Post by Piyashi Biswas, GIC Peer Mentor 2021
As an incoming international student, I was overwhelmed during my first week here. I was handed a hundred different flyers with information about all the activities and centers on campus. Every flyer seemed equally important, and I was intimidated by just the sheer number of resources available to the students. While it can be difficult to navigate through the abundance of support at UCI, I have found the Graduate & Postdoctoral Scholar Resource Center (GPSRC) to be my go-to resource for almost all the challenges I face as a graduate student. Over the last two years, I have had the chance to develop my academic and professional skills through workshops, courses, writing support, career counseling, and mentorship opportunities. In this post, I would like to introduce you to some of the many forms of support they offer and hope you can make use of these programs for your professional success.
Academic Courses and Certificate Programs
The GPSRC offers several courses and certificate programs for professional development. I have always been a nervous speaker and wanted to desperately work on my public speaking skills. In the winter quarter of my first year, I attended the certificate program for Excellence in Engineering Communications by Activate to Captivate hosted by Bri McWhorter. It is an excellent 8-week long course that transformed my public speaking skills and helped me build confidence. The workshop builds on techniques in acting and drama and introduces participants to tips to help hone their skills. I loved the course so much, I enrolled in Improv for Teaching last quarter, offered by the same instructor, which helped me develop improv skills to make a classroom more engaging and fun. I would highly recommend both these courses to all graduate students. I also participated in the Mentoring Excellence Program, another wonderful course for helping students become better mentors. Here are some of the certificate programs listed on the website.
- Public Speaking by Activate to Captivate
- Excellence in Engineering Communications by Activate to Captivate
- Improv for Teaching by Activate to Captivate
- Management Beyond the Classroom
- Mentoring Excellence Program
- Preparing for Faculty Careers
Communication and Writing Support
Communicating research is as important as conducting it! The GPSRC provides several programs and boot camps to help work on your communication skills. They offer Quarterly workshops focused on specific areas of communication students and postdoctoral scholars would like to tackle. I have already mentioned Activate to Captivate, but here are the other programs to look out for:
- Communication Skills for Academics – Certificate Program
- Interview Skills Boot Camp
- Public Speaking Boot Camp
- Communications Consultants
- Quarterly workshops:
- Networking Step 1: Introducing Yourself
- Communicating with Confidence
- Crafting a Persuasive Research Statement for the Job Search
- One Hour Presentations: Public Speaking Strategies for Job Talks, Colloquia, and Lab Meetings
- Effective Communication: Persuading Others
- Presentation Fundamentals: Giving a Good Talk
Along with oral communication, they offer writing support which is an integral part of conducting research. The academic writing series is a great workshop series for students interested in addressing grammatical and other English language issues. There are writing consultants available who guide and provide constructive feedback on writing. I have often found myself procrastinating writing papers and it helped me to just book an appointment with a consultant to kickstart the process. They provide feedback on academic writing, funding applications, and job application materials. The dissertation boot camp is another three-day event to motivate students through their dissertation writing process. I have attended a one-day long version of this boot camp which was a great experience, even though it was on Zoom. I am looking forward to attending the in-person version this Fall! I also attended weekly writing groups throughout the pandemic which helped me set aside a dedicated time in the week just for writing. Of course, there are dedicated workshops for certain aspects of writing one would like to improve. In the non-pandemic world, students can also make use of their dedicated writing space to get into the mindset to write as well!
- Writing consultants
- Dissertation Boot Camp
- ESL/ELL Academic Writing series
- Writing Groups
- Workshops
- Dedicated writing space
Workshops
The GPSRC also offers in-depth workshops on topics including professional development, writing skills, work-life balance, and funding opportunities. I am interested in attending their salary negotiation skills and career outside of academia workshops during grad school as I feel they are very important topics that people usually don’t talk about. As an aspiring Ph.D. student, I was often told that my options would be limited to academia after graduating, but every year I learn about more and more interesting career choices Ph.Ds. make and it makes me excited to know that these information sessions can help me find the perfect career for me.
- Getting it “Right”: The Necessity of Error in Academic Writing
- Citation and Writing Software
- Breaking Down Big Writing Projects
- Streamline Your Writing with Scrivener
- Clean-Up Crew: Editing and Filing Your Thesis or Dissertation
Reserving space
The GPSRC is located at the heart of the campus and is perfect for hosting events for Graduate students and postdoctoral researchers. There are rooms that can be reserved for support groups, workshops, receptions, etc. Some available spaces are:
- Program Room
- Study Lounge
- Executive Conference Room
- Seminar Room
As I was trying to compile the resources offered by the GPSRC, I realized it would be impossible for me to list them all. I have, however, tried my best. I have already highlighted my top picks and the ones I have participated in, however, here are some more: Resume Workshop, Job Search Strategies, Fellowship Advising, Interview Prep, Networking & Your Professional Brand, and Personal Finance. If you’re interested in Mentorship, consider joining the Grad Interconnect Program! It is a wonderful opportunity to learn about different cultures and help transition incoming international graduate students to life at UCI. One of the best things about this wonderful center is that every quarter they offer new opportunities and also welcome suggestions. If there is one piece of advice I could give to an incoming student, it would be to participate and make use of as many resources as you can. Develop the skills you always wished you had and challenge yourself. Look out for the Weekly GPSRC email and happy Grad Schooling!