PLAN, Manage Your Professional Development as a Graduate Student
On December 17, Dean Janet Weiss sent an e-mail message to all students active in Ph.D. programs with a progress update on the Continuous Enrollment policy. The Rackham website contains the text of her message to students and other information related to the policy.
Those documents can be viewed at http://www.rackham.umich.edu/policies/continuous_enrollment/.
Interested in securing funding for community service abroad? Announcing an opportunity open to all undergraduate and graduate students: The Raoul Wallenberg International Summer Travel Fellowship was established for students who take part in a community service project or civic participation anywhere in the world, in the spirit of Raoul Wallenberg's experience and contributions. Deadline for applications is February 16, 2009. Several fellowships will be made for summer 2009, each in the amount of up to $5000 to cover transportation, room and board, and local excursions made in connection with the project. For more information contact the Ginsberg Center, 647-7402; Kemba Mazloomian ().
Details: http://ginsberg.umich.edu
Graduate Junction is a new free resource for graduate students which allows you to find and form networks with other Master's, Ph.D. and Postdoctoral researchers around the world who share your interests.
Graduate students at the Universities of Oxford and Durham developed the Graduate Junction to connect graduate students around the world and to create a central resource for graduate students by providing relevant information, networks and opportunities all in one place. Since launch in May, over 12,000 people from over 70 countries have joined. The site has received substantial recognition in the academic community and has been featured in the Times Higher Education (UK) and The Chronicle of Higher Education (US).
The site has recently been re-designed and the academic resource offerings have been expanded. These include 1) interest-based groups, 2) academic profiles, 3) an expanded conference database, 4) more graduate journals, and 5) advice forums.
Details: http://www.graduatejunction.com
Presenter: Professor Paul Edwards, School of Information
This workshop will cover all aspects of preparing and delivering academic presentations, from PowerPoint best practices to timing and vocal techniques. It will be especially useful for students planning conference presentations or job talks.
Pre-Registration required at https://secure.rackham.umich.edu/Events/wssel.php
Tuesday, January 13, 4:00 pm - 5:30 pm, Amphitheatre, 4th floor, Rackham Building
Presenter: Ed Jennings, U-M Tax Manager
Although most people don't think about taxes until April, graduate students should consider as early as possible whatwill be required to properly prepare your tax documents. The way the IRS views it, students bear the tax burden: Federal Government Agencies force students to determine taxation of scholarships and fellowships when filing annual income tax returns. This workshop will answer such questions as:
*** Are student scholarship or fellowship payments treated as wages for services rendered?
*** If not, to what extent are payments subject to federal income taxes under the Internal Revenue Code?
*** If taxable income, are payments subject to self-employment taxes under the Social Security Act?
*** How can students reduce taxable income or taxes with related expenses or credits?
*** What if a student has multiple state filing requirements?
*** If income is taxable, do students have a reporting requirement if they are a foreign national student or a teacher?
Tackling Your Taxes does not include filing forms for non-resident aliens. International students should contact the International Center for tax information relevant to their status. This workshop is appropriate for domestic students.
Pre-Registration required at https://secure.rackham.umich.edu/Events/wssel.php
Tuesday, January 13, 11:30 am - 1:30 pm, Assembly Hall, 4th floor, Rackham Building
*A Health and Wellness Initiative Activity
This four-week series is designed to introduce students to the foundation of a healthy and fruitful yoga practice. Together, we will explore various breathing, physical, relaxation and meditation techniques that are central to hatha yoga and useful in cultivating a balanced practice. No prior yoga experience is required and the course is suitable for ALL levels of fitness. Please dress comfortably, in clothes you can move freely in.This series is intended for beginners to the practice of yoga. If you have already participated in a Rackham Introduction to Yoga series, please do NOT sign up for these classes so that we may make room for new participants.
Wednesdays from January 14 - February 4, 2009
Morning session: 8:30 am - 9:45 am
Early evening session: 5:00 pm - 6:15 pm
Late evening session: 6:30 pm - 7:45 pm
Cost for the four-week series:
$20 (includes a yoga mat for you to keep)
$10 (if you bring your own mat)
Payment must be made by CHECK ONLY, payable to the "University of Michigan." Payment is due at the first class. Space is limited to 20 participants for each session. You may only register for ONE session of Introduction to Yoga.
If you have any questions, please contact .
To reserve your space, please register at https://secure.rackham.umich.edu/Events/wssel.php.
See above description for times, West Conference Room, 4th floor, Rackham Building
Food is an aspect of Caribbean culture which binds the scattered and unique islands together. Come and learn about Caribbean cuisine and have the opportunity to indulge in it as well. Dinner will be provided.
