News
World-Class Nanotechnology Researcher to Join TGS
J. Fraser Stoddart, a pioneer in the fields of nanoscience and organic chemistry, will join the Northwestern University faculty as Board of Trustees Professor of Chemistry. Stoddart, who will bring a group of approximately 20 graduate students and postdoctoral fellows with him to Northwestern, is the inventor of a field of chemistry that enables the construction of molecular switches and machines on the nanoscale level. According to Northwestern President Henry S. Bienen, "This positions the University unequivocally as the best place in the world for research in this field." Click here for full story.
TGS Day Out a Success, More Great Events to Come
Following in success of our TGS Night Out, The Graduate School held its first Day Out for Families on Saturday, August 11th at Lincoln Park Zoo. Graduate students, postdocs and their families enjoyed a day of food and fun at one of Chicago's greatest spots. This event was a wonderful opportunity for students and postdocs with families to connect with each other. Be sure to stay tuned for more great TGS community building events during the 2007-2008 school year!
TGS Dean Wachtel Welcomes Students
The Dean of The Graduate School, Andrew B. Wachtel welcomes new and continuing students to what promises to be an exciting, innovative 2007-2008 academic year. For the complete welcome, please visit our Dean's Message page.
Community Building Grant Proposal Winners Announced for 2007-2008
TGS has selected the Community Building Grant proposal winners for the 2007-2008 academic year. The goals of community building groups are to integrate academic and social aspects of graduate life, bring people together in a social context, improve communications and outreach, encourage creative expression through the arts, and serve as models for community building. Click here for more information on how to participate in this year's exciting community building activities.
NU Lakeshore Soiree 2007
On Friday, October 19th, 150 smartly-dressed graduate students boarded the sold-out “Summer of George” for the first ever Lakeshore Soiree. The three-hour tour was a terrific opportunity for graduate students to meet new friends, take in the beautiful Chicago skyline and dance the night away. As the evening drew to an end, students were left with great memories of a fun-filled night! The NU Lakeshore Soiree was funded by a TGS Community Building Grant with additional support provided by the CSSA, CGSA, GSA, MGLC, and QPGSA. Be on the look-out for more great events like this in the future!
TGS Congratulates Doctoral Fulbright Winners
Twenty-four Northwestern students have received Fulbright awards for 2007-08, fourth highest among all universities in the country. Of these 24, four are at the doctoral level. TGS is pleased to congratulate them: Christina Bejan (Philosophy), Theatre and Cultural and Intellectual History in Romania; Tracy Carson (History), Modern History in South Africa; Jean Hunleth (Anthropology), Anthropology in Zambia; Courtney Kneupper (History), Cultural and Intellectual History in Germany. Click here for full article.
New Ryan Award Opportunity Announced
The Graduate School is pleased to announce a new opportunity - the Ryan Award - that recognizes Northwestern University's unique position as a leader in the field of nanoscience and technology. This program supports graduate students on the cutting edge of this interdisciplinary research area by providing, each year for up to 3 years, $5000 as an additional stipend above and beyond whatever stipend is provided by the student's home program as well as $2500 in research funds to cover expenses such as computer, software, research travel, books, and so forth. Award winners participate in a variety of activities specially organized for the group, including retreats, lectures and symposia, and opportunities to engage in collaborative research with faculty and students. Please click here for further nomination information.
New Professional Development Programs Offered to Graduate Students
The Graduate School, along with several other offices on campus, are working to make available a wide range of professional development programming in the upcoming academic year. For an overview of this year's professional development programming, as well as a calendar of events, please visit the NU Directions website. We will continually add new events and information, so check back frequently for updates. If you would like to suggest a workshop topic, or if you have any suggestions for the NU Directions Graduate Student Professional Development Series, please send them to Kate Veraldi, Coordinator of Student Services at The Graduate School.
