Graduate College Handbook |
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Chapter 8. Opportunities and Services Provided by the Graduate CollegeAdvising and Mentoring Opportunities for Graduate StudentsAll StudentsStudents are encouraged to make an appointment with an Assistant Dean to discuss issues or problems that may arise concerning their graduate student experience at ISU. Underrepresented StudentsThrough the Graduate Minority Assistantship Program (GMAP), underrepresented graduate students receive financial assistance and educational support. GMAP is a cooperative venture with the various colleges, departments and programs. It also provides mentoring and opportunities for students to interact with faculty and other graduate students. The primary goal of GMAP is to increase the number and quality of students from underrepresented groups who are interested in pursuing a graduate degree at Iowa State. Nondegree-seeking Graduate StudentsIowa State provides the opportunity for qualified students to take graduate courses without being admitted to a specific degree program. Graduate College staff serves the role of faculty advisor for such students. Students are encouraged to discuss their future educational plans with Graduate College staff. When non-degree seeking students have academic difficulty, the students must present an acceptable plan for improving their grades to the Graduate College before they will be allowed to register for additional courses. Future College TeachersThe Preparing Future Faculty Program provides advice, mentoring, credentialing and invaluable experience for students who plan to enter a career involving college teaching. For more information on the program, see the Web site for the Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching. English Skills ImprovementNon-Native English-speaking StudentsNon-native English speakers who do not have a bachelor’s degree or advanced degree from ISU or a US institution are required to take the English Placement test their first semester at Iowa State. This test is administered by the English department. For more information, contact the ESL secretary in the English department at 515-294-3568. Students receiving low scores on this test are assigned to appropriate sections of English 99 and 101, which should be completed during the first year of graduate study. (There is a developmental course fee for the 99-level courses.) In addition, non-native English speakers who wish to teach at ISU must take the SPEAK/TEACH tests before beginning their teaching duties (see more information about English Requirements). Teaching opportunities depend upon the level of proficiency achieved on these tests. Students with low scores on SPEAK/TEACH are required to enroll in the appropriate sections of University Studies/English 180 if their teaching responsibilities will involve interaction with undergraduates. A graduate students whose native language is not English but did graduate from a U.S. institution, may bring to the Graduate College the “Request for the Graduate College to Approve the Graduate English Requirement for a Student Whose Native Language is NOT English” form, available from the Graduate College or on the Graduate College’s Web site at http://www.grad-college.iastate.edu/forms/forms.html. Two conditions must be met: the student must have received a bachelor’s, master’s, or Ph.D. degree from a U.S. college or university and the language of instruction at that college or university must have been in English. Native English-speaking StudentsIowa State does not test native English spakers for English skills. Use of the English language is expected to improve for all students as they progress toward their degrees. Students are expected to seek out opportunities for oral and written presentations and, if needed, to take formal coursework in these areas. Graduate and Professional Student SenateThe Graduate College works closely with the Graduate and Professional Student Senate. A member of the Graduate College staff serves as advisor to the Senate, and the Graduate College provides funds to augment student travel awards made by the Senate. The Graduate and Professional Student Senate (GPSS) is a representative body that provides a formal channel for the expression of graduate student concerns and disperses significant funds derived from the graduate student activity fee. GPSS convenes at 7 p.m. in the Memorial Union on the last Monday of each month. Meetings are open to observers. Based on the enrollment figures for the previous fall semester, each program offering graduate study may elect one senator for each fraction of fifty graduate students enrolled, to a maximum of five senators. All graduate students are encouraged to contact the GPSS about any problems relating to their studies at Iowa State. The GPSS has an office in G44 Memorial Union (515-294-8725), which is equipped to take phone calls twenty-four hours a day. It provides the following services for graduate and professional students:
Professional Advancement GrantsLimited funds for supporting graduate students in their research and professional travel are available under this program when adequate funds are not available from other sources. “Requests for Professional Advancement Grant” forms are available on the Graduate College’s web site address at: http://www.grad-college.iastate.edu/forms/forms.html or on the GPSS Web site at http://www.grad-college.iastate.edu/gpss/. Research requests: The Graduate and Professional Student Senate funds competitive student research requests for up to $300 per student per fiscal year through the Professional Advancement Grants Program. Travel support to professional meetings: Students may receive from the Graduate College up to $100, if a research paper or poster session is presented, or $50, if no paper is presented. GPSS may provide additional funding for paper presenting graduate students and non-or presenters of papers. For information on this portion of the funding and for the complete application process, browse the GPSS Web site at http://www.grad-college.iastate.edu/gpss/. Student travel requests (PAG forms) must reach the Graduate College (1137 Pearson Hall) at least two weeks prior to departure. One travel request per graduate student will be funded per fiscal year (July 1 to June 30). Interdisciplinary Graduate StudiesIowa State University offers an interdisciplinary master’s program that appeals to students who need greater than normal flexibility in the design of their master’s education. The Interdisciplinary Graduate Studies Program (IGS) offers a nontraditional alternative to conventional graduate programs. Rather than focusing on a single discipline or field of study, IGS emphasizes synthesis through interdisciplinary learning, centered on issues and concerns identified by individual students. Within their areas of specialization, students enrolling in IGS take courses in three different graduate subject areas. Each subject area contributes a minimum of nine credits toward the total; research contributes another three to five credits toward the total 35 credits required for the degree. For further information contact the program's chair in the Graduate College at 294-4531. Students in IGS may also select a 36-credit area of specialization in Community Development. The Community Development area of specialization, offered in collaboration with six other universities in the Great Plains Interactive Distance Education Alliance (IDEA), is offered exclusively through courses on the Web. For information about this specialization, please call the Great Plains IDEA coordinator at 294-6250. Mediation of Student GrievancesWhen students and postdoctoral fellows become involved in disputes with their mentors and/or departments that cannot be resolved at the departmental level, the Graduate College will serve as informal or formal mediator depending on the particular circumstances. See Chapter 9 for detailed information. Non-departmental Home for Postdoctoral FellowsAt Iowa State, postdoctoral training is considered part of the educational mission of the university. The Graduate College serves as non-departmental home for all postdoctoral fellows. The Graduate College is the lead unit for establishing postdoctoral benefits and provides a place for postdoctorals to come when employment and mentoring problems arise that cannot be resolved within the home department. Oversight of Interdepartmental Graduate ProgramsThe Graduate College provides oversight and assistance to interdepartmental graduate programs, and serves as the administrative home for certain programs. For those programs administered by the Graduate College the Dean of the Graduate College serves the same role as the department chair for departmentally administered programs. The Graduate College promotes interdepartmental education, monitors the programs, and provides resources when possible. Ronald E. McNair Postbaccalaureate Achievement ProgramThe McNair program is federally funded by the Department of Education with an overall mission of increasing the number of underrepresented students who pursue the Ph.D. degree. The primary goal of the program is to assist low-income, first-generation college students in completing the bachelor's degree, entering graduate school, and completing the Ph.D. degree. Previous: Chapter 7 - Finishing Up or Table of Contents |
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