The Federal Student Debt Relief Application is now available.
Eligibility information is available on the Student Aid website and the application deadline is December 31, 2023.
Note: The Student Aid website is the only website a student should use to apply. The U.S. Department of Education has provided no other website, nor should a student be required to pay to submit the application.
The University of Connecticut is committed to assuring the highest standard of integrity in all aspects of University life and in all University and University-sponsored activities. As a result, all graduate assistants are required to take the three trainings detailed below.
ANNUAL COMPLIANCE TRAINING
The Office of University Compliance is required to provide annual compliance training on the elements of the University’s compliance program; the University’s expectations that all will act in accordance with applicable laws, policies and standards; and obligations under the University Guide to the State Code of Ethics. This training, developed by the Office of University Compliance, provides realistic scenarios and examples of how issues of ethics and compliance may arise in your work as a Graduate Assistant. Through the application of learning demonstrated in the Apply Your Knowledge sections, you can gain a deeper understanding of addressing potential compliance and ethics concerns.
All Graduate Assistants are required to complete annual compliance training.
The compliance training for Graduate Assistants is available through an online module found at Learning@Work. A link will be emailed to each Graduate Assistant allowing access to the module. The training should take approximately 55 minutes to complete.
Training content:
Additional information can be found on the following site: https://grad.uconn.edu/assistantships/training/.
Please note that consistent with Article 13 of the Graduate Employee Union contract, this training is considered part of the workload of graduate assistants.
New and continuing UConn graduate assistants who have not yet taken this academic year’s annual compliance training may complete their training at the Learning@Work website. Learners can access the training under My Learning.
More detailed Learning@Work information, including FAQs, is available. If you have difficulty in registering for training or have any other related questions, please contact Human Resources at learningatwork@uconn.edu.
If you need an Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) accommodation to be able to participate in this training, please contact HR’s ADA Case Manager, Ryan Bangham at 860-486-2036 or ryan.bangham@uconn.edu prior to the training.
Kent Holsinger
Vice Provost for Graduate Education and Dean of The Graduate School
Kimberly Fearney
Associate Vice President and Chief Compliance Officer, Office of University Compliance
The Graduate School is delighted to announce this year’s Postdoc Seed Award Recipients.
Raquel Fleskes, from Anthropology, has been funded for the following project:
This pilot research project seeks to develop a new method to extract ancient DNA from clay tobacco pipestems from colonial archaeological sites in Connecticut. Pipestems are common artifacts in colonial period archaeological sites, and preserve the DNA of people who smoked from them. This project will use eight pipestems, with each divided into equal thirds, to test three different DNA extraction methods at UConn’s Ancient DNA Laboratory. The concentration and complexity (number of different DNA sequences) will be assessed to determine the most effective method of DNA extraction. This project provides a new method in DNA extraction from archaeological artifacts.
Jessie Turner, from Marine Sciences, has been funded for the following project:
What color is the ocean? Using satellites to measure the color of the ocean tells us about the productivity of phytoplankton, the base of the entire ocean food chain. To use data from satellites, we need extensive ground-truth measurements of ocean color at Earth’s surface. However, the sensors used to ground-truth ocean color satellites are expensive and difficult to build. I plan to build a set of do-it-yourself sensors to measure ocean color at low cost. I will also create instructional materials for adaptation into a course for students interested in building sensors for their research.
Deborah Good, from Physics, has been funded for the following project:
I am an expert in timing millisecond pulsars – modeling the dynamics of rapidly-spinning, small, dense leftovers from supernova explosions – to detect gravitational waves from supermassive black holes. When timing pulsars, we model and remove the effects of the interstellar medium (ISM), especially ionized gas between the pulsar and the observer. Though “trash” in the search for gravitational waves, these gas models can be “treasure” for ISM scientists. I propose to lead a task force to improve our models and bring together pulsar timers, ISM scientists, and experts in mathematical modeling, maximizing our scientific output for ISM science and pulsar timing.
Kristel Schoonderwoerd, from Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, has been funded for the following project:
A single tree can bear leaves with widely varying shapes and functions. Smaller and thicker leaves that photosynthesize rapidly occur in parts of the crown that receive ample sunlight. On shaded branches, larger, thinner leaves are borne that photosynthesize comparatively slowly. Little is known about when during development these genetically identical leaf types diverge. This project seeks to understand how leaf development of sun and shade leaves aligns with seasonal changes in light availability within deciduous canopies, from leaf loss in the fall through new leaf expansion in spring.
