The Student Personnel Assistantship (SPA) program is the student affairs arm of the Higher Education and Student Affairs (HESA) program, facilitating recruitment, programming, and the assistantship process. Established in 1948, SPA at The Ohio State University is one of the oldest assistantship programs of its kind for higher education and student affairs. This nationally acclaimed initiative has a history of excellence in providing supervised field experiences with financial support for students admitted to the HESA MA or PhD programs. As a graduate student with a SPA assistantship, you will have the opportunity to work with practitioners in addressing contemporary issues of theory and practice in the postsecondary contexts.

The SPA assistantships are a collaborative effort among the College of Education and Human Ecology, Office of Student Life, and other administrative offices at Ohio State, and are integrated with the MA and PhD academic programs in HESA. The majority of SPA assistantships are hosted by units within the Office of Student Life or the Office of Academic Affairs. Administrative work, research, and/or teaching may be a component of particular associateship positions.

Other forms of funding for incoming graduate students include fellowships and other forms of financial aid, which have applications separate from the SPA process. Additionally, a wide variety of associateships, not coordinated through the SPA Program, are available throughout the University.

SPA Staff: Dr. Jasmine Abukar, Coordinator; and Adrian Bitton, Assistant Coordinator. Contact us at spa@osu.edu or (614) 292-4322.