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In the academic language, do we say "to TA a course" or "to TA for a course"? (TA = Teaching Assistant, and when verbalized it means to serve as a TA)

I have read both:

http://web.stanford.edu/~siegelr/taapplication2003.html :

Thank you very much for your interest in TAing the M&I 201 course.

http://cee.illinois.edu/node/3042 :

Response to students that expressed interest in TA position for CEE 202

Are both forms correct?

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    Either way is ok. I'm TA-ing a course. I'm the TA for a course. Compare: I'm QA-ing the software, that is, providing Quality Assurance, checking for "bugs".
    – TimR
    Mar 9, 2015 at 23:14
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    Both are 'okay' in informal usage, including derived forms (TAed, will TA, etc..). All are jargon in their respective fields and only make sense when you conjugate and use them in their initialized forms.
    – Gary
    Mar 10, 2015 at 1:05

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The first example uses TA as a verb, in which case it makes sense to just say "TA the course" without "for".

"course" is a direct object. However, I could also imagine a construction like this: I am TA'ing [course X] for Professor Smith.

But in the second usage (with "for") TA is not used as a verb; it is used as an adjective for "position". In this case it is speaking of being the TA "for" that course, by filling the TA position.

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  • In "to TA for a course", "TA" functions as base infinitive: To earn some rent money, I plan to TA for a course. As adjective: ...I plan to get a TA position. As noun: I plan to be a TA.
    – TimR
    Mar 10, 2015 at 19:56

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