My fair share – a simple multiple attribute decision making approach to graduate assistantship allocation

Graduate assistants are an important resource for any university. At Kutztown University, the majority of graduate assistantships are allocated by the Graduate Council. Specifically, on an annual basis, the Graduate Assistantship (GA) Committee of the Graduate Council determines the allocation of assistantships among academic departments and colleges requesting them. Since proposals for graduate assistantships typically outnumber available assistantships by as much as 2 to 1, it is important to allocate the available assistantships in an optimal manner. Traditionally, the ten-member GA committee performed this function in a purely subjective manner. After years of discussion seeking a more quantitative approach to GA allocation, in 2001, the GA committee adopted a multiple attribute decision making (MADM) approach. In this paper, the MADM approach used by the GA committee and the results achieved will be discussed.