Taubman College F26 Urban Planning GSI (Limited Availability Positions

Graduate Student Instructor Position

All positions require that you submit a cover letter and a resume combined into a single PDF file. All GSI applications should be submitted through the graduate student instructors posting on the university careers website. Application materials should be addressed to the faculty noted on the job description or to the chair of the program that you are applying to in cases where the faculty is TBA.

The cover letter header must include:

• Name
• Program (MURP, MUD, URP, B.S. UTech, PhD, etc.)
• Expected date of graduation (MM/YYYY)
• Umich email address
• Student  #
• Position(s) to which you are applying

Applications are due by July 29, 2026.

All graduate student instructor positions listed below are limited availability positions. Please note that only students currently enrolled at Taubman College are eligible to apply to become a graduate student instructor (GSI) at Taubman College.

Generally, each program only hires students from within their field. The positions listed here are for urban planning students only.

Dual-degree students must take 75% of their course work and must be enrolled for at least 6 credit hours at Taubman College in the term they hold a GSI position.

Only students who have satisfactory academic performance are eligible for a GSI position. Satisfactory academic performance is defined as:

• 3.0 GPA or above
• No more than one outstanding incomplete
• Progress toward degree at the rate of 9 or more credits per semester

If at any point in the hiring process or after a GSI position is assigned, it is determined that you do not meet the minimum qualifications posted for that course, your GSI position will be terminated and offered to another individual, effective immediately, even in cases where the class has already started and you have begun working.

When a student receives a Taubman College GSI appointment for a term, the GSI/GSRA tuition benefits replace any Taubman College scholarships awarded for the same term of the GSI/GSRA appointment. These scholarships cannot be held nor applied to future terms.

Course

Title:

URP 506 - Planning Methods Limited Availability Positions, up to 1 position available Required Availability:
Tues, Thurs 10:00-11:30am Estimated FTE: 18.7% - 5.5 to 7.49 hours per week Salary: TBD (GEO contract in negotiation) Tuition Waiver: 64% of tuition Faculty:
Xiaofan Liang

Course description:
This course introduces students to essential methods and techniques used in planning practice and urban research. Analytic approaches include research design, multivariate regression, population forecasting, survey research, case study research, evaluation, and graphic data presentation. The emphasis is on methods in the context of planning and urban policy research, and matching the methods to the problem. We will cover computer applications for data analysis, including some computer lab time scheduled periodically through the semester.

GSI Responsibilities:
The GSI is responsible for assisting a lab session (1.5hrs/wk), lab preparation (3.5hrs/wk), grading (2hrs/wk), and logistics/communications (0.49hrs/wk).

Minimum Qualifications:

Know R and Statistics

Desired

Qualifications:

Have taken URP 506 before.

After review of the applicants and their materials, the faculty will rank up to four candidates for each GSI position with the applicants preference from the course selection form taken into consideration. In addition to selecting their top applicants, faculty can list those applicants whose qualifications are not sufficient to serve as a GSI in the course. The chair will be responsible for matching faculty and student preferences for final GSI assignments.

Where there are similarly qualified candidates, the preference is for students who have not had an opportunity to be a GSI at Taubman College.

Offers will be extended within six weeks after the application due date and we estimate that all positions will be filled, and the applicants notified by August 28, 2026. As a reminder, applicants may request the status of their application from the appointing unit throughout the process.

The percentage of effort for each position is detailed in the posting. Should enrollment warrant, and the GSI agree, an increase in percentage is possible. GSIs and faculty should check in regularly to ensure that the outline on the fraction calculation accurately reflects the effort.

Number of applications received previous academic year: 42

Criteria for late appointments:
All appointments should be prepared and submitted prior to the beginning of the term or another period of appointment. However, late appointments can happen on rare occasions. A `late appointment' is one that is sent to human resources subsequent to the first pay date of the appointment period involved. Because the specific period of appointment for GSIs and GSSAs has numerous implications for the employee contractual rights and benefits, a written statement affirming that the activities involved in…