There comes a time in every graduate students’ journey when they have to make a couple of transitions: from solving problems that have known solutions, like those in coursework and homework, to solve problems that haven’t been solved yet in independent research. Later, we make another shift from working on […]
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This year’s GTA Training Activity focused on how we as teaching assistants can better elicit, shape, and respond to student contributions. GTAs are often responsible for managing student contributions, whether in the classroom, office hours, or recitation. In this training activity, we discussed how various strategies for eliciting certain kinds […]
At all levels, example-based reasoning is central to learning and understanding mathematics. In particular, canonical examples-those which can be used to represent an entire class of objects that possess certain properties-are especially valuable in understanding new mathematical concepts. Mathematicians have been shown to productively leverage example-based reasoning for a variety […]
Hi grads (and other readers)! In our last SGTA seminar, we talked about burnout, where it comes from, and how to mitigate it. If you couldn’t attend the seminar, don’t worry. Here are some of the key takeaways from our discussion. First and foremost, what is burnout? It’s a feeling […]
Hi grads! In our last SGTA seminar, we highlighted the crucial role of collaboration outside of your own department in being successful as a professional mathematician. Here’s a summary of the key takeaways. Our panelists included one professor, Dr. Serkan Gugercin, and two current doctoral candidates who are currently finishing […]
Hi grads! In our last SGTA seminar, we highlighted the crucial role of collaborating with peers in being successful during grad school. Here’s a summary of the key takeaways and strategies we discussed. One of the central themes was the importance of forming and maintaining effective class groups. We encourage […]
Our third Senior Graduate Teaching Assistant (SGTA) Seminar of the Fall 2023 Semester was titled ‘Research and Teaching Statements’. During this seminar we not only discussed the length, content, and structure of such statements, but general advice and methods of preparing the statements throughout a graduate student’s tenure. Additionally, in […]
Our first SGTA seminar centered on setting SMART goals for a successful year. The SMART framework provides a basis for reframing personal goals so that they are Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound. This framing helps us set goals that are more likely to be accomplished. See last year’s blog […]
In 2009, the US Council of Graduate Schools in Washington DC reported survey results showing that 65% of the 1,856 doctoral students who responded identified mentoring or advising as a main factor in PhD completion. Kearns, H., & Gardiner, M. (2011). The care and maintenance of your adviser. Nature, 469(7331), 570-570. I […]
On Thursday morning, we held our first SGTA seminar of the semester. The turn out was fantastic! After all, who can resist free coffee and doughnuts in addition to helpful professional development advice? Our discussion centered around the SMART Goals framework (Doran, 1981). We all have goals we would like […]