Congratulations on your admission to the University of Wisconsin–Madison! The Graduate School offers support and resources to help you transition to life as a graduate student.
Welcome Messages
Starting in May, newly admitted graduate students receive a series of emails from the Graduate School.
Find a place to live
The University Apartments community serves UW–Madison graduate students, students with families, postdoctoral researchers, academic staff, and faculty. More information on housing in Madison is available in Graduate Student Life’s housing section.
Explore your new community
Find the vibrant student life in Madison!
Find funding
The Office of Fellowships and Funding Resources is the place to start when looking for graduate assistantships or fellowship funding for your graduate education. The Office of Student Financial Aid can also help.
Utilize Professional Development
It’s never too early to start planning your path to success! Check out the Office of Professional Development’s online resources and mark your calendars for workshops.
Watch for GradConnections Weekly
This weekly e-newsletter is a valuable source for information related to fellowships/funding, professional development workshops and events, academic deadlines and other timely information of interest to graduate students. New students for fall begin receiving GradConnections Weekly in September.
Graduate Student Life
Graduate Student Life is a valuable resource throughout your time at UW–Madison. Find information on housing, transportation, what to do on a night out, and tips for staying healthy.
Get the App
Graduate Student Life is also available through our Guidebook mobile app. Download the app to have it handy, plus get access to an interactive checklist for new students and a schedule for New Graduate Student Welcome closer to the event.
Important Checklist
To add your own items to this checklist and track your completed tasks, download the Graduate Student Life Guidebook app for new graduate students.
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For All New Graduate Students
- Activate your NetID and set up multi-factor authentication.
- Attend New Graduate Student Welcome.
- Visit your program’s office, meet your graduate coordinator and faculty advisor, and plan to attend program orientation activities.
- If you haven’t done so yet, submit final transcripts to the Graduate School Office of Admissions, 232 Bascom Hall.
- Enroll in classes (New grad student enrollment for fall 2020 opens June 22).
- Use (or forward) your WiscMail account, the university’s official method of correspondence.
- Pay your tuition and segregated fees (even if you have tuition remission, you usually still have to pay segregated fees). Find tuition rates here.
- Students with graduate assistantships (TAs, PAs, RAs, and LSAs) have three months of paychecks each semester to pay segregated fees. See the Bursar’s Office policy for more information.
- If you have a need related to a disability, contact the McBurney Disability Resource Center.
- Fill out the Immunization and Health History Form
- Get your Wiscard (campus ID card). Note: You must register for classes before you can get your Wiscard.
- Update your mailing address and phone number in MyUW.
- Pick up your free Madison Metro bus pass during Welcome Week.
- Complete the online sexual violence prevention program, required for all new graduate students.
For International Graduate Students
- Check in with International Student Services (ISS) within 1-2 days of your arrival.
- If you are employed and on a J-1 or F-1 visa, apply for a social security number.
- If you are required to take the English as a Second Language Assessment Test (ESLAT) as a condition of your admission, do so immediately upon arrival.
For Graduate Students with Funding
- If you received federal or state financial aid, update your mailing address in My UW and contact the Office of Student Financial Aid with questions.
- If you are a TA, PA, RA, Fellow, or Trainee learn about benefit plans you are eligible for from the Office of Human Resources.
Additional Resources
New Graduate Student Welcome 2020
Wednesday, August 26, 2020
Union South, 1308 W. Dayton Street
The Graduate School invites all newly admitted graduate students to attend the Fall New Graduate Student Welcome event each year.
The Welcome is an opportunity to mingle with Graduate School deans and staff and other campus leaders, hear from a panel of current students about grad student life, learn about the many campus and community resources available to you, and meet other new graduate students from across campus.
2020 Welcome Schedule (Tentative)
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11:00am Fellows Meeting
This session is specifically designed for new graduate students who have fellowships in the 2020-2021 academic year. Information will be provided about the rights and responsibilities you have as fellows. Topics will include: your pay schedule, tuition and seg fees, health insurance eligibility, full-time study and satisfactory progress, income tax issues, concurrent appointments, and funding beyond the fellowship years, and more.
11:00 am-1:00 pm Check-In and Resource Fair
Representatives from more than 40 campus and community services answer your questions and provide assistance. Visit their tables and talk in person with informative individuals.
