Teaching positions for grad students aren&#x27;t predatory.  They are really a form of financial assistance.  In return for teaching 3 hours a week 2 hours sitting in your office with the occasional student visitor (with say 5 hours of prep work that could be done during office hours and 3 12 hour days grading exams).  That&#x27;s 8 hours of work a week which works out to a pretty decent hourly salary.<p>It&#x27;s hardly luxury and when the state&#x2F;university system yanks funding out during your tenure THAT is somewhat predatory but usually most departments find a way to tighten belts and make sure current students have sufficent funding.