TGS Announces Ryan Fellowship Awardees
The Graduate School is pleased to announce the following continuing-student awardees of the prestigious Ryan Fellowship: Windsor Hall (Chemistry); Choongik Kim (Chemistry); Owen Loh (Mechanical Engineering); Omer Memis (Electrical & Computer Engineering); Pinal Patel (Interdepartmental Biological Sciences); Federico Rabuffetti (Chemistry); and Qing Hua Wang (Materials Science and Engineering). As Ryan Junior Fellows, they will have the opportunity to engage in collaborative research with domestic and international partners and participate in a series of activities, such as colloquia, seminars and research conferences. Please click here for additional information about this exciting initiative.
TGS Announces Presidential Fellowship Awardees
The Graduate School is pleased to announce the following recipients of the Presidential Fellowship, the most prestigious fellowship awarded by Northwestern University: Anastasios Fragkos (Physics & Astronomy); Christopher Heier (Integrated Graduate Program in the Life Sciences); Lesley Meade (Material Science & Engineering); Tamara Roberts (Performance Studies); Regan Towal (Biomedical Engineering); Abram Van Engen (English); and Lisa Yountchi (Slavic Languages & Literatures). Recipients of the Presidential Fellowship become part of Northwestern University's Society of Fellows, which enables stellar students from across the university to have interdisciplinary interactions with peers from a range of fields. Please click here for additional information about this unique opportunity.
Graduate Leadership Council Meets with Board of Trustees
The Graduate Leadership Council (GLC) recently met with the Board of Trustees Student Affairs Committee to present their Annual Report and discuss issues that affect graduate students. The meeting stimulated discussion about how to address graduate student needs such as transportation, childcare, health insurance, diversity, and graduate student rights. Additionally, the GLC listed several recommendations for The Graduate School and university administration concerning these issues. Click here for more information about the report to the Trustees and the GLC.
TGS Announces New Three-Year Strategic Plan
The Graduate School is proud to announce that our new Three-Year Strategic Plan is available for your perusal here. We believe this new plan, designed in collaboration with all of our partner schools, will build on advancements already underway in Academics, Student Affairs and Administration. We invite you to review the exciting changes planned for the next few years.
TGS Releases More Information on Improved Funding
TGS is pleased to announce further details regarding improved funding for graduate students. Beginning next fall, incoming PhD students in WCAS Humanities and Social Science, Math, and Statistics programs will be guaranteed five years and four summers of funding, with students in nearly every discipline guaranteed two full academic years of fellowship funding. Current students who first enrolled in 2004 will receive an upgrade that includes an additional year of fellowship; students who enrolled first in 2005 will receive an additional year of fellowship and an additional summer of funding. TGS is working with leadership of WCAS and its other partner schools to finalize plans for new investment in PhD programs in all disciplines across the University. TGS is excited to announce those plans in the coming weeks. Click here for the Dean's Message to the students regarding these developments.
TGS Dedicates New Resources to 'Building a Better Student'
In its continuing effort to improve all aspects of graduate student life, TGS has allocated significant new funds to what we term the "Building a Better Student" initiative. These new resources will expand community building and professional development programs already in place and will significantly increase allocations for programs like the Summer Language Grant, The Graduate Research Grant, and Conference Travel Grant. TGS will also expand the Community Building Grant program, improve the already popular TGS "Day" and "Night Out" programs, and help to fund a planned emergency childcare subsidy to ensure that not only the professional, but community and family needs of graduate students are addressed.
