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The University of Texas at Austin
The Cockrell School of Engineering

ME Graduate Orientation

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Welcome Incoming Graduate Students,

photo of Dr. Ezekoye

Dr. Ofodike Ezekoye, Graduate Advisor

We are very excited to have you join our ME/OR community of scholars. Mechanical Engineering & Operations Research/Industrial Engineering at the University of Texas at Austin is a special place. As I frequently say, there are few programs nationally that combine the quality of education and quality of life that we offer. Both of these factors depend on the people who you will interact with in the program. You probably chose to come to our program because of the reputation and accomplishments of our faculty. Beyond this, recognize that your fellow graduate students are all highly accomplished and talented people who you will learn from and teach as you progress through the program. You will probably make lifelong friendships with fellow graduate students who will become international leaders in various technical areas. Beyond the technical tools that you will gain while here, are equally important soft skills that you should be open to learning. For many of you, our graduate program will be the first time that you will lead classroom sections as teaching assistants (TAs). There is much to be learned when you teach others. You will see that we are a diverse community and that our undergraduate students, who you could teach, are from varied backgrounds. We have developed a departmental culture of respect for differences between us. As such, we expect that you will respect religious, gender, ethnic, racial, mobility, and other differences that make us a truly varied community. Again, we are very excited about what you bring to our community and we hope to help you grow in the ways that you want.

The information that we provide below will help you settle in to life here in UT ME. If you have any questions, feel free to contact me (dezekoye@mail.utexas.edu) or the staff in the ME Graduate Office, David Justh or Prabhu Khalsa.

Once again, welcome to our program.

Dr. Ezekoye

From your Graduate Program Coordinators:

Hello and welcome. This material will be covered at the ME/OR New Student Orientation but it's good to familiarize yourself with the following information early so that you can manage your time efficiently leading up to the beginning of school and work. What follows is a list of essential steps that you must complete in order to begin study and employment at UT Austin. As always, please feel free to contact us if we can be of any help.

ME/ORIE New Student Orientation:

Orientation will be held August 18, 9—11 a.m. in ETC 1.202 (in the Civil, Architectural & Environmental Engineering building, due south of the ME building).

ME/ORIE Advising:

Advising is available on Tuesday, August 18, at various locations from 11 a.m. — 3 p.m., depending on the technical area (in the Mechanical Engineering building, ETC). See univeristy calendar for dates.

  • Online Registration: August 20 & 21
  • Classes Begin: Wednesday, August 26
  • Graduate Tuition Deadline: Monday, August 31, 5 p.m.

First Week Things:

  • Obtain your "high assurance" EID on-line, or receive an upgrade when you get your student ID card. You must have a "high assurance" EID in order to register for classes.
  • UT student photo ID card: Go to the main floor of the Flawn Academic Center (FAC), between the Main Building and the Student Union. You will need to show an official photo ID (driver's license or passport.) Please also request the proximity element (thin wire that runs along the card's edges) so that you can enter our building after hours and on weekends.
  • University Health Center: Check your Check your RIS (Registration Information Sheet). If you have a health center bar listed, go to the university health center in the Student Services Building (SSB) to have the medical bar removed: this is two blocks west of the ME building.
  • Open a free UT e-mail account: This can be done online or in person by visiting the Student Microcomputer Facility (SMF) in the Flawn Academic Center (FAC). Take your student ID. E-mail is considered to be an official University means of communication with you.

Registration:

  • Registration Approval: After Orientation on August 18, you will meet with your technical area faculty adviser and s/he will sign your registration advising form. Take the signed form to the Graduate Office, ETC 5.202 or 5.204, to have your advising bar lifted prior to registering.
  • New Student Registration is August 20&21: You will register yourself online using UTDirect —ROSE. Check your RIS (Registration Information Sheet) to determine registration times.
    Also see:
  • Tuition and Fee Payment: The first semester all students must pay a $10.00 general property deposit. Tuition and fees must be paid by August 31 by 5:00 p.m. (Please see further notes on tuition and fee payments for Teaching Assistants near the end of this document.

  • ***IMPORTANT***

    *Confirmation of Attendance*

    After tuition is paid, you must click an important button, "Confirm My Attendance," in order to align all aspects of your UT registration, tuition, and employment records. Failure to do click this button will not only result in all of your courses being dropped after 5 p.m. on August 31, but also prevents you from being appointed as a TA or GRA.


  • Transportation: You must be registered and paid before you can go on-line to purchase a parking permit. Any student with a 20 hour student appointment or a $10,000 fellowship is eligible for "A" (staff) parking. UT Shuttle and Capitol Metro bus schedules are available online,. UT students can ride city buses free with a student ID card.
  • Graduate School On-line Orientation is strongly recommended for all students. This will help to familiarize you with UT's Graduate Studies Office, policies, and services.

