Feasibility and Legality of Simultaneously Being a TA and RA During a PhD Program in Different Countries

Question

I am currently exploring the possibility of undertaking a PhD and have a query regarding the roles of Teaching Assistant (TA) and Research Assistant (RA). I am particularly interested in understanding the feasibility and legality of holding both positions simultaneously during a PhD program. My questions are as follows:

Is it common or acceptable for PhD students to be both a TA and an RA at the same time?

Are there specific countries or universities where this practice is more prevalent or officially permitted?

Answer 1

It's common to combine partial roles to add up to a full position.

It's not common to have separate full jobs especially at multiple universities. It's possible one or both would consider this fraud. A PhD is a full time position, it's plenty of work by itself. It's not reasonable to expect to do two at once.

Answer 2

Giving Ph.D. students jobs is considered giving them support. These academic jobs are limited in number and therefore, pretty much any university regulates them, with a maximum number of hours and maybe a maximum of pay. Since Ph.D. students are often foreign nationals lacking the right to work in the country of their studies, there is usually another limit, that typically is also enforced by the university.

Thus, you can be a half-time TA, a half-time RA, or a quarter-time TA and a quarter-time RA simultaneously.

If you have the legal right to work outside of the university and do so, then you will be considered a part-time student and usually are not eligible for either.

I am describing this from a US-perspective. Customs in other countries might differ.