UW CSE 12x/14x TA Program

Application Process

The CSE 12x/14x TA application process for Spring 2025 occurs from Week 6 through finals week. CSE 12x/14x does not hire new TAs for summer quarters. The process is highly competitive and we welcome applicants to apply multiple times.

The application timeline and process is described in detail below. General advice for Round 1 is listed below but more advice from current TAs will be published to this webpage by Saturday 2/15 1pm.

Round 1: Personal Statement and Microteach Video

During Weeks 6 and 7, applicants will first fill out a digital form with some basic information (grades, lecture conflicts, etc) as well as film a short video containing a 1-minute personal statement and a 3-minute microteach. Applicants are encouraged to highlight their teaching passion and interest in their personal statements. In their microteach, each applicant will present the beginning of a lesson on a basic 12x/14x topic. More information will be provided to applicants in the application form.

Below is an overview of how your round one application material will be evaluated, along with advice from those who will be reviewing your application.

Personal Statement Evaluation:

• Personal statements will primarily be evaluated on a demonstrated passion for teaching. Secondary factors that will also be used when evaluating personal statements are clarity of presentation and relevant teaching experiences. Refer to the Advice section below for tips on how to exhibit all three of these attributes in your personal statement.

Personal Statement Advice:

• Demonstrated Passion for Teaching
  • In your personal statement, you are asked to explain why you want to be a TA. While doing so, you should also explain why you are passionate about teaching and why pursuing a computing education role interests you. The CSE 12x/14x TA position is an intensive education role that requires a large (~19.5 hours per week) time commitment, so we are looking to hire applicants who truly are passionate about teaching.
  • When explaining your reason for pursuing a teaching position, we recommend personalizing your explanation as much as possible. In previous application cycles, we've found highly personalized statements that highlighted an individual's anecdote or experience to be particularly compelling, while the more generalized personal statements that could apply to a large number of applicants could be forgettable.
  • While highlighting your passion for teaching, we also recommend referencing a memorable teaching or learning experience you've had that shaped your teaching philosophy and/or encouraged you to pursue a role in education.
• Clarity of Presentation
  • One minute is not a lot of time! We recommend organizing your thoughts by writing an outline of your personal statement and rehearsing your delivery. A well-structured personal statement that tells a cohesive narrative is more compelling for reviewers & helps you best effectively use your short time. This will also give you time to think deeper about your reason for wanting to be a CSE 12x/14x TA.
  • It's clear to video reviewers when presentations are not well-rehearsed, which demonstrates a lack of effort and preparedness on the applicant's part. To avoid this, we recommend rehearsing your personal statement until you can comfortably deliver it while highlighting your strengths as an applicant to the best of your ability.
  • Be energetic during your personal statement! It's a great way to show video reviewers that you really are passionate about becoming a TA.
• Relevant Teaching Experience:
  • “Relevant teaching experience” is a very broad term and encompasses any role or experience where you have had to teach others. Some examples of relevant teaching experiences are high school tutoring, coaching a sport, or volunteering at an after-school program. However, it's important to note that these are only three examples, and there are many other such experiences you could discuss in your application!
  • You will not be penalized if you have never held a former teaching position.
  • If you have former teaching experience, we'd love to hear specific details on how that experience impacted you as an educator and inspired you to want to pursue teaching.

Microteach Evaluation:

• Microteaches will be evaluated on the quality of presentation, technical proficiency (of the presenter), and use of effective teaching strategies. Refer to the Advice section below for tips on how to exhibit all three of these attributes in your microteach.

Microteach Advice:

• Quality of Presentation
  • Microteaches will be evaluated on the quality of presentation, technical proficiency (of the presenter), and use of effective teaching strategies. Refer to the Advice section below for tips on how to exhibit all three of these attributes in your microteach.
  • It's clear to video reviewers when a microteach is not well-rehearsed. You should rehearse your microteach to the point you can comfortably give it while demonstrating your teaching abilities effectively. This does not mean practicing your microteach until you can give it word for word robotically.
  • While setting up your environment for filming, be mindful of room lighting and what is in frame of your camera. We recommend choosing a room with bright lighting where the whiteboard or other surface you're writing on is clearly visible. Additionally, make sure that the entire area you are using for your microteach is in the frame of your camera. You should also consider the legibility of your writing and make sure everything can be clearly read in your video.
  • Be energetic during your microteach! It's a great way to better engage your video reviewers, while a lack of enthusiasm can greatly diminish the quality of your lesson.
  • Please make sure your handwriting is neat, large, and legible!
  • Whiteboarding is a skill! If you need to write text, code, diagrams, etc. on the board, we highly recommend thinking about how you will organize these presentation components on the board before presenting and finding a way to do so that provides adequate spacing between elements.
• Technical proficiency
  • We highly recommend reviewing the topic you will be teaching before preparing your microteach. Any incorrect statements, conceptual misconceptions, or unintentionally incorrect code will negatively stand out within your microteach.
• Use of Effective Teaching Strategies
  • Below is a list of possible teaching strategies you could employ in your microteach. You likely will not have enough time to fully utilize each of these in only three minutes. We recommend focusing on strategies that best align with your teaching style.
  • The best TAs are able to provide the motivation behind why learning a topic is important. For example, why should students care about while loops? How about maps? Try to find some way to motivate your chosen topic! Whether that be a real-world application or the solution to an interesting problem you describe.
  • Using an analogy to relate new programming concepts to things or scenarios students are familiar with is an effective and engaging way to teach a new topic.
  • We highly recommend drawing pictures and diagrams to illustrate programming concepts! Visually communicating ideas is another skill that TAs have to do often, and a well-designed diagram can really increase the effectiveness of a lesson.
  • While whiteboarding, we also recommend using multiple colors. Using more than a single color can increase presentation engagement. For example, writing code in one color and diagraming in another can better convey your thoughts to students.
  • Finally, be creative! We've often found the most creative microteaches to be the most memorable and engaging.

