There are three types of assistantships available at NIU: Research, Graduate, and the Rhoten A. Smith Program. After their first year, students can be considered for research assistantships in the College of Law or graduate assistantships within another University department. Assistantships, research or graduate, normally waive the equivalent to full or partial in-state tuition, though some waive the equivalent to out-of-state tuition.
Law students should note that tuition waivers affect the student’s financial aid budget. The tuition waiver reduces the total student loan amount eligibility.
After their first year, law students can be considered for a research assistantship within the College of Law. A student should submit a Research Assistantship Application (hard copies are available in the Office of Admission & Financial Aid) to a professor with whom he or she would like to work. Normally, assistantship forms are processed during late spring for positions starting in the next fall or early fall for positions starting in the next spring semester. These research assistantships waive the equivalent to full or partial in-state tuition.
Students who receive an assistantship from another part of the University qualify for the equivalent of in-state or out-of-state law school tuition. Students seeking Graduate Assistantships should contact the Office of Human Resource Services or check NIU's Human Resource web site for vacancies: http://www.hr.niu.edu/employment/regular_search.cfm.
The Rhoten A. Smith Assistantship Program has been established at NIU to help provide graduate assistantships to minorities and women enrolled in graduate programs in which these groups are underrepresented. The program, named in honor of the university's sixth president, represents part of the institution's commitment to increasing access to graduate education. A Rhoten A. Smith Assistantship typically pays a stipend and provides a full waiver of tuition. Only U.S. citizens and permanent residents are eligible.