Tag: Graduate School

Fall Enrollment at All-Time High for Female Engineering, Minority, International and Graduate Students

Michigan Tech submitted its preliminary fall enrollment figures to the state this week.  Enrollment totaled 7,100 this fall, up from last year and the second highest since 1983.

Female enrollment in the College of Engineering is 1,005, an all-time high at 22 percent.

American minority students totaled 474, nearly 7 percent of the student body and another all-time high.

Graduate School enrollment also hit an all-time high this fall, at 1,442 or 20 percent of the student body.  The Graduate School received 1,800 more applications this year than last.

Michigan Tech’s 1,093 international students represent another all-time high. Retention—the percentage of first-year students who return for their second year—was 85 percent, the highest it has been since 1993.

Read the the full story.

Published in Tech Today by Jennifer Donovan, director of news and media relations

Nominations open for KCP Future Faculty Fellowships

The purpose of the King-Chávez-Parks Future Faculty Fellowship Program is to increase the pool of traditionally underrepresented candidates pursuing careers in postsecondary education. Nominations may be at the master’s or doctoral level.  Please see our web site for more details on the program, eligibility requirements, and the application procedure.

Applications are accepted on a rolling basis, however, for the best consideration for funding beginning in spring 2015, please submit a nomination no later than 4pm, September 30, 2014.

The Graduate School will work with qualified applicants and their programs to develop a funding plan that includes funds from the KCP program, department or school, and Graduate School.

September First Friday Social at the Administration Building

First Friday Socials are back for 2014-15.  Faculty, staff, graduate students and retirees are invited to attend this year’s opener from 4 to 6 p.m., Sept. 5, in the parking lot outside the Administration Building and on the fourth floor. Complimentary soda, beer and wine will be served along with some great appetizers, and raffles will be held throughout the event.

The Graduate School and Graduate Student Government (GSG) are once again sponsoring this month’s event. Come and mingle with your colleagues and see the Pat Nelson Graduate Conference Center and GSG offices.  Along with the Graduate School and GSG, the conference center was funded by a donation by the late Patricia Nelson, wife of Michigan Tech chemical engineering alumnus Charles J. Nelson ’36 (deceased).

Graduate School Dean Elected GRE Board Chair

Jacqueline Huntoon, dean of the Graduate School, has been voted chair-elect of the Graduate Record Exam (GRE) Board. She will take office in October.

“This is a great honor that will help bring more national and international recognition to Michigan Tech and its graduate programs,” said Huntoon.

She has served on the GRE Board since 2012. The board oversees the management and administration of the GRE test, which is part of the application package for most graduate schools in the United States. Other board members include graduate school deans from universities such as Virginia Tech, Northwestern and the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill.

“It’s been an honor to serve on the board, and I’ve learned a lot about best practices at other graduate schools,” Huntoon said.

Michigan Tech Receives $5 Million from Herbert H. and Grace A. Dow Foundation to Reform Middle-School Science Education

Young children are naturally curious about everything around them. They want to know how and why things work. Then, around middle school age, many of them lose that natural attraction to science and engineering.

A team of university and public school educators in Michigan say they know what’s wrong with middle school science education. And, with a $5 million, three-year grant from the Herbert H. and Grace A. Dow Foundation, they intend to develop and test some solutions.

“In Michigan and most of the nation’s schools, STEM instruction consists of a series of seemingly unrelated courses that require students to memorize large numbers of facts but fail to engage them in the practice of using science as a tool to address real-world problems,” says Jacqueline Huntoon, a geology professor, associate provost and dean of the Graduate School at Michigan Tech.

The Herbert H. and Grace A. Dow Foundation, based in Midland, Mich., has funded the Michigan Science Teaching and Assessment Reform (Mi-STAR) program to develop a model for reforming middle-school STEM education that will include a new curriculum supported by updated teacher education and teacher professional development strategies.

The program focuses on integrating the sciences, using a problem-based approach, cutting across the traditional disciplines of biology, physics, chemistry and earth science to emphasize core ideas and show how science can be used to address society’s needs. For the full story, see Michigan Tech News.

Graduate School Announces Award Recipients

The Graduate School is pleased to announce that the following students have earned:

Doctoral Finishing Fellowships:

Jun Ma, PhD candidate in Computer Science
Evgeniy Kulakov, PhD candidate in Geology
Colin Gurganus, PhD candidate in Atmospheric Sciences
Suntara Fueangfung, PhD candidate in Chemistry
Fang Chen, PhD candidate in Electrical Engineering
Xiaohui Wang, PhD candidate in Electrical Engineering
Jennifer Riehl, PhD candidate in Forest Molecular Genetics and Biotechnology
Stephanie Ogren, PhD candidate in Biological Sciences
Tayloria Adams, PhD candidate in Chemical Engineering

Dean’s Fellowships:

Bonnie Zwissler, PhD candidate in Civil Engineering
Matthew Brege, PhD candidate in Chemistry
Bryan Steinhoff, PhD candidate in Mechanical Engineering-Engineering Mechanics

DeVlieg Foundation Fellowships:

Howard Haselhuhn, PhD candidate in Chemical Engineering
John Henderson, PhD candidate in Forest Science

King-Ch`avez-Parks Future Faculty Fellowships:

Zoe Miller, MS candidate in Environmental Engineering
Darnishia Slade, PhD candidate in Applied Cognitive Science and Human Factors
Ronesha Strozier, MS candidate in Environmental Policy

Photographs and details of awards and fellowships coordinated by the Graduate School can be found online:

www.mtu.edu/gradschool/administration/academics/awards-fellowships/

Facilitators Sought for Fall Graduate School Orientation

Facilitators are an important part of the Graduate School’s orientation. They lead discussion at a table with seven new graduate students, and help to answer their questions. Faculty, staff, and graduate students are invited to participate this fall and help mentor the next group of scholars at Michigan Tech.

New facilitators will attend a training session on either August 21, 10 a.m.-noon, or August 25, 1-3 p.m. The training will ensure everyone is comfortable and confident with the material being presented.

All facilitators will participate in orientation, 1-4:30 p.m. on August 27. Please note that this is a time change from previous years, designed to accommodate students’ requests for an afternoon start.

To participate, please register online so we can include you in reminders and important notices as we get closer to the day.

Do you have questions? Contact Deb Charlesworth (ddc@mtu.edu) or Kristi Isaacson (kris@mtu.edu) for more information.

Seminar on Submitting your Dissertation, Thesis, or Report

Students planning on finishing a dissertation, thesis, or report in summer 2014 or fall 2014 are invited a seminar designed to help students understand the submission process and answer questions about it. Faculty and staff who assist students with submissions are also welcome to attend.

Once you register, you will receive a confirmation with the location and a reminder of the date and time, or information on how to join us online.

If you are unable to join us, this seminar will be taped and available online after the event.

Information on submitting, formatting, and more can be found online for dissertations and theses or reports.

Nominations open for KCP Future Faculty Fellowships

The purpose of the King-Chávez-Parks Future Faculty Fellowship Program is to increase the pool of traditionally underrepresented candidates pursuing careers in postsecondary education.  Nominations may be at the master’s or doctoral level. Please see our web site for more details on the program, eligibility requirements, and the application procedure.

Applications are accepted on a rolling basis, however, for the best consideration for funding beginning in fall 2014, please submit a nomination no later than 4pm, May 22, 2014.

The Graduate School will work with qualified applicants and their programs to develop a funding plan that includes funds from the KCP program, department or school, and Graduate School.