Round 2: Problem Walkthrough Video

During Weeks 8 and 9, we will select a group of applicants to submit a 5-minute video. In this video, each applicant will present a walkthrough of a 12x/14x section problem as if they were leading their own section. More information will be provided to applicants through email.

Round 3: In-Person Interview

During Week 10, we will invite some individuals to complete a 15-minute in-person interview on campus during finals week. Virtual interviews will not be accommodated. The interviews are conducted by our student TA Coordinators (experienced TAs who help run the program).

The interview consists of two parts: a microteach and an office hours simulation.

In the microteach, you will present a topic of your choice from CSE 12x/14x using a whiteboard and/or slide deck (you must bring your own device if you wish to present slides!), with a strict 5-minute limit. In the office hours simulation, you will demonstrate how you would assist a student through a CSE 123/143 problem. More information will be provided over email.

Application Requirements

To be a TA you must have:

• Completed or are about to complete CSE 123/143 (or equivalent course).
• Strong grades in both CSE 142 and 143 or CSE 122 and 123 (or equivalent courses).
• An open time schedule to attend all meetings and lectures.
• A deep interest in Computer Science.
• A passion for teaching.

You also must be:

• Legally eligible to work in the USA
• Registered for at least 6 credits per quarter during the normal school year (Autumn through Spring)
• A matriculated UW student
• A responsible and dedicated individual who can manage the fairly intense workload of being a TA.

Time Commitments & Duties

TAing is a serious time commitment. TAs work an average of 17-19.5 hours per week. The break down is as follows:

• Grade homework assignments, exams, and resubmissions - up to 7.5 hours per week
• Attend lecture 2-3 hours a week for whichever class you TA
• CSE 121: WF 3:30 pm to 4:20 pm
• CSE 122: WF 2:30 to 3:20 pm
• CSE 123: WF 12:30 pm to 1:20 pm or 3:30 pm to 4:20 pm
• CSE 143: MWF N/A
• CSE 143X: MWF N/A
• Attend staff meeting for 1.5 hours a week
  • CSE 121: Mondays 4:30 to 6:00 pm
  • CSE 122: Mondays 4:30 to 6:00 pm
  • CSE 123: Mondays 4:30 to 6:00 pm
  • CSE 143: N/A
  • CSE 143X: N/A
• Attend the 12x/14x Community Meeting on Mondays 6:10 to 7:10 pm
• Attend New TA Training on Thursdays 4:30 to 6:00 pm (for first quarter only)
• Attend a Grading Party for their class (time determined quarter by quarter). Note: New TAs are required to attend Grading Parties at least an hour a week (see New TA Training section).
• Host office hours (or work in the IPL) for a minimum of 2 hours per week
• Lead Quiz Section (2 hours per week)

* All times listed above are in Pacific Time (PT). You can read more about mandatory TA duties here.

New TA Training

New TAs are required to participate in a weekly training program run by our undergraduate TA coordinators. The training sessions are held Thursdays from 4:30 to 6:00 pm. In addition, new TAs are required to attend a one hour "grading party" each week in which we discuss how to grade the current programming assignment. The grading party time will be chosen after the quarter starts to accomodate a time that all of the new TAs can attend.

TAs will be paid for attending the TA training and grading party.

Also, it is important to note that while every week you are given materials to teach from, it is expected that TAs are extremely knowledgeable about the course material as this will not be part of training.

Compensation

The starting pay for new TAs is $21.57/hour. TAs will receive hourly rate increases based on the number of quarters of experience as a TA. For more information visit the Undergrad TA Salary page.

All TAs are protected by the UAW 4121 union (which protects all Student Academic Employees on all three UW campuses.) For more information visit their site at www.uaw4121.org.