Graduate School Newsblog

Author: Debra Charlesworth

Michigan Tech Garners Best Bang for the Buck Rating

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Michigan Tech has been named a school that delivers the Best Bang for the Buck in ratings released by Washington Monthly magazine. Michigan Tech ranks 29th among national universities in the category, according to the publication.

Washington Monthly created the Best Bang for the Buck category, to address the now-prevalent question of whether or not a college education is worth it. According to their website, they ask, “What colleges will charge people like me the least and give me the highest chance of graduating with a degree that means something in the marketplace?”

“This rating, combined with our Business Insider ranking with underrated universities, shows how Michigan Tech is getting good reviews in the right kinds of profiles,” said John Lehman, associate vice president for enrollment, marketing, and communications. In the Business Insider ranking, Michigan Tech was also praised for the high salaries their graduates earn.

To be included among Washington Monthly’s Best Bang for the Buck rankings, schools are rated in four categories: percentage of students receiving Pell Grants, graduation rate, default rate and net price.

Of the 1,572 schools in their overall rankings, only 349 made the list in the Best Bang for the Buck category.

Other Michigan schools rated in the Best Bang category include Michigan State University (23rd) and Western Michigan University (46th). Michigan Tech is rated just behind Iowa State University and just above Rutgers University.

Michigan Tech was also ranked number 64 in the overall national university rankings, in which the Washington Monthly rates schools “based on their contribution to the public good in three broad categories: Social Mobility (recruiting and graduating low-income students), Research (producing cutting-edge scholarship and PhDs), and Service (encouraging students to give something back to their country).”

Published in Tech Today

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Carlsbad Field Office (CBFO) Fellowship Program

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U.S. Department of Energy

Carlsbad Field Office (CBFO) Fellowship Program

Now Accepting Applications for BS, MS or PhD Graduates and recent Alumni (within the last 5 years) in Mathematics, Computer Science, Computer Engineering, Physical Sciences, Cyber/Computer Security, Information/Systems Technology or related technology degrees.

Application closes Sunday, September 22 2013, midnight EST – visit http://see.orau.org/ProgramDescription.aspx?Program=10417 or see.orau.org and search for CBFO to get started NOW!

Opportunity in Carlsbad, New Mexico for a full-time, one-year or more commitment, starting in October or November 2013 to conduct mission-oriented research in DOE’s Carlsbad Field Office.  Applicant must be interested in a multi-disciplinary, fast-paced environment focused on energy technology research and development.

Applicants must be U.S. Citizens – no exceptions.

Strong analytical, research and communication skills are required.  Annual stipends are dependent on academic level, skills and experience. Additional allowances for travel to site, medical insurance or housing may be provided.

For more information, e-mail cbfo.fellowship@orise.orau.gov.

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Registration Open for Fall 2013 Safe Place Training

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The Michigan Tech Safe Place Program is a comprehensive resource to better prepare faculty and staff to address the needs of students who identify as gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, queer and questioning (GLBTQ). The training program addresses a wide range of terms that GLBTQ students use to define their identities, issues that GLBTQ students often deal with during the coming out process, concerns that GLBTQ students face both in and out of the classroom, ways that faculty and staff can create inclusive classroom and office environments, where faculty and staff can refer students who need to report harassment and the on- and off-campus resources available to students.

All faculty and staff members are invited to participate in the program. The fall 2013 training times and the online registration form are available online.

Published in Tech Today

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HuskyCard is Coming

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Michigan Tech IT is upgrading the campus card system by transitioning to a contactless smart card and reader system. The new system will be compatible with all of the current card functions such as student, faculty, and staff ID card, library card and meal plans. In addition to providing identification and access, the HuskyCard may optionally be used as a prepaid debit MasterCard, providing students the ability to receive same-day refunds.

The HuskyCard will have two magnetic stripes, one yellow, and one black, as well as a contactless smart chip. Information will be stored on both the yellow stripe as well as the smart chip to allow for a transition to new technology without interrupting current service offerings. When a contactless smart chip reader is installed, card users will be able to “tap” (hold the card very close to the reader) their card against the reader to execute transactions. If you encounter a magnetic stripe reader, swipe the yellow stripe.

The goal is to replace all swipe readers with contactless smart chip readers; including parking gates and computer lab print release systems. Parts of the current system are running on antiquated technology and need to be replaced as soon as possible. Other parts have been updated over the years and will remain compatible with the new system.

All Michigan Tech students, faculty, and staff will be required to receive a new HuskyCard with the contactless smart chip technology. You can exchange your current ID in the library from Aug. 26 until Sept. 15. Save time by updating your picture and preferred name at HuskyCard Photo Upload.

