Graduate School Newsblog

Michigan Tech Graduate Engineering Programs Move up One Position in US News Rankings

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The College of Engineering has moved up in the US News & World Report annual ranking of graduate schools. Tech’s graduate engineering program is ranked 85th in the nation in 2012 rankings released online this week. Last year the graduate engineering program overall ranked 86th.

Four graduate engineering specialties were ranked in the top 50 nationwide for the second year in a row. Environmental engineering ranked 28th; materials Science and Engineering and mechanical engineering-engineering mechanics each ranked 48th; and civil engineering ranked 49th. Their rankings were the same last year.

“We are pleased to be recognized among the nation’s best graduate engineering programs, and to continue to receive special recognition for our programs in environmental, mechanical, materials and civil engineering,” said Dean Tim Schulz (COE).

Dean Jacqueline Huntoon (Graduate School) said she was glad to see the positive change in the ranking of Michigan Tech’s College of Engineering. “The initiatives that are currently underway are beginning to pay off and will hopefully lead to even higher rankings in the future,” she observed. “I am also happy to see that the rankings of four of our programs remain in the top 50 again this year. We face strong competition and are holding our own.”

Each year, US News ranks professional-school programs in business, education, engineering, law and medicine. The overall rankings of graduate schools are based on two types of data: the opinions from deans, program directors and senior faculty at more than 1,200 institutions, and statistical indicators of excellence, including percentage of faculty who are members of their most selective peer group (in the case of engineering schools, the National Academy of Engineering); the average Graduate Record Exam score; the ratio of PhD students to faculty; research expenditures; graduate enrollment; and PhDs granted.

The rankings of engineering specialties are based purely on assessments by department chairs in each specialty.

US News periodically ranks graduate programs in the other fields, including the sciences, social sciences, humanities, public affairs and public policy, fine arts, library and information science and health fields. Michigan Tech’s biological sciences, earth sciences and physics graduate programs were ranked last year. They were not evaluated this year.

The rankings can be accessed online at http://www.usnews.com/grad.

Published in Tech Today.

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BRC Travel Grants for Spring Semester

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The Biotech Research Center is accepting applications for travel grants, which provide financial assistance to graduate students, undergraduate students and postdoctoral scientists who present their research at scientific meetings.

To apply:

  • Complete the application form available at www.biotech.mtu.edu.
  • Provide all the necessary information as specified in the application instructions.
  • Send application materials by Friday, April 15, to Mary Tassava, at mltassav@mtu.edu.

The awards, which promote biotechnological research and achievement, are merit-based and are offered twice per year. The Fall 2011 deadline is Oct. 14.

Incomplete applications will not be considered. Awards will be announced near the end of the award month.

For questions, contact Tassava at 487-2959 or mltassav@mtu.edu.

Published in Tech Today.

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Michigan Tech Hosts Statewide Equity Conference

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Michigan Tech will host faculty, staff and administrators from public and private colleges and universities, community colleges and precollege GEAR UP programs across Michigan at the annual King Chavez Parks Equity Within the Classroom Conference, March 27-29 in the Memorial Union Ballroom. The conference theme is “The Changing Face of America: Helping Michigan Compete.”

Featured speakers will include:

Monday, March 28

  • 8:45 to 9:45 a.m., Valerie Young, an expert on the “imposter syndrome” and author of a popular career newsletter called “Changing Course,” will present “How to Feel as Bright and Capable as Everyone Seems to Think You Are: Why Smart People Suffer from the Imposter Syndrome and What to Do About It.”
  • 1 to 2 p.m., Howard G. Adams is the founder and president of a Norfolk, Va.-based consulting firm that provides, leadership, career planning and diversity-related training programs for universities and other organizations.
  • 4:45 to 5:30 p.m., Maya Kobersy, assistant general counsel at the University of Michigan, will talk about the legal landscape for diversity in higher education.

Tuesday, March 29

  • 8:15 to 8:45 a.m., Kimberly Houston-Philpot, president of the Dow Corning Foundation and global community relations director for the Dow Corning Corporation, will present a corporate view of equity and diversity.
  • 10 to 11 a.m., Michael Boulus, executive director of the Presidents’ Council, State Universities of Michigan, will present “Moving Michigan Forward into the Knowledge Economy.”
  • 11:15 a.m. to 12:15 p.m., Sandra Begay-Campbell, who leads efforts at Sandia National Laboratories to assist Native American tribes with renewable energy development, will talk about how America can stay competitive in the STEM fields.

Workshops will also be offered on effective cross-cultural communication, recruiting minority students to graduate school, the Michigan College Access Network, getting a campus climate survey started, free web-based math programs, partnerships and 3M’s science outreach programs.

Registration is free, but space is limited. To register for one or more sessions, visit www.diversity.mtu.edu/equityconference.

Published in Tech Today.

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Graduate Student Government Sponsors Research Colloquium

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The Graduate Student Government recently sponsored their annual Graduate Research Colloquium, featuring presentations and posters.  The annual event was capped off by an awards banquet where students and faculty were honored.

