Center
- Cultivating a relationship with a faculty mentor focused on pedagogical growth.
- Creating a reflective ePortfolio and Teaching Statement demonstrating growth as illustrated by curated artifacts developed while in the program.
Eligibility
Graduate students from any program at Northwestern may apply, provided they meet the following criteria:
- Have completed course work
- Are fully funded during the academic year of participation.
- Has written support from their advisor acknowledging their prospective participation in the GTF program throughout the academic year.
- Has identified a potential faculty mentor to meet with the participant quarterly to discuss teaching and learning and support their progress through the program.
- Can attend the Academic Kickoff Session Leader training sessions in person on the Evanston campus (exact times TBD).
We strongly encourage interested applicants to complete one or more of the following programs prior to participating in GTF:
Application
Applications open for the 2025-2026 academic year in March 2025.
A full application includes:
- The completed online application form
- A cover letter (1-2 pages) addressing the applicant’s motivation for participating as a GTF and how this program could support their future career goals
- A brief email from their advisor acknowledging their prospective participation in the GTF program (to be emailed to Kate Flom Derrick)
Time Commitment:
Graduate Teaching Fellows runs from August to June, with an estimated time commitment of 12 hours in August, and 30 approximately hours each quarter.
- In August, GTFs complete Kickoff Session Training & develop a kickoff session
- During each quarter, GTFs:
- Attend monthly program meetings
- Meet with a faculty mentor
- Develop and/or sustain a departmental project
- Develop and/or refine their teaching statement
- Develop an ePortfolio
- Additionally, each GTF will develop and facilitate one interactive workshop with the Searle Center
Graduate Teaching Fellows receive a $3000 stipend by meeting participation expectations.