more time in the ivory tower?: pursuing graduate school
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More Time in the Ivory Tower?: Pursuing Graduate School. AICHE Brownbag Wednesday, September 28, 2011. Today’s Brownbag. Is graduate school for you? What does a professor actually do? (Prof. Ferri) Faculty panel - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
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More Time in the Ivory Tower?: Pursuing Graduate School
AICHE Brownbag
Wednesday, September 28, 2011
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Today’s Brownbag
• Is graduate school for you?
• What does a professor actually do? (Prof. Ferri)
• Faculty panel
• Slides will be available on Lafayette chapter AICHE sites (sites.lafayette.edu/aiche)
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Why Choose Graduate School?
• Graduate school is not for everybody.
• On average, a 4.5-6 year investment of time
• People who enter grad school should be:– Self-motivated
– Inquisitive about engineering AND science
– Interested in why things are happening, not just what is happening
–Willing to handle failure and learn from it
– Unafraid to ask questions
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Undergraduate vs. Graduate
• UG is (primarily) closed-ended problems where a solution is available following some procedure.
• A Ph.D. involves solving open-ended problems where the solution is unknown and the path to solving the problem is often murky at best.
• Graduate school will enhance and develop your analytical skills to allow you to solve any problem.
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Grouping Description
Coursework Advanced courses in thermo, transport, kinetics and applied math.Science/engineering electivesMost completed in first two years
Qualifiers Show competence in coursework and/or ability to conduct research
Teaching (most) 1 or 2 courses as a teaching assistant
Oral/Poster Presentation Work presented at symposiums or conferences
Publications 1-4 (Varies from school to school and from research group to research group)
Thesis Compilation of original researchFinal approval from research advisor and thesis committee (2 or 3 in department, 1 external)
What are the Requirements of a Ph.D.?
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Am I Going to Accumulate Loans?
• In virtually all ChemE programs (and most other science/engineering), no. (For Ph.D.)
• Research is funded by a wide range of entities.– Covers cost of “employees” (grad students et al.)• Tuition/fees
• Stipend (~$25-35,000, dependent on school)
• Health care (typically)
• Attendance at conferences (% coverage varies)
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Will I Like Research?
• The best way to find out is by actually completing research.
• At Lafayette– Excel program (the earlier, the better)– Can go outside of the major
• Externally– Summer REU programs (
http://www.nsf.gov/crssprgm/reu/list_result.cfm?unitid=10006)
– Other federal/university level organizations (NSF, NIH, etc.)
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Applying For Grad School
Requirement Description
Transcript Imperfect grades can be overcome by quality undergrad research
GRE Not as important as you may think, but still required
Personal Statement 1-2 pages discussing why you want to attend grad school (and the particular school) and what makes you a good candidate
Letters of Recommendation
3 letters is a typical minimum.All recommenders do not have to be from the major.Provide ample time, a resume and an update to your recommenders.
Application Cost Money
• Typically due around January 1 (variation exists)
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How Do I Pick a Grad School?
• Researching schools is important –Most to all research groups have a group website
where a flavor of their work is available. (upkeep)
• What are your research interests?– Any particular area of interest (energy, bio, etc.)?– Experimental? Computational? Both?
• The school– Prestige (be careful)– Location (size/weather/rural vs. urban)– Number of professors interested in (be careful)
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Senior Year Timeline
Sept. Dec. Jan. Feb. Apr.
• Research potential schools• Ask faculty or others for advice/insight• Look into fellowships (NSF etc.)• Take GRE
• Narrow list of potential schools• Ask for letters of recommendation• Send e-mails to faculty you are interested in.• Prepping applications (GRE, personal statement)
• Ensure letters of recommendation have been completed and sent• Submit application
• Notification of acceptance• Notification of award package
• Recruiting weekends
• Final decisions
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What Can I Do with a Ph.D. (Besides be a Professor)?
• Remember, your thesis research will a little slice of science/engineering that you are the expert.
• You may be expected to run experiments or oversee others completing experiments.
• Senior Engineer
• Research Scientist
• Consultant
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Where are They Now?: Postdocs
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Where are They Now?: Jobs
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A Few Parting Words
• Don’t choose grad school solely because finding a job is difficult.
• Grad school will change the way you think and approach problems.
• Even though it’s not industry, networking is just as important in grad school.
• What you get out of grad school is directly related to what you put into it.
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Chemical Engineering in AcademiaWhat does a professor do?
James K. Ferri
Department of Chemical and Biomolecular EngineeringLafayette College
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Faculty Positions
Non-tenure Track vs. Tenure Track
Adjunct, Visiting, Instructor
One to three year appointmentGenerally non-renewable
Assistant (Associate)
One to three year appointmentsRenewable during probationary period“Up or out”
Salary Scale: PUI
Assistant ($59,150, $86,600) - $74,000Associate$88,600Full $115,700
Research (R-1)+ $8,000-$12,000
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Job Description
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Teaching
Course Load: (varies by institution)
Teaching-oriented: (3/3) Most (all) teaching and grading done by faculty
Research-oriented: (1/1) Lectures taught by faculty; laboratory and recitation/quiz sections by graduate assistants Occasionally, lectures taught by adjunct or other non-tenure track instructors (Nearly) all grading done by assistants
Example:A College in Easton, Pennsylvania
3/2
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Student evaluations:Written commentsStudent comments
Peer observation
Educational materials development
Academic advising
Teaching: evaluation of job performance
This seeks to provide perspective
This is how to excel.
Good is not good.
Valued but not quantified.
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Scholarship
DisseminationPublications peer reviewed non-peer reviewed (conference papers, book chapters)Presentations invited seminars and public lectures (think LSS) conference presentations
Support
Grants NSF, NIH, DOE, DOD, NASA EPA, FDA, …Industry cooperation sponsored fundamental and applied research
Professional development
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Scholarship: evaluation of job performance
DisseminationPublications peer reviewed 1 paper per year is annual expectation non-peer reviewedPresentations invited seminars and public lectures conference presentations
Support
Grants NSF, NIH, DOE, DOD, NASA EPA, FDA, …Industry cooperation sponsored fundamental and applied research
Professional development
Anything here is good
Anything here is good(and might be necessary; see above)
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Service
Departmental Service:Standing committees: Outreach, Student Experience, etc.Operational activities (open houses, outreach, individualized learning experiences)
Institutional committees:
Standing committees: Judical, Compensation, Policy, …Ad-hoc (“for this”): faculty searches, special appointments
Professional service:
Organization of professional meetingsPeer-review of journal articles and grant proposals
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Job Description
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