TGS Awards 2007-2008 Ryan Fellowships
The Graduate School held its inaugural Ryan Fellowship Induction Ceremony on Wednesday, February 27th, 2008, honoring the 2007-2008 Ryan Fellows. Those in attendance to welcome this stellar cohort of students included Senior Associate Dean of The Graduate School Simon Greenwold, University President Henry S. Bienen, Mr. & Mrs. Patrick G. Ryan, Provost Dan Linzer, Board of Trustees Professor of Chemistry Sir J. Fraser Stoddart as well as fellow faculty, students and staff. The Ryan Fellowship supports graduate students dedicated to the exploration of fundamental nanoscale science and to advancing this knowledge into practical applications of benefit to society. Made possible by a generous donation from Patrick G. and Shirley W. Ryan, the goal of this program is to identify and support the finest graduate students in the country, and to provide them with the education and experience to assume leadership roles in academia and industry in the realm of nanotechnology. Congratulations to the 2007-2008 recipients!
TGS Doctoral Student Selected as De Kármán Fellow
The Graduate School and Office of Fellowships are proud to announce that Stephen Mak, a fifth-year graduate student in the Department of History, is among the 12 scholars selected for 2008-2009 funding from the Josephine De Kármán Fellowship Trust. The Fellowship awards $10,000 to its undergraduate recipients and $20,000 to its graduate recipients. Stephen is the third doctoral student in the History Department to be selected as a De Kármán Fellow since 1998. His dissertation, "Enemy Aliens in a World at War," examines the intersection of U.S. foreign relations and immigration policy. Stephen earned his undergraduate degree at Cornell University in industrial and labor relations, worked on labor policy for Senator Edward M. Kennedy, and taught social studies in New York City's Chinatown before coming to Northwestern.
TGS Announces 2007-2008 Clarence L. Ver Steeg Awardees
The Graduate School is proud to announce the 2007-2008 winners of the Clarence L. Ver Steeg Award. Among the faculty recipients are Professor Matthew Goldrick from the Department of Linguistics and Professor Angela Ray from the Department of Communication Studies. This years staff award goes to Mark Seniw from the Department of Materials Science and Engineering. Named for Clarence L. Ver Steeg, Northwestern University Professor Emeritus in History and Dean of The Graduate School from 1975 to 1986, this award recognizes two graduate faculty members and one staff member each year for excellence in work with students in The Graduate School. Please join us in congratulating these outstanding faculty and staff members for this recognition of their tremendous contributions to graduate education at Northwestern University.
TGS Launches Electronic Self-Service
The Graduate School (TGS) is pleased to announce the implementation of the Self-Service project, which makes electronic nearly all current paper transactions between students, their departments, and TGS. Many of the paper forms became available on CAESAR Monday, April 2, 2007. Instead of downloading, printing, filling out, and mailing these documents, they can all be filled out and sent to your department and to The Graduate School electronically in a matter of minutes. More information can be found in the Student Services section of our website. Please contact your Student Services Representative with any questions.
Summer Quarter U-Pass Distribution Announced
From June 5 through June 12, The Graduate School plans to distribute Summer Quarter 2008 U-Passes (activated June 13 - August 31, 2008) from several campus locations. Please see the U-Pass Implementation Web site for final dates, times, and locations. Students enrolled in TGS 512, 514, 506, 507, 508 and those with other less-than-full-time registration will not be charged the activity fee and are NOT eligible for the U-Pass. There will be no U-Passes distributed on Monday, June 9.
TGS Congratulates IHR Mellon Dissertation Fellowship Winners
The Graduate School is proud to announce that doctoral candidates Joshua Smith (English) and Lonnie Robbins (History) have been awarded Institute of Historical Research (IHR) Mellon Dissertation Fellowships, to spend next year working in the United Kingdom. Funded by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, these prestigious fellowships will allow Joshua and Lonnie to conduct their dissertation research using original archival sources in the U.K. Only five of these fellowships are awarded annually. Please join us in congratulating these outstanding graduate students in recognition of this outstanding research opportunity.
Dean Wachtel Hosts Town Hall Meeting on Graduate Education and Civic Engagement
Dean Andrew Wachtel met with graduate students on May 13 as part of the NU Directions Town Hall series to discuss the topic of graduate education and civic engagement. He announced a new initiative, still in the early planning stages, which will encourage doctoral students to participate in civic and community placements for at least one quarter and solicited ideas for how to integrate doctoral education and the public domain. The goals of the program are manifold: for students to contribute their doctoral research-related expertise to the community, to conduct work that directly informs their research, and to gain a better understanding of civil society and their place in it, among others. A formal call for proposals and more detailed information about the program will be issued in Fall 2008.
