September 17, 2019

As a graduate student, each semester brings new challenges and opportunities. You may be faced with a different class schedule and changing or expanding responsibilities in addition to your coursework. Doing some up-front planning can make the difference between a smooth adjustment and feeling overwhelmed. Earlier this year, guest speaker Dr. Fatimah Williams shared an approach to personal strategic planning that can help you to develop a semester plan that will keep you on track with your long-term goals.

The first step is to think about managing your life as priority management rather than time management. While time management is task-oriented and focused on short-term goals, priority management is vision driven. It allows you to focus on what matters most in the long term, centering progress over productivity.

A time management approach might involve working through a to-do list, while a priority management orientation allows you to “zoom out” and figure out what you need to get done to make your semester or year successful. Ask yourself, are you managing tasks and time, or are you accomplishing small steps on the way to your long-term goals?

This backwards-design approach starts by setting your vision for the year. Your vision can be a simple word or phrase that encapsulates how you want to experience the year ahead. From there you can work backwards and determine a semester plan, weekly priorities, and the daily execution that will ultimately help you to realize your vision. In next week’s Tips For Grads, we will dive deeper into personal strategic planning and what you need to know when determining your vision and forming your semester, weekly, and daily plan to get you there.

This edition of Tips For Grads was adapted from Dr. Fatimah William’s Aug. 27, 2019 workshop, Starting Strong and Staying on Track: Strategic Goals and Planning for Productivity.

 
GradConnections Weekly is looking for fresh perspectives on the graduate student experience.
If you have advice, counsel, or tips for UW grad students, you’re invited to write a guest column for “Tips for Grads.”
If you’re interested, check out our infographic for details and email gspd@grad.wisc.edu to let us know.

Top 5 Tips for Launching Your Career Beyond the Tenure Track
Tuesday, Sept. 24 | 11:30 am - 1 pm
Wisconsin Idea Room, 159 Education Building | Career Development | Personal Effectiveness

This session will explore ways to make the most of your time in graduate school to prepare for a career beyond the tenure track. With experience working in business, government, non-profit, and non-tenure track academic jobs, the presenter will offer advice on the skills, opportunities, and questions to ask yourself when searching for a career that aligns with your values. From business terminology to lifestyle considerations, learn insider tips to help you land your non-tenure-track career. This presentation will be useful for students who want to frame their expertise and work experiences in ways that translate across job sectors. Lunch will be served with gluten-free & vegetarian options.

Preparing for success on the job market and beyond.
Find a full list of events on the For Future Faculty website.

Communication | Inquiry, Discovery, and Creation | Disciplinary Expertise and Interdisciplinary Connections 

IRB Meet and Greet
Wednesday, Sept. 18 | 10 am - 12:30 pm
Lathrop B137 

The Basics of APA Documentation
Thursday, Sept. 19 | 4 - 6 pm
6176 Helen C. White Hall

Learning and Integrating Common Features of Professional Research Writing
Monday, Sept. 23 | 3 - 4:30 pm
6176 Helen C. White Hall

Making Your Presentations Memorable: Slide Design Tips for Research Presentations & Job Talks
Monday, Sept. 23 | 4 - 5 pm
Biocommons/110A, Steenbock Library

Creating Tables and Figures in APA Research Papers
Tuesday, Sept. 24 | 4 - 5:30 pm
6176 Helen C. White Hall

Manage Your Research: Introduction to EndNote
Tuesday, Sept. 24 | 4 - 5 pm
105 Steenbock Library

For dates and times of each class, and for more software classes, visit the SSCC website.

MGN Asian Graduate Student and Faculty Mixer
Wednesday, Sept. 18 | 4 - 6:30 pm
Union South, (Check TITU)

Franchise: The Golden Arches in Black America
Wednesday, Sept. 18 | 6 pm
Fluno Center Auditorium

WiSolve Consulting Group Info Session
Thursday, Sept. 19 | 5:30 - 6:30 pm
Discover2Product, 1403 University Ave

Sustain-A-Bash
Friday, Sept. 20 | noon - 3 pm
Gordon Dining and Event Center Lawn

Indigenuity & Teejop: Launching Mindfulness of this Sacred Place
Monday, Sept. 23 | 7:30 pm
Wisconsin Union Theater, Shannon Hall

Catalyst for Science Policy (CaSP) is an organization with the goal of educating graduate students about science policy, making graduate students aware of science policy careers and communicating science topics to government and the community. Currently, CaSP is looking for members to join committees: Communications Committee, Outreach Committee, Policy Engagement Committee, Diversity/Inclusion/Social Justice in STEM Committee. Fill out the application form if you’re interested.

YOU@WISC. This portal has tools, information, and resources to help you be well. YOU@WISC covers a variety of mental health topics including stress management, self-care and social support, anger management, suicidal thoughts, and mindfulness. It also includes physical, personal, and academic wellness topics. All UW–Madison students can access this resource.

SilverCloud. SilverCloud is a self-guided mental health resource that provides treatment options 24 hours a day, no referral from a mental health or medical provider needed. It includes evidence-based learning modules on anxiety, depression, body image, and stress, designed to help students manage day-to-day stresses and improve resilience.

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.

For more mental health resources, visit the UHS website on mental health.

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.

Teaching Assistant, English as a Second Language 

Reilly Baldwin Wisconsin Idea Grant
Applications due Nov. 11

The Office of the Provost invites proposals for the 2020 Ira and Ineva Reilly Baldwin Wisconsin Idea Endowment grant competition. Proposals are encouraged for new outreach and public engagement activities that partner with community and off-campus organizations to extend and apply our research, education, and practice-based knowledge to help solve problems and foster learning. The endowment supports Seed Project grants of $4,000 or less, and larger Project Grants up to $120,000. Please review the detailed application guidance documents on the Baldwin website. 

Andrew W. Mellon Post-Doctoral Fellowship in Legal Humanities
Application due Oct. 21

The Illinois Program for Research in the Humanities (IPRH) at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, supported by a grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, seeks to hire two Post-Doctoral Fellows for two-year appointments to begin Fall 2020. The fellows will spend their two-year terms in residence at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and will participate in all activities of the IPRH-Mellon Legal Humanities Research Group. The search is open to scholars in all humanities disciplines, including the humanities-inflected social sciences, whose research and teaching interests lie in the area of legal humanities. The fellowship carries a $58,350 annual stipend, a $5,000 research account, a moving allowance, and a comprehensive benefits package. To be eligible, applicants should have received their PhD in a humanities discipline between January 1, 2017 and no later than July 31, 2020. Please visit the IPRH website for more information on requirements or visit the fellowship posting in the Chronicle Vitae.