Pre-registration required at https://secure.rackham.umich.edu/Events/wssel.php
Thursday, January 15, 5:30 pm - 7:00 pm, Assembly Hall, 4th Floor, Rackham Building
Interested in teaching at a liberal arts college? At this event, faculty and administrators from liberal arts colleges will discuss job search strategies and faculty worklife. In addition, participants will learn about the Mellon Postdoctoral Fellowships at Oberlin and Kalamazoo Colleges for University of Michigan Ph.D.s. (Graduate Students/Postdocs Only). Co-sponsored by Rackham School of Graduate Studies and CRLT.
For more information about the Mellon Fellowships, please visit http://www.rackham.umich.edu/postdoctoral/exchange_program/
To register for the event, please visit http://www.crlt.umich.edu/gsis/reggsiseminar.php
Friday, January 16, 3:30 pm - 5:00 pm, East Conference Room, 4th Floor, Rackham Building
Presenter Christine Feak has been a lecturer at the English Language Institute, University of Michigan since 1988, where she is the lead lecturer for academic writing courses. In addition to co-authoring with John Swales, Academic Writing for Graduate Students and English in Today's Research World, she has authored and co-authored articles on academic writing and English for Academic Purposes (EAP) curriculum development.
Writing a review of the relevant literature is a key component of many kinds of research texts. Although the role and purpose of a literature review (LR) may vary somewhat, depending on whether it forms part of a research article, dissertation proposal, research grant application, or the dissertation itself, it always remains a complicated task. Its complexity derives from an interlocking need to find and assess reading resources, make connections among them, relate them to your research topic, and provide a coherent written accounting. In this interactive workshop, we will demonstrate a number of strategies that model a viable approach to the complex LR task. Activities include critical text analysis, citation analysis, and rhetorical choice analysis, as well as reflecting on some observations by doctoral students about their LR experiences. Although the LR can be a daunting task, especially in heavily-researched areas, there is a silver lining; students typically emerge from the process as experts in their chosen fields of specialization.
Pre-Registration required at https://secure.rackham.umich.edu/Events/wssel.php
Thursday, January 22, 1:00 pm - 3:00 pm, West Conference Room, 4th Floor, Rackham
The purpose of this workshop - intended for graduate students at a fairly advanced stage in their programs - is to address issues of rhetorical organization, audience adaptation, and effective expression in high-level technical documents such as dissertations and journal articles. The main focus of the session will be sentence-level editing, but we will cover some techniques for effective overall organization and for achieving coherence at the level of the paragraph. We will discuss and practice methods of constructing and revising sentences to produce clarity, conciseness, and suitable emphasis. Depending on time constraints and the interests of the participants, we can do additional work on punctuation and graphic conventions, graphics and data commentary, or other relevant topics. Participants are encouraged to bring a section of the document they are currently writing or revising.
Pre-Registration required at https://secure.rackham.umich.edu/Events/wssel.php
Friday, January 23, 1:00 pm - 3:00 pm, Assembly Hall, 4th Floor, Rackham Building
Join us for an event to celebrate the cultural diversity of Ann Arbor's cuisines! Local restaurants will be preparing a sampling of their menu for you to enjoy. Space is limited.
Pre-registration required at https://secure.rackham.umich.edu/Events/wssel.php
Monday, January 26, 5:00 - 6:30 pm, 2nd and 4th Floors, Rackham Building
Presenter: John Swales is Professor Emeritus of Linguistics and was also Director of the English Language Institute for many years. In 2009, the U-M Press will publish a small advanced textbook, Abstracts and the Writing of Abstracts by John Swales and Chris Feak.
So you have to write an abstract?
Abstracts are tricky. They are often 'high stakes'; they typically have annoying word (or character) limits; and yet they need to promote the main feature to come. As a result, they are usually multiply revised--as indeed this one has proved. In recent years there has been an upsurge of interest in research abstracts largely deriving from the emergence of English as the world's principal research language. This workshop takes advantage of these studies and focuses on three types of abstract: those for conferences, those required for dissertations, and those that accompany research articles.
Hands-on activities will involve pair discussion, textual analysis and editing.
Pre-Registration required at https://secure.rackham.umich.edu/Events/wssel.php
Wednesday, January 28, 4:00 pm - 6:00 pm, East Conference Room, 4th Floor, Rackham Building
Presenters: Mentoring Others Results in Excellence (MORE) Steering Committee members
The professional mentoring relationship can be a continuously evolving process for both mentors and mentees. As you complete your Ph.D. program there are ways that you and your mentors can work together to successfully complete your dissertation and to begin a successful transition from graduate school to a professional career.
While this workshop will not talk about specific job opportunities, the facilitators will provide information on what you need to know and strategies on how to work with your mentors as you finish grad school and approach your professional career.
Pre-registration is required at http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=iOTaVoaDbD7I6z8dPOfW5Q_3d_3d
Thursday, January 29, 4:00 pm - 6:00 pm, Johnson Rooms, Lurie Engineering Center, North Campus
Student organizations may now check the availability of Rackham event rooms online at http://ems.rackham.umich.edu/virtualems/ and request rooms after creating an account. The organization's six digit shortcode, which begins with "9," is required to request rooms.
