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The graduate student population has been traditionally overlooked within higher education. However, within recent decades, much research has been devoted to addressing the multiple facets of the graduate student experience, including that of the graduate teaching assistant (GTA) position. This thesis seeks to explore in depth the experiences of GTAs in the classroom. A summary and critique of the literature that exists surrounding GTAs is provided, including literature related to national graduate student demographics, the history of GTA/GRA positions, salient issues surrounding the GTA position, and models of GTA development. The goal of this thesis is to share results from a quantitative study that analyzes how graduate students self-identify into a three-stage model of GTA development proposed by Nyquist and Sprague (1998). Within this particular study, an online survey questionnaire was developed to support a quantitative research design. An independent chi-square analysis was conducted on the data derived from this questionnaire. The results from this study will be discussed, and further implications of this research for both researchers and practitioners will be explored