Rahel Usman and Maleeha Kazmi grabbed refreshments at one of the Graduate Professional Week events last year. This year’s events will be held from Oct. 2-6.
From practicing yoga to writing lit reviews, graduate students at The University of Texas at Dallas can participate in a variety of workshops and events during the second annual Graduate Professional Week from Oct. 2-6.
The week, presented by the Office of Graduate Studies, targets the needs of graduate and postdoctoral scholars with seminars from the University’s schools and centers as well as from guest speakers. New to this year’s program is a Dallas Comedy House workshop on improving teamwork and communication skills through improv.
UT Dallas has about 8,950 graduate and doctoral students, or 32 percent of the fall 2017 enrollment. Graduate Professional Week was launched last year to help meet the unique needs of the University’s graduate students and post-doctoral scholars, said Dr. Marion Underwood, dean of graduate studies and associate provost.
“We want our graduate students and postdocs to know how much we value them as members of the University community, to help them connect with each other, and to offer workshops to help them excel in their graduate training and to launch their careers in academia and beyond,” said Underwood, the Ashbel Smith Professor of Psychological Sciences in the School of Behavioral and Brain Sciences.
Graduate Professional Week will kick off at 9 a.m. Monday, Oct. 2, in the first-floor pit area of Cecil H. Green Hall as the Office of Graduate Studies (OGS) staff answer student questions and offer breakfast. This “OGS on the Road” event will take place every day at different campus locations.
Other highlights include:
- Dr. Robert Pearson, director of Graduate Career Services, will offer a workshop, “ImaginePhD, A Career Tool for Humanists and Social Scientists,” from noon to 1 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 3, in SSA 14.510.
- Katrina Watland, a counselor at the Galerstein Gender Center, will moderate a panel discussion on work-life balance from 1:30 to 3 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 4, in SSA 14.510.
- Dr. Shalini Prasad, professor of bioengineering in the Erik Jonsson School of Engineering and Computer Science, will lead a panel discussion on academia versus industry from 1:30 to 3 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 5, in SSA 14.510.
- Author and corporate recruiter Dan Beaudry will discuss how international students can be successful in the U.S. workplace from 5 to 7 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 5, in SSA 13.330.
- Scientist and communications consultant Dr. Jean-Luc Dumont will speak about how to persuade other people from 1:30 to 3 p.m. Friday, Oct. 6, in the TI Auditorium (ECSS 2.102).
- Faculty members will compete in a version of the Three Minute Thesis (3MT). Graduate students will learn how to share their work with colleagues and also choose the competition’s winner at 3 p.m. Friday, Oct. 6, in the TI Auditorium (ECSS 2.102). A wine and cheese reception will conclude the week.
All events are free, but some require advanced registration. Visit the website for a complete program and registration information.