Graduate education at the University of Wisconsin–Madison
Imagine a future where robots at home are more than just disc-shaped vacuum cleaners – a future where they are autonomous agents that can perform our everyday tasks. Though we may not always realize it, these tasks require a lot of physical responsiveness to the environment that is natural for humans but a core challenge of robotics.
With a background in engineering and environmental science, alumnus Paul Schramm had the perfect mix of skills to work on a water quality measurement project that brought new possibilities into the field of limnology.
Arezoo Movaghar earned her master’s degree in computer science and artificial intelligence. She built models based on the plentiful data found in medical records. So, when she came to UW–Madison as a PhD student and joined a research group, it surprised Movaghar to find out just how much data researchers in other fields collect.
UW–Madison will continue to lead the national conversation on graduate careers this month when it hosts the Graduate Career Consortium’s annual conference. The conference, held June 26-29, brings together more than 200 deans, directors, program managers, and career advisors from the U.S. and Canada to share best practices for graduate student and postdoctoral scholar professional development.
A new training program at UW–Madison is bringing graduate students from three departments together in a cohort to become leaders, teachers, and researchers on race, ethnicity, and inequality in education. The program, which launches in fall supported by a Collaborative Training Grant from the UW–Madison Graduate School, focuses on intensive mentoring and cohort-based training.
Vacant properties are often seen as remnants of the housing crisis or vestiges of industries that are no longer as present as they once were in U.S. cities. But graduate student Elsa Noterman sees more in these vacant properties, including current uses and important histories. A PhD student in the UW-Madison Geography Department, Noterman was recently awarded a Dissertation Completion Fellowship from the Mellon Foundation and American Council of Learned Society (ACLS) for 2018-19 for her dissertation exploring the conflict that arises over use and ownership of spaces in the urban commons.
The way Reynaldo A. Morales tells it, his research is the story of knowledge, and the peoples who have preserved complex ways of knowing how to communicate with Earth. A joint PhD candidate in Curriculum and Instruction and the Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies, Morales explores Indigenous knowledge systems, and how their exchange is essential to sustainability around the world.
Seven graduating UW–Madison McNair Scholars and one recent McNair graduate shared their research and celebrated their achievements at a reception May 1. The McNair Program creates a bridge between undergraduate and graduate education by helping students pursue research and learn the skills necessary for success in a PhD program.
The idea of riding an autonomous shuttle around campus on the regular seems closer to reality after the Wisconsin Automated Vehicle Proving Grounds shuttle demonstrations last week. But before autonomous vehicles can become mainstream, the people who will commute in them have to be comfortable with the technology. For graduate student Hannah Silber, that entails closing the gap between an autonomous vehicle’s “brain” and the human one.
Erika K. Carlson thrives on the sense of wonder that comes along with learning about the universe. The self-described science nerd is fascinated with the wild and weird phenomena scientists are exploring in physics and astronomy, and she wants to share them with the world. “I’ve loved the fact that as a science student and as a graduate student researcher, my job has basically been to learn about cool science things full-time,” Carlson said. “I want as many people as possible to get to experience this, at least a little bit.”