welcome to graduate studies at mcgill august 2009
TRANSCRIPT
Welcome to Graduate Studies at McGill
August 2009
Graduate Education
1990
• Special and important time in your life
• You have an important role at McGill – an essential element of a research intensive university
• McGill and Montreal offer you a variety of fantastic opportunities for education and personal development - Take advantage of them!
• Total graduate students Fall 2008: 7,635(including graduate degree, certificate & diploma students)
Quebec: 4,686Other Canada: 1,449International: 1,500
Master’s: 3,473Doctoral: 2,827Graduate Certificate & Diploma: 1,335
• Total graduate students this September: 7,600 (approx.)
Some numbers:
Administration of Graduate Studies at McGill
Your Graduate Program Office: your first stop
• The daily administration of graduate studies and advice Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies (GPS)
• Assists your Graduate Program and you with administrative aspects of your studies
Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies - Dean’s Office• Dean (Associate Provost Graduate Education) and
Associate Deans • Academic and administrative responsibility for graduate
(and Postdoc) programs • Assist graduate programs and students in academic matters• Assist students
Where is the Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies?
Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies is located on the 3rd (Dean’s office) and 4th (administrative office) floors of the James Administration Building.
Hierarchy of Help
• Supervisor• (Advisory Committee)
• Graduate Program Director• (Graduate Program
Coordinator)• Department Chair• Associate Deans, GPS• Dean GPS
Other services
• Ombudsperson for Students
• Services for Students
• Dean of Students
Stay informed and deal with problems early... Don’t let them fester!
Responsibilities• McGill
• Provide the framework for you to get through your program in a timely fashion
• Provide mechanisms to support you
• Provide you with opportunities to develop your professional skills (SKILLSETS)
• Yours• Your own academic integrity
• Be informed
• Use your McGill email
• Talk to your supervisor about expectations and parameters of:
• Your work environment• Meeting frequency• Intellectual property• Travelling to conferences• Authorship
What is Academic Integrity?
Integrity website?http://www.mcgill.ca/integrity
Test your knowledge at http://www.mcgill.ca/students/srr/honest/test/
Fair Play?http://www.mcgill.ca/students/srr/honest/staff/
Library resources?http://www.mcgill.ca/library
Faculty or department guidelines? http://www.arts.mcgill.ca/programs/french/protocole_travaux.html
Program Milestones and Progress Tracking
• The key to timely and successful completion• [program insert milestones for your programs
e.g…..]– Courses– Thesis proposal– Advisory/Committee meetings (progress tracking
reports)– Comprehensives– Thesis submission
Improving the Graduate Experience at McGill
• Pan-university emphasis on graduate student recruitment and retention• communications• funding• supervision• program development and interdisciplinarity• professional skills• overall graduate student experience
Tried and True Advice:Avoid Isolation
• Become involved• Seek help• Widen your horizons• Explore the city• Meet people
How to Get Information
TO GET STARTED: your USB Key
• For policies and procedures
• For contact information
• For all graduate services at McGill
• Life in Montreal
TO STAY INFORMED – learn to navigate:
GPS website:
GPS Policies: http://www.mcgill.ca/gps/policies/
McGill Policies-Secretariat: http://www.mcgill.ca/secretariat/policies/
Your graduate program, departmental and faculty web sites
http://www.mcgill.ca/gps/
Take advantage of McGill
Branch out from the Lab and the Library
• Interdisciplinary Opportunities
• Events
• Conferences/Conventions
• Special Talks
• Gairdner lectures
• Beatty lectures
• Tomlinson talks
• Departmental seminars
• Concerts
Orientation Activities
• Web site of activities and information (http://www.mcgill.ca/firstyear/orientation1/graduate/)
• Graduate Orientation Open House & Welcome for New Graduate Students
Wednesday, Sept. 2, 2009, 4:00 and 8:00 p.m. Thomson House, 3650 McTavish Street
Welcome messages: Key information
Dean of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies' Orientation Presentation [.wmv]
Dean of Students' Graduate Orientation Presentation [.wmv]
Executive Director of Student Services Graduate Orientation Presentation [.wmv]
Welcome Message from the President of PGSS [.wmv]