11:45 am & 12:30 pm Information Session: Research, Funding & Professional Development
NOTE: Both 35-minute sessions have the same content, so plan to attend either at 11:45 or at 12:30.
Hear directly from staff about the ways their offices can help you find and apply for funding, use databases and other tools to gather information related to your research, write better and smarter, and develop your professional and career-related plans and skills. Presenters include:
- Office of Professional Development, Graduate School
- Writing Center
- Libraries and Grants Information Collection
- Office of Diversity, Inclusion, and Funding, Graduate School
- Division of Information Technology (DoIT) and Software Training for Students (STS)
- Dean of Students Office
1:15 pm-2:15 pm Graduate Student Panels: Question & Answer Session
A panel of seasoned graduate students will answer the large and small questions you have about everything from what can make your graduate student life easier and less stressful to establishing and maintaining relationships with faculty and staff in your program.
2:30 pm-3:00 pm Welcome Remarks
Campus leadership will welcome graduate students and kick off the reception.
- Dean of the Graduate School William J. Karpus
- Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs John Karl Scholz
- Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs Lori Reesor
- Deputy Vice Chancellor for Diversity and Inclusion, Vice Provost and Chief Diversity Officer Patrick Sims
3:00 pm-4:30 pm Meet & Greet Reception
Enjoy refreshments at this informal reception as you get to know people from the Graduate School, from your own program, and from across campus.
Graduate Student Welcome Week
Each fall the Graduate School offers a line-up of events during the week before classes begin to welcome and help acclimate new graduate students to campus and to welcome back current graduate students.
Check out the fall 2019 lineup and event information below; similar events will be hosted during Welcome Week 2020 (check back in mid-August for updates).
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Starting Strong and Staying on Track: Strategic Goals and Planning for Productivity
In this presentation for graduate students, Fatimah Williams, founder and CEO of Beyond the Tenure Track, introduced students to holistic strategies and tools for strategic goal-setting and planning to achieve a vision of success in graduate school and beyond.
Learning objectives:
- prioritize responsibilities so that productivity is not sacrificed
- understand the presenter’s 7 Domains of Professional Development: Academic, Network, Leadership, Career, Funding, Personal, and Well-Being
- develop strategies to enjoy yourself while working toward goals
Reception with refreshments and time to speak with Fatimah Williams followed the presentation.
Flourishing in Graduate School: How to Manage Stress and Maintain Your Mental Health
Want to make graduate school a time to thrive and not just survive? This workshop focused on promotion of psychological well-being in graduate school. Topics covered armed graduate students with strategies to thrive through the challenges of graduate school, including managing the transition/adjustment process, coping with stress, promoting work/life balance, and establishing habits to maintain or improve mental health.
Time Management for Graduate Students
In this interactive workshop, students learned tips and techniques for staying on track and managing time. Presenters covered goal-setting, minimizing distractions and staying focused, and overcoming some of the most common challenges to staying on task. Participants left with strategies to apply immediately. The strategies covered were appropriate for students in any discipline.
Cool Tools: Apps and More to Increase Productivity
Prepare to maximize time and energy by taking advantage of software available to UW–Madison graduate students that can help streamline your workflow. This hands-on workshop, presented by Software Training for Students (STS), introduced students to both basic and advanced software tools, including cloud storage services, notetaking apps, mobile scanners, research tools, tasks managers, password managers, lifestyle apps, and more.
Multicultural Graduate Network Welcome Celebration
The Multicultural Graduate Network, through the Graduate School at UW–Madison, kicks off each new school year with a large celebration to invigorate the vibrant community of graduate students on campus.
Graduate School Degree Dash
Get your semester off to a fast start! Join fellow graduate students, faculty and staff for the 4th Annual Degree Dash hosted by the Graduate School at UW–Madison.
Read more on the Annual Degree Dash webpage.
Recognizing and Reducing Implicit Bias
Building cultural competence is critically important for graduate students and professionals across all disciplines. This interactive talk introduced graduate students to the concepts of implicit or unconscious biases and assumptions about diverse groups of people by treating the application of such biases as a habit of mind. Students learned how to uncover their own biases, discover the underlying concepts and language used in the psychological and social psychological literature to describe such processes, and learn evidence-based strategies for reducing the application of these biases as they cultivate relationships with people from different backgrounds, experiences, and cultures. Afterward, attendees enjoyed a reception with lunch (with vegetarian and gluten free options) and networking with other graduate students who value diversity and inclusion.