International Students:

Student Employees:

  • Employment: Paperwork originates with the area staff member who will process your appointment. This will be a TA or a GRA position. TA applications can be picked up from the area staff. GRA appointments are processed by the area staff and TA appointments are processed by Graduate Office staff. All student employees should review the New Employee checklist. It is imperative that you complete all steps of the New Student Employee Checklist.
  • Resident Tuition Waiver by Reason of Employment: Student employees with appointments of 20 hours or more who are not Texas residents should complete the Resident Tuition Waiver. This waiver must be submitted each semester of employment.
  • Other Financial Support: If you have an outside (non-UT) fellowship or support which will be paying your tuition and fees, please inform the ME/ORIE Graduate Office so we can keep a record of your funding (e.g., National Science Foundation, EPA fellowship, Military Support).
  • Health Insurance: If you are employed as a TA or GRA for at least 20 hours a week, you are eligible for university health insurance.
  • The New Employee Welcome and Orientation (NEWO) program: Conducted by Human Resource Services, this provides a comprehensive introduction to employment at The University of Texas at Austin, including employee benefits. If you're a new benefits-eligible (classified and Administrative/Professional), faculty or student employee, you're strongly encouraged to attend. Your department should make sure you attend as soon as possible after your date of hire. Enroll online to attend.
    If you have questions, contact Human Resource Services at 512-471-4772.

The List of Things Not to Forget:

  • Each semester you must confirm your registration, even if your Tuition & Fees are paid in full and you show a zero balance. If you do not do this, your registration will be cancelled and you can't be hired as a GRA/TA.
  • Your classes will be canceled if you do not pay your Tuition and Fees or make payment arrangements by 5:00 p.m. on August 31.
  • Resident Tuition Entitlement*: As a student employee, a spouse or child of a UT employee, or if you've been awarded a competitive scholarship, you may be eligible for the Resident Tuition Entitlement. You must claim your waiver or you will be charged for non-resident tuition.

Interested in becoming a Graduate Research Assistant, Teaching Assistant or an Assistant Instructor?

GRAs and TAs appointed for a semester term are required to register for nine (9) semester hours during the fall and spring semesters and three (3) semester hours in the summer session. If you are interested in an appointment as a GRA, please see a professor in your area of interest. You can find faculty information on the department's homepage.

Please note that not all students are guaranteed or offered a TA or GRA position.

If you are interested in an appointment as a TA :

Step One:

Pick up application form from Area Staff member

Area Office
Dynamic Systems and Control & Manufacturing and Design ETC 4.152
Materials Science ETC 9.108
Operations Research/ Nuclear/ Graphics ETC 5.128
Thermal Fluid Systems ETC 7.142

Step Two:

Fill out form and return it to the Area Staff member as soon as possible.

Please check to make sure that the form is completely filled out. Incomplete forms will be returned to the student. The area staff member will inform you if you receive an appointment.

Step Three:

If you are appointed, please see area staff member for a complete packet of forms to be filled out and dispersed properly.

Special Note: No appointments can be processed until you have registered and paid your fee bill. Please do so at the earliest time possible.

If you are appointed as a GRA, your resident tuition and fees will be fully paid by the faculty member/grant under which you are working.

If appointed as a TA , you will receive Tuition Assistance by the Provost's Office. This covers most, but not all, of a semester;'s worth of full-time tuition. Read more about Tuition Assistance on the Graduate School site. For offer students (recruited to the program) in their first year, the department will cover your tuition balance. You should begin working as a GRA in at least your second year, having secured a research supervisor by the end of your first year. Offer students who TA must still bear some out-of-pocket expense (several hundred dollars) up front; however you will be reimbursed two weeks into the semester. *Non-offer students who are hired as a TA can expect to pay $641 in the Fall 2009 & Spring 2010 semesters. Read more about the Tuition Assitance Process.

If you are an out-of-state or international student, you are eligible for a non-resident tuition waiver if appointed for 20 hours or more in a student employee title. This waiver will reduce your tuition and fees to that of Texas residents. To request a tuition waiver, you must fill out the Waivers Request form.

The tuition reimbursement pays you for nine (9) semester hours per long semester (not including summer). You are responsible for paying for any tuition and fees over the reimbursed amount.

Please contact Special Billing (232-4041) if you have any questions regarding your reimbursement.

Important Notes on Tuition and Fee Reimbursement:

  1. All tuition and fees must be paid for the fall semester by 5:00 pm August 31. This is true for all students, without exception. Recall that you will be reimbursed partially, if not in full, if you are appointed as a GRA or TA .
  2. We cannot finalize TA or GRA appointments until students are registered and have paid their tuition and fees.
  3. The University makes this easier for students by offering a temporary loan to all students as part of their registration process. When you get to the end of your registration, there will be a link that offers you this loan. We strongly encourage you to accept this loan offer. Once your appointment is finalized, tuition and fees assistance will be paid directly against your loan.
  4. Tuition Assistance per Appointment Types:
    1. For TA appointment holders, Tuition Assistance will be paid in two installments. Seventy-five percent (75%) will be applied to the tuition bill when the department processes your appointment and the remaining 25% (minus taxes) will be paid directly to you within the first two weeks of the semester. It will be your responsibility to pay the remainder of your tuition and fee balance from the final 25% payment. You can claim this tax withholding as a refund when you do your federal taxes for the following year. You will receive an IRS 1098-T form that indicates the taxes withheld.
    2. For GRA appointment holders, your tuition and fees will be fully paid when your appointment is processed.
  5. If you pay your full tuition from a source other than the temporary loan prior to payroll processing, the full tuition benefit amount less employment taxes will be paid directly to you.

Fellowship Payments:

If you are a School of Engineering fellowship recipient, your payments will come to you in two installments from UT Payroll. Each payment will be processed shortly after the beginning of the semester. Payments will be sent to you either by check or direct deposit, depending on your chosen method of payment.