As a reminder, all students employed as Graduate Assistants are required to maintain full-time student status (6 or more credits), as noted in their offer letter and The Graduate Catalog. Employment as a GA is a result of student status, therefore GAs are expected to be registered for a minimum of 6 credits before the start date of their employment (August 23, 2022). Please be aware that if you do not enroll in the minimum 6 credits required to maintain full-time student status, the University cannot employ you as a GA.
To register now, log into Student Admin. You can also find helpful information, resources, and to-do items specific to your role as a GA, including information about GA health insurance and deadlines for enrolling in GA payroll deductions to pay our fee bill, at the Graduate Assistant Onboarding page.
If you have any questions about this requirement or need assistance, please don’t hesitate to reach out to megan.petsa@uconn.edu.
The Graduate School is now accepting applications for the Conference Participation Award for a Fall 2022 Semester Award. The application period will be open from June 1, 2022 to June 30, 2022. Late applications will not be considered.
Review eligibility criteria, details, and the application form.
For questions, contact The Graduate School at gradschool@uconn.edu.
The Graduate School is pleased to announce this year’s three-minute thesis (3MT) competition, which will be held virtually on Monday, August 22nd 2022 from 12:00 to 1:30pm.
First developed by the University of Queensland in 2008, the Three Minute Thesis competition challenges research students (who have completed at least one year in a doctoral program) to communicate the significance of their projects to a non-specialist audience in just three minutes. The winner of this year’s competition will have the opportunity to submit their presentation to the global competition (virtual) in September.
We will be running multiple training sessions during the summer to help you prepare. We are especially grateful to Dr. Rory McGloin who will be leading a transformational session entitled “Preparing for the Best Three Minute Presentation of Your Life” in July. This session is open to all graduate students.
To view all the events, visit: grad.uconn.edu/graduate-students/three-minute-thesis/
To register for any of the events, visit: forms.gle/cECAy9SanA9dBzH76
Are You a May 2022 Graduate?
The Center for Career Development and The Graduate School value your input, helping us to better understand the diverse careers and further education that UConn graduates pursue. Please consider taking a few moments to complete the Advanced Degree Outcomes Survey and share your post-UConn career and education status. We value being able to make data-supported decisions about programs and services that support graduate student career development. Your data is important and only shared in aggregate.
Please take the survey at: https://career.uconn.edu/advanceddegreesurvey/.
The Graduate School is excited to announce the call for applications for 2022’s PostDoc Seed Award. These grants provide funds to support UConn postdoctoral research associates as they develop new research projects. This year, we are increasing the number of recipients of these awards to 4. We will also be dividing the awards into two separate pools to create more diversity in the fields awarded. If you’d like to know more, reserve next Thursday, May 5th, 12-1 EST, for our virtual info session. Also, check out last year’s awardees at: https://grad.uconn.edu/postdocs/
For further information on the application process, requirements, funding, eligibility, and other criteria, refer to your UConn email or contact Stuart Duncan at stuart.duncan@uconn.edu.
KEY DATES
Monday, April 4th to Friday, April 8th is this year’s Graduate Student Appreciation Week, a week full of online and in-person activities and events designed to celebrate graduate students here at UConn. We have the following events happening next week:
Monday, April 4th – The Graduate School: Drinks & Refreshments
Wednesday, April 6th – Center for Career Development: LinkedIn Headshots and CV/Resume Reviews
Wednesday, April 6th – International Student & Scholar Services: Hot Cocoa, Cookies, and S’mores
Thursday, April 7th – The Graduate School & Off-Campus and Commuter Student Services: Pizza Party & Goodie Bag Giveaway
Thursday, April 7th – Women’s Center: Start Smart Salary Negotiation Workshop
Thursday, April 7th – Rainbow Center: Coffee and Donuts
Friday, April 8th – The Graduate School: Lunchtime Trivia
Other department-specific events hosted by various academic departments.
All events are free for graduate students to attend. For more information about the university-wide and departmental events, please visit the website below.
For more information: Graduate Student Appreciation Week