Honorees included:

  • Outstanding Graduate Mentor Award presented to Dr. Chris Middlebrook
  • Exceptional Graduate Student Scholar presented to Hessam Ghassemi
  • Exceptional Graduate Student Leader presented to Kevin Cassell
  • Winners of the poster and presentation competition
  • Recent recipients of the Dean’s Award for Outstanding Scholarship
  • Recent recipients of the Graduate Student Service Award
  • Recent recipients of the Outstanding Graduate Student Teaching Award

Photographs of the posters and awardees can be found online.

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Michigan Tech Graduate Student Wins a Spot in International Satellite Imaging Competition

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There is trouble in paradise. What used to be home to half a million people making a living farming, raising livestock or fishing, the land is becoming inhospitable to vegetation. The flocks of migratory birds that used to fill the skies are rarely seen.

The region used to be called the Garden of Eden. It’s located in a region of Iraq known as Mesopotamia, a formerly fertile valley between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers that is becoming increasingly arid due to rising salinity of the soil. Now a graduate student at Michigan Tech, originally from Iraq himself, has developed a plan to use high-resolution satellite imagery to analyze the salinity of the ground and–hopefully–find ways to make the Garden of Eden fertile again.

DigitalGlobe, a company that manufactures a high-resolution, 8-band sensor for satellite imaging, found the project so innovative and promising that they have invited Sinan Abood, a PhD student in environmental engineering, to participate in a worldwide competition called the 8-Band Challenge. More than 500 proposals were submitted; Abood’s is one of 10 that were accepted. The competition, open to graduate students and postdoctoral research fellows, is slated to be judged this spring.

See Tech Today for more about Sinan’s research.

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Graduate Dean Review Process Begins

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A committee has been appointed to conduct the required review of Graduate School Dean Jacqueline Huntoon. Members include Carl Anderson, Nancy Auer, Andrew Burton, Gerard Caneba, Rob Greenhoe, Jarod Maggio, Paul Nelson, Bruce Seely, Andrew Storer, Greg Waite and Yoke Kin Yap. As part of the review process, the committee has prepared a survey for the main constituencies with whom the graduate dean works and requests input from all constituencies on campus.

The surveys are being run through SurveyMonkey for graduate students, faculty and administrators, as well as academic and professional staff. The committee asks that members from each group log in using the appropriate link listed below.

Faculty and staff access will be automatically restricted to computers with an IP address for Michigan Tech. This means that each computer access the survey only once.

Because several graduate students may need to use the same computer, accesses to their survey requires a password log-in. That password is being distributed to all Michigan Tech graduate students via a message from the graduate student government listserv.

Anyone encountering access issues should contact Bruce Seely at bseely@mtu.edu .

The survey will be open until 5 p.m., Monday, March 21. Responses will be confidential and no information about users or computers is being tracked. The committee thanks everyone for their participation and assistance.

Following are the surveys.

Link to the graduate student survey:
http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/Graddean_survey-grad_students .
Access is password protected

Link to the faculty and administration survey:
http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/Graddean_survey_faculty-administration .

Link to the staff survey:
http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/Graddean_survey-staff .

Published in Tech Today.

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Session on Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award

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Just a reminder that tomorrow, March 15th from 12:00 to 1:00 in Ballroom A-1 of the Memorial Union Building, is the session on the NIH Individual Graduate Fellowship Opportunity (Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award NRSA).

Dr. Tammy Donahue, who has served on the NIH study section for NRSA awards 5 times, and Dr. Jason Carter, who has active research support from NIH and a comprehensive understanding of the NRSA, will provide insight and explanation on the different NRSA funding mechanisms, an understanding of the role of institutes in funding decisions, and how to determine if NIH is a good fit for interested applicants or if NSF or others are better.  Specific proposal development tips will be given on the four main proposal components: candidate qualifications, training plan, mentor statement, and research plan.

Graduate students and faculty will gain an understanding of who should apply,  what is involved in preparing an application, specific tips for writing a successful NRSA, and an inside perspective on the criteria which reviewers use to evaluate applications.

Register for this event at:   http://www.admin.mtu.edu/research/vpr/registration/

Drinks and dessert will be provided.

Please contact Jodi Lehman (jglehman@mtu.edu) at 487-2875 with any questions.

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Alumni Association Recognizes Outstanding Alumni and Friends

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One of the most important activities of the Michigan Tech Alumni Association is the recognition of the achievements and contributions of our many outstanding alumni and friends.

The Distinguished Alumni Award is presented to alumni who have made outstanding contributions both in their careers and to Michigan Tech over a number of years. The 2011 recipient is Bhakta Rath, MS Metallurgical and Materials Engineering ’58.

See Tech Today for the complete article and list of award recipients.

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Library Offers Workshop: Delve into Research

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The Library will sponsor a literature review workshop, “Delve into Research,” at 1 p.m., Tuesday, March 15; and again 1 p.m., Wednesday, March 23, in Library 244.

Are you preparing for your thesis? Establish your research on solid ground by conducting a literature review. Bring to light your research project and understand current events in your field. Government Document Librarian Rhianna Williams will discuss six steps to conducting a literature review.

The library offers weekly workshops all semester on resources that provide an academic edge and save time. Workshops take place at 1 p.m. on alternate Tuesdays and Wednesdays in Library 244. Each workshop is offered twice to accommodate class schedules.

This spring’s workshops will focus on resume building, material science resources, managing citations and many more. The library welcomes feedback and ideas for future workshops. Email them at library@mtu.edu .

Published in Tech Today

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