Note that all HuskyCards now have a 16-digit MasterCard number on the front of the card, as well as a black magnetic stripe. The black stripe should only be used for debit MasterCard transactions. The 16-digit number is associated with an optional prepaid debit account, and is only activated if one chooses to “register” their HuskyCard. As a result, new precautions must be taken by campus departments that use the HuskyCard. For example, the temporary holding of another person’s card in all cases is no longer appropriate, and new business processes must be put in place. The HuskyCard should be treated as if it were a personal credit card.

More information about the new HuskyCard is available at HuskyCard.

For questions about the proper handling of HuskyCards, please contact it-help@mtu.edu.

from Information Technology
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Library Establishing a Patent and Trademark Resource Center

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Michigan Tech’s Van Pelt and Opie Library has received official designation from the Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property to establish a Patent and Trademark Resource Center (PTRC) in the library. The PTRC will make available the rich resources of technical and commercial information contained in patents and trademarks for inventors, researchers, students, faculty and businesses. Key databases and up-to-date news about intellectual property have never been easily accessible in the Upper Peninsula (and neighboring geographic locations) and are rarely located in rural areas.

This fall, there will be an opening event after which workshops will be available for all. Faculty and other instructors are encouraged also to think about the opportunities within their teaching that would promote the use of these resources to students, labs and entrepreneurial groups or teams.

The impetus for seeking official PTRC status was inspired by Jim Baker’s (executive director, Innovation and Industry Engagement) dedication to instructing graduate students about patents in the library’s NSF-funded Intellectual Property: Copyright and Patents (Is it Original?) program over the past three years.

This program was originally developed by Christa Walck, associate provost, with extensive involvement by Nora Allred, copyright and scholarly communications librarian, and Baker. Graduate students at Michigan Tech and at our partner, University of Texas-Pan American, are keenly interested in patents.

A new instruction and learning librarian, Sarah Lucchesi, took the initiative to pursue this designation, has received specialized training and can be contacted for further information: 7-3379 or slucches@mtu.edu.

submitted by the Van Pelt and Opie Library
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ORAU Presentation August 20

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Steve Roberts, university partnership specialist from Oak Ridge Associated Universities (ORAU), will give a presentation, “Value through Partnerships,” Tuesday, Aug. 20, at 2:30 p.m. in GLRC 202.

ORAU is a consortium leveraging the scientific strength of 105 major research institutions to advance science and education by partnering with national laboratories, government agencies, and private industry.

Michigan Tech has participated in ORAU-administered programs such as the Powe Junior Faculty Award, DOE Office of Science Graduate Fellowship, ORNL Postdoctoral Research Associates, and the NETL, DOE and EPA Research Participation Programs.

For additional information: ORAU

This presentation is hosted by the Office of the Vice President for Research.

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Forestry Recognizes Outstanding Alumni

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The School of Forest Resources and Environmental Science has honored four SFRES alumni. Francisca (Panchita) Paulete ’06 and Aaron M. Everett ’01 were named 2013 Outstanding Young Alumni. David Myrold ’77 received the School’s 2013 Outstanding Alumnus Award, and Jacob Hayrynen ’81 was inducted into the SFRES Honor Academy.

Paulete is a graduate of the Peace Corps Master’s International program at Michigan Tech. She served as a Peace Corps volunteer in Gambia, West Africa, from 2003 to 2005. She now is district planning and environmental coordinator for the Eugene District of the Bureau of Land Management in Oregon.

Read more about the alumni awards in Tech Today.

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Tom Drummer Passes Away

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Fisher Hall will no longer resonate with the hearty laughter of Tom Drummer. The 59-year-old professor of mathematical sciences passed away over the weekend at his home in Chassell.

“It is a big shock,” said Department Chair Mark Gockenbach. “Tom was such a great guy.”

Drummer joined the math faculty in 1985, after completing an MS in Applied Statistics from Bowling Green State University and a PhD in Statistics from the University of Wyoming. He served as interim chair of the department for several months during the 1996–97 academic year and at the time of his death was the department’s graduate program director. He was a member of the Academy of Teaching Excellence, composed of faculty who are finalists for the Distinguished Teaching Award.

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Geology Grad Student Helps Indonesians Understand Their Volcanoes

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Jay Wellik, left, installs a new seismometer near Raung volcano.
Jay Wellik, left, installs a new seismometer near Raung volcano.
Nine thousand miles is a long way to go for research. But, if you are studying volcanoes, Indonesia is the place to be.

For Peace Corps Master’s International (PCMI) student Jay Wellik, it became even more than a place to study volcanoes. It became home, as he worked in Java, mostly near the Raung volcano.

As the first Michigan Tech student to work in Indonesia, Wellik endeared himself to the local governments and people, for his risk perception and mitigation, as well as for his willingness to jump into community life.

He researched two relatively active volcanoes, Raung and Ijen, working from observatory posts there, while also teaching English and coaching basketball in a “madrasah,” a state Islamic school. Wellik says he appreciates the different perspective he gained from the classroom and basketball courts. More.

by Dennis Walikainen, senior editor
Published in Tech Today

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