Our department creates a supportive community for our students and TA Hours are the heart of these efforts: where upper-level students help those in our introductory programming courses.
Now in its sixth year, our TA program includes over 30 undergraduate tutors who are available most evenings to assist students as they develop their CS knowledge. CS TAs are upper level students who are trained and paid to serve as tutors.
CS TA Hours
We formalized our Teaching Assistants (TA) program in 2017 to create a team of trained tutors with faculty oversight and centralized hours so our students can work with near-peers to practice and hone their CS skills.
All tutoring is free for any student taking CS 149, 159, 227, 240, and 261. Students can attend drop-in tutoring during TA Hours, which is held Sunday through Thursday night, both in a CS computer lab (5pm-9pm) and online (9pm-11pm).
There students can receive one-on-one assistance from trained CS tutors, but it is also a hub for our majors. Visiting TA hours is a great place to turn classmates into friends and have a dedicated place and time to tackle your CS work.
TA Training
Our TA program was launched by Prof. Dee Weikle and is currently led by Prof. Kevin Molloy and Prof. Michael Stewart. These CS faculty oversee the team’s training, weekly meetings, and professional development to ensure that our tutors incorporate best practices to support our students’ learning. TAs are trained to assist students while maintaining academic integrity, modeling learning strategies and growth mindset, and empowering the students as learners.
