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January 29, 2019In this issue: Campus cold weather closure, using story form to improve research communication, and more.
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Tips for Grads: Leadership
By Kirby Livingston, PhD student Early Semester Teaching Tips
Make a positive first impression Sharing briefly about yourself can help students see you as a person rather than an authority figure. This will make you more approachable to students and may encourage them to share more.
Share learning objectives with students in clear and concrete terms. Explain how you define student success in the course and the level of commitment that you expect. You can also give a low stakes quiz on the course syllabus to ensure that students understand course policies and provide a venue for students to follow up.
Involve students early and often Provide an opportunity for students to introduce themselves, learn each other’s names, and make connections. You can also use a brief in-class writing assignment to learn why they have enrolled in the course, what knowledge, experiences, and perspectives they bring, and what they expect to learn.
Create an environment where students of all backgrounds feel welcome, safe, and valued. Encourage all students to participate and create a syllabus with course materials that represent the contributions of diverse people in your field of study.
Communicate your interest in students’ learning Take time to address student questions, be available and approachable outside of class time, and convey a genuine belief in students’ capabilities. Assess students’ prior learning early in the semester with an un-graded pre-test, survey, or writing assignment.
Provide opportunities for early success Instead of trying to “weed out” students with a challenging first assignment, help students develop confidence by aligning the first assignment with your assessment of students’ prior learning.
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| DiscoverPD is an innovative tool for UW–Madison graduate students to advance their academic and professional goals. Review the nine facets of professional development, complete a self-assessment, and get a customized report and recommendations.
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| | Upcoming Professional Development Events
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| Researchers and scholars need to be able to communicate their work to a broad range of audiences. This is often a challenge as the technical and abstract nature of their work can confuse and alienate the uninitiated. Story, on the other hand, is a mode of communication that is highly engaging, broadly educational, and accessible to everyone. In this workshop, participants will learn the fundamentals of story and use story-form to create a 3-minute presentation for the public about their research or scholarship. This hands-on, iterative approach involves drawing images to generate raw material, shaping the content with story principles, and mapping the presentation on a story board. Participants will work in small groups to deliver, get feedback on, and revise their presentations. One of the greatest challenges of job searching – in academia, government, business, or the non-profit world – is simply getting noticed. Among hundreds of applicants vying for each job, how can you stand out from the crowd? One strategy to differentiate yourself in the job market is to cultivate a personal brand. A personal brand is your career persona, the image you present to potential employers in the online world and in real life. In this workshop, you will develop a personal brand and learn how it can be leveraged to showcase your strengths and build relationships. You will also see how to create an online portfolio of content that can help you rise to the top of any hiring list.
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| This week's Software Training for Students (STS) courses: - Access 1
- Photoshop 1
- Illustrator 1
This week's Social Science Computing Cooperative (SSCC) courses: - Stata for Researchers
- Stata Programming
- Data Wrangling Essentials in R
- Markdown for Technical Writing
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Special Events & Symposia
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Campus closure due to extreme cold weatherDue to the dangerously cold weather forecasted for the next few days, the UW–Madison campus will be closed, beginning today at 5 pm and continuing until noon on Thursday. All classes, events, and other campus activities will be cancelled. During this period, only essential campus services will be operating. All students are advised to take precautions against the cold and avoid prolonged exposure.
UW–Madison increases minimum TA, RA stipends
Graduate School Dean William J. Karpus has announced that the minimum TA stipend rate will change from $18,350 to $20,000 for a 9-month, 50% appointment level, representing an increase of 8.99%. The minimum stipend rate for research assistants (RAs) will also increase to $20,341 for a 9-month, 50% appointment level. This goes into effect July 1 for annual appointments and August 19 for academic appointments. Dean Karpus stated, “Graduate assistants contribute greatly to the educational and research missions of the university, while also gaining valuable experience and skills that are foundational to their careers. We are happy that the Chancellor and senior university leadership continue to make investments in this important area and support students with this increase in stipend rates.”
