Fall 2026 Welcome Message from Dean Mayo
Dear members of The Graduate School community,
Warmest welcome to a new academic year! Whether you are just starting or finishing your degree, come from nearby or halfway around the world, we are glad you are here at Northwestern. Along with your home department/school, The Graduate School (TGS) is pleased to support you and champion your academic progress and career goals.
More than 14,000 graduate students are part of over 150 graduate programs at Northwestern University, along with 1,100 postdoctoral scholars. Members of this impressive community may be found everywhere—in classrooms, labs, studios, performance spaces, on athletic fields, and within our local communities—learning, teaching, mentoring, researching, and inspiring others.
Of Northwestern’s graduate programs, 111 reside in TGS, including all PhD and MFA programs and select master’s programs. In addition, our Office of Postdoctoral Affairs provides resources and support to postdocs. We also partner with Professional Graduate Programs to foster collaboration and institutional alignment. This holistic approach enables TGS to create a strong sense of cohesion, consistency, and connection throughout our graduate and postdoctoral communities.
Our top priority is to help you navigate your graduate education journey. The TGS community is comprised of amazing individuals from 94 countries with a wide variety of backgrounds and experiences. We recognize that higher education poses many unique challenges, and we are here to support your individual needs and collaboratively address any hurdles you may encounter.
We are very invested in your current and future success. The PhD and Postdoc Careers website, created in partnership with Northwestern Career Advancement, offers structured guidance for a broad range of career pathways. The website includes a Programming Opportunities tool, which may be customized by skill category. In addition, TGS features comprehensive career and professional development resources, and our Office of Graduate and Postdoctoral Success provides valuable mentoring programs and enrichment initiatives.
We hope you feel a great sense of community and connection. We are happy to sponsor many community-building and social activities across campuses through our Office of Student Life and our TGS Hangouts series. A variety of graduate student and postdoctoral groups can also round out your experience and strengthen your network.
Northwestern has made a lasting and enduring impact for 175 years, and since 1910, TGS has served as a place where learning, discovery, and creativity flourish. For more than a century, we have enhanced Northwestern’s academic reputation through centralized services and support, forming a proud legacy to which you will add your achievements.
The dedicated team in TGS is here to enable your success so that you, in turn, can make profound contributions to the world. Please reach out to us whenever we may be of assistance. My best wishes for a fulfilling Fall Quarter and on all your future endeavors.
Sincerely,
Kelly
Kelly Mayo
Walter and Jennie Bayne Professor of Molecular Biosciences
Associate Provost for Graduate Education and
Dean of The Graduate School