TGS Announces 2008-2009 Health Insurance Plan
For the 2008-2009 academic year, the University will again have one health insurance plan, provided by Aetna Student Health (formerly Chickering). The total cost for the policy, from September 1, 2008 to August 31, 2009 is $2,360. TGS will continue to provide health insurance subsidies to full-time graduate school students; students should inquire of their Director of Graduate Studies for further information regarding their specific subsidy rate. Additional information is now available in the Health Services and Insurance section of TGS' Web site.
One Book One Northwestern Public Lectures Begin on October 7, 2008
This year's One Book One Northwestern selection is The Reluctant Mr. Darwin: An Intimate Portrait of Charles Darwin and the Making of His Theory of Evolution by David Quammen. One Book One Northwestern is a series of lectures presented by scholars with national and international reputations in the study of Charles Darwin, the science of evolution, and the history and philosophy of science. The goal of the lecture series is to educate the public and the university community about the science of evolution and the continued impact of Charles Darwin's research on modern society. The lectures are co-sponsored by the Office of the President and the Interdisciplinary Committee on Evolutionary Processes, and are open to the public as well as Northwestern faculty, students, and staff. Please see the One Book One Northwestern Web site for more details.
Events
Fall Fellowship Application Workshops
Time: Various - See Office of Fellowships Web site
Date: 9/26/2008
- 10/23/2008
Location: 1940 Sheridan Road, Evanston Campus (unless otherwise indicated)
The Office of Fellowships will be holding application workshops this fall, focusing on several fellowship opportunities currently receiving applications. These include the Jacob K. Javits Fellowship, National Science Foundation Fellowship, DAAD (German Academic Exchange Service), and Fulbright-Hays Doctoral Dissertation Research Abroad. Exact times, locations, and deadlines can be found on the Office of Fellowships Web site. All graduate students interested in applying for one of these fellowships should attend a workshop.
Frozen Dinners and Disposable Ware: Gender Equality, Health, and Environment
Time: 5:30pm - 7:30pm
Date: 10/8/2008
Location: Kim's Kitchen, 815 Noyes St., Evanston, IL 60201
Let’s Connect the Dots is a graduate student group aimed at enriching intellectual life while building community amongst graduate students, post-docs, and faculty at Northwestern. Let’s Connect the Dots invites you to join them for fun, food, and friendship over a vibrant discussion on "Frozen dinners and disposable ware: Gender Equality, Health, and Environment" at Kim’s Kitchen Noyes St. (East of el station at Noyes) on Wednesday, October 8, 2008, from 5:30pm to 7:30pm.
NU Directions Fall Professional Development Conference: The Academic Job Search
Time: 9:00am - 5:00pm
Date: 10/11/2008
Location: Norris University Center, Evanston Campus
The NU Directions Fall Conference includes a day of panels and presentations on teaching philosophies and portfolios, the academic job search, and the academic job interview. Please check the conference Web site for a complete schedule and registration form.
Peter S. Fiske, Ph.D.: Put Your Science to WORK!
Time: 5:00pm - 7:00pm
Date: 10/13/2008
Location: Technological Institute, Room LR3, Evanston Campus
Peter S. Fiske, Ph.D., author of "To Boldly Go: A Practical Career Guide for Scientists" and its second edition: "Put Your Science to Work: A Take-Charge Career Guide for Scientists" will deliver a two-hour workshop that provides a thorough and practical overview to the process of career planning and job hunting in today's job market, from the perspective of a young scientist. Additional information and a registration form is available on our Web site. Co-sponsored by The Graduate School and University Career Services.