Get hands-on community experience with Badger Volunteers
Registration to join Badger Volunteers is now open to all students. Volunteers participate in an 11-week program to strengthen and develop key skills through hands-on, community collaborative, guided experience. If you want to volunteer in urban farming, regional planning, elder care, developmental care, mechanics, tutoring, public relations, housing policy, prairie planting, public health, sustainability, or education, all you have to do is find a team that fits your schedule and interests. Working with a community partner on a team for a couple of hours each week is a great way to explore Dane County, citizenship, careers, and community-identified issues. Registration is first-come, first-served.
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Mental Health Resources for Grad StudentsAccording to the 2016 UW–Madison Healthy Minds Study, 94% of UW–Madison students do not think any less of a peer who seeks mental health care, and 90% of students who used mental health care found it helpful. As a student, there are a variety of mental health resources available to you at no cost. A few of these resources are listed here.
Individual Counseling. University Health Services (UHS) offers individual counseling in a confidential, caring space. Individual sessions are typically 45-50 minutes, and most students attend anywhere from one to four sessions to address their concerns. Counseling topics can be any issue that causes distress – emotional, psychological, interpersonal, or academic, for instance. UHS also has a bilingual mental health provider for students who are more comfortable speaking in Mandarin. Group Counseling for Graduate Students. UHS offers support/theme groups for graduate students, including groups for all graduate students, groups for dissertators, groups for graduate women, and groups for graduate students of color. This supportive environment is a great way to share experiences around the challenges of grad school with other grad students.
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The Dean of Students Office provides resources to students struggling with a variety of issues, and can be your go-to spot for assistance as a graduate student. To contact the Dean of Students Office's Graduate Student Assistance Specialist Elaine Goetz-Berman directly, email egoetz2@wisc.edu.
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Please note: Some graduate students may be ineligible to hold graduate assistantship appointments. Be sure to check with your graduate program coordinator about your eligibility before applying.
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Summer Course Instructors, Wisconsin Center for Academically Talented Youth
Qualifications: Two years of teaching experience
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| The Graduate Public Humanities Exchange (HEX) program is a long-running and dynamic program that funds innovative public humanities projects that forge partnerships between community organizations and graduate students. Each HEX Project builds a partnership with a community group that reflects both the partner’s existing needs and graduate students’ research, interests, and expertise. Along with those partnerships, the HEX Program also fosters a strong cohort among scholars by holding regular workshops and conversations, where students often address both the exciting developments and the difficult tensions that can arise from projects that are both public and academic. Graduate students from all programs and at any stage of their program (including MA students) are encouraged to apply. This fellowship provides graduate students in the humanities with professional experience outside of academia. By placing fellows in partner organizations around Madison including museums, hospitals, non-profits, community centers, and emerging businesses, the program facilitates the reciprocal sharing of resources and expertise, and highlights the significance of the humanities both on and off campus. The Fellowship is open to advanced UW–Madison graduate students in the humanities and related fields (i.e., PhD candidates currently working on their dissertations). Applicants will be reviewed based on their academic accomplishments in the humanities; relevant training and experience; and the relation between the fellowship and their professional goals. For questions, please contact Aaron Fai, Assistant Director of Public Humanities, fai@wisc.edu. The Mellon-Wisconsin Fellowships provide three months of summer fellowship support to allow PhD students in the humanities and humanistic social sciences to work full-time on their dissertations. Applicants must have achieved dissertator status by the beginning of the fall 2018 semester, and be in the final stages of dissertation writing. The Mellon Foundation, in partnership with the State of Wisconsin, provides funding for this initiative.
4W Engagement Grants for Emerging Scholars are intended to flexibly support graduate and professional students in any relevant discipline who are engaged in work related to gender and wellbeing. These grants may be used for project expenses or travel related to community-based research or practice, including internships, independent study projects, and pre-dissertation or pre-thesis groundwork. Projects should have a research-to-action focus aimed at enhancing gender equity in Wisconsin or globally. They should also align with the vision and core values of the 4W program. The 4W grants are made possible by the generosity of the Women’s Philanthropy Council.
Student Research Grant Competition
Applications reviewed on a rolling basis Have you been invited to present at a conference or do you need travel funds to conduct research towards your dissertation? The Graduate School’s Student Research Grant Competition (SRGC) is accepting applications for both conference and research travel support for the current academic year. Awards of up to $1500 are available to all eligible UW–Madison graduate students in programs supported by the Graduate School. Award levels vary depending on the demonstrated need.
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