Academic Traineeship Framework and Guidelines

• There is a minimum of six hours a week of student consultation. 
• As many courses have rotating tutors, trainees must aim for consulting times that are unlikely to change week on week. These times should be posted on your office door(s).
• Consulting includes hot seat (liaise with course conveners regarding which courses ATs are involved in the hot seat), in the weeks you are on hot seat duty. Hot seat roster to be arranged and circulated per course as applicable.

Preparation of teaching material for student consultation: Trainees must liaise with course convener regarding existing material, printing deadlines, etc.

Responsibilities regarding setting assessments include:

• Setting assessments (ranging from objective tests, projects, essays to tests/exams) – agree content, etc and deadlines with course conveners.
• Checking/Reviewing assessments (ranging from objective tests, projects, essays to tests/exams) – agree on deadlines with course conveners.

Important to note:

• The assessment setting process is confidential
• It is inappropriate for ATs to give hints or areas to focus on (or similar).

Responsibilities regarding marking include:

• Minimum of 80 000 marks per academic year, ideally only on courses where no student tutors/markers. (Marks are based on number of scripts marked x maximum number of marks for the question)
• May include marking  on Business Analysis and Governance
• May be exceeded (subject to approval see 1.2)
• Includes PGDA Saturday tests 
• Review of scripts for remarks. These do not count towards marking allocation.
• Assist with tick counting/checking 

NB: Trainees should always remember the importance of upholding the integrity of the marking process (elaborated on here).

In this regard, trainees must liaise with course conveners to: 

• Agree on manageable marking deadlines
• Obtain guidance regarding marking, marking plans
• Mark a test batch of scripts
• Ensure consistency in  marking and ‘marking keys’ used, etc
• Completeness of the marking process
• Exercise due care to minimise errors and number of remarks
• Responsibility for the security of scripts in your possession

Two vital points to remember in respect of setting and marking:

• The importance of ensuring confidentiality over marks and mark plans.
• Taking on additional marking loads is subject to approval by the section head and the relevant section head and you having capacity, taking into account your other commitments to the College and your research-related commitments.

There is a set minimum of 75 invigilation hours during the year. This excludes the undergraduate May/June and Oct/Nov exams i.e. these invigilation hours are in addition to the minimum. This minimum includes the invigilation of tests/projects/exams. These hours can also include any of the courses in the College i.e. undergraduate and postgraduate as well as courses that you do not teach.

Attendance at all academic fora are mandatory unless there is a clash with teaching commitments in the College.

Attendance is strongly recommended.

All ATs are required to participate in community engagement.

• These vary per section and per course
• Liaise with course conveners regarding, inter alia, Vula-related responsibilities, tutorial administration, test/exam admin, appropriate responses re student queries.
• UCT Open Day
• BAG Sector Night and Finale
• PGDA events

• All external/outside work is subject to final approval by the HoC
• taking on the above is subject to your having capacity, taking into account your commitments to the College and your research-related commitments. Note that in all instances, your responsibilities with respect to teaching and student-related commitments take preference over external/outside work.
• Private tutoring of UCT-registered students, irrespective of the subject, is not allowed.

Enquire as to when these are planned for 2021 and update “work allocation” spreadsheet accordingly. Inform course conveners and make arrangements where clashes with UCT commitments are foreseen/expected. Note that it is a condition of SAICA’s Academic Traineeship Programme that you attend training when required to do so by your firms. In addition, the firms may require you to do “vac work” during the June/July break.

Please see attached University policy. In addition, as ATs, you have transitioned into a professional working environment – it is understandable that you will have friends who are students and that you will interact with those students as well as other students outside of the UCT environment. Be aware of how these relationships and interactions are managed and are perceived by others. (Please see details on this policy here) .

•  The remuneration of ATs excludes contributions to medical aid or pension funds. 
• When not in the office/at work and not on leave – ensure that you are contactable. 
• Leave forms to be signed off by section head before sending off to HoC. See attached College policy (see section below).
• Six-monthly SAICA assessment forms to be completed and signed off by HoC. (Due dates to be confirmed at a later date.)
• Jan 2021 ITC pre-results release lunch (IPD to approve date). (Details to be confirmed at a later date.)
• Please be involved in College of Accounting social functions.
• In addition to these guidelines, UCT policy documents may be accessed on the UCT website. IT policies may be accessed on the ICTS website.

• ATs get 15 days leave a year - if you are going to be out of town and/or unavailable you need to complete a leave form. This should be signed by your Section Head and the HOC.
• During the mid-year vacation you may work at home (on your postgraduate studies) but should be available should you be required in the College.
• ATs are required to be at work until Friday 11 December 2020 (provisional date). We encourage you to remain in the College for easy access to resources and supervisors in order to complete your postgraduate studies.
• Should you wish to take leave before Friday 11 December 2020, you will need to take this out of your allocated 15 days. You will need to complete a leave form and get agreement from your Section Head. The Section Head will need to ensure that all tasks that need doing can be done before you leave or that they can be reallocated amongst those ATs that do not take leave during this period.
• Not all ATs will be able to take leave during late November and early December - leave will be granted on a first requested basis. In any event, not more than 5 days leave may be taken in late November / early December except in exceptional circumstances.
• UCT Mental Health Policy: This may be accessed via this article on UCT News. 

• A staff member may not disclose or communicate to any unauthorised person any information relating to the work entrusted to him/her or relating to the work of any other staff member or UCT student. Neither may information obtained in the course of employment at the University and relating to any staff member, student or University activity be communicated.
• A staff member may not use information obtained in the course of employment at the University for personal gain or for the benefit of any other person or organisation without written authority to do so. 
• It is a dismissible offence for any staff member to communicate information as defined in point 1 above to the South African Police Service or to any other state or private security agency without written authority. 
• Staff members are responsible for University property issued to them.

• In formulating rules pertaining to relationships between academic, PASS, or contract staff and students, the University is concerned to protect the integrity of the academic process and to provide an environment in which all students may reach their full academic potential, and in which all university members may perform at the highest levels of competence, integrity, and security. 
• Special relationships between academic, PASS, or contract staff and students (including, but not limited to romantic relationships, sexual relationships, kinship, and relationships with a history of serious interpersonal conflict) may undermine this integrity, and they may compromise fairness or objectivity, or be perceived to do so.

• A member of the staff who has a special relationship to, or with, a student in the department of which he or she is a member, or with whom he or she has job-related interaction, shall disclose the relationship to the Head of Department, or senior line manager; the HOD or senior line-manager shall keep a confidential written record of this and report this to the Dean. A Head of Department or senior line-manager who has a special relationship with a student shall disclose this to the Dean, who shall keep a confidential record of this. A Dean in such a position will disclose this to the Deputy Vice-Chancellor possible.
• The HOD, senior line-manager, or Dean shall take whatever steps are necessary to ensure that the academic process is not compromised, that fairness in access to resources, opportunities and/or services is not damaged, and that bias or perceptions of bias, in dealing with students are avoided.
• Failure to report such a special relationship to, or with, a student in terms of these rules constitutes a breach of conduct and any member of staff who contravenes the rules is liable to disciplinary action.
• To withhold a right or grant special privilege to a student on the basis of a special relationship, disclosed or undisclosed, is a contravention of these rules.
• No member of the academic staff may supervise the research of a student with whom he or she is in a special relationship.
• Contraventions of these rules should be reported to the RO and handled within the University’s broad disciplinary procedures as they apply to academic and PASS staff. Where there are allegations of sexual harassment or sexual offences within the complaint of contravention, these must be handled in conjunction with the University’s policies on sexual harassment or sexual offences.