This month, we are interested in hearing your feedback on funding at McGill. Complete our survey below or at this link.
One of our major bargaining mandates is to ensure that there is a clear distinction between stipends and TA wages. AGSEM members have expressed concern that ambiguities around types of funding has resulted in stagnant graduate student funding and, in some cases, a significant loss to a student's overall funding.
In October, AGSEM held a Town Hall on graduate funding at McGill. The event was an open forum for graduate students to air their grievances about funding related to the amount and availability of funding, as well as the transparency of funding practices at McGill. AGSEM presented preliminary data on funding in support of our monetary bargaining mandates that will be made available to members as negotiations progress. You can also check out this interview that TA Bargaining Chair Jessica Rose had with the McGill Tribune.
We are currently collecting funding letters issued by McGill. We're asking for you to send us your funding letters to us, whether they're from this year or a few years ago. With more examples of sketchy funding practices, we will build a stronger case to prevent McGill from clawing back your funding. You can send us PDFs of your letters already in redacted form (or we will do this for you). Confidentiality is a high priority for us, so please contact us with any questions you have.
Our last survey asked members to give their feedback on the resources available on-campus and their restructuring under the Wellness Hub. The numbers do not paint a picture of a very accessible healthcare system, with 74% of respondents indicating that they experienced long wait times to access health care at McGill. The results are interesting but too long to list here. See our website for our report.