New Students

Location: Varsity Hall I & II

Learn about the campus and community services that are available to help graduate students succeed at UW–Madison.

Location: The Marquee

Note: Both 35-minute sessions have the same content, so plan to attend either at 11:45 or at 12:30.

View slides from the Resource Flash Talks 

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
• Software Training for Students (STS)
• Dean of Students Office
• McBurney Disability Resource Center
• Office of Diversity, Inclusion, and Funding, Graduate School

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.

• Arts & Humanities and Social Sciences PhD Students: Northwoods Room (3rd Floor)
• Biological and Physical Sciences PhD Students: The Marquee
• Master’s Students: Varsity Hall III

Location: Welcome Remarks – Varsity Hall III
Meet and Greet Reception – Varsity Hall I & II

Campus leadership will welcome graduate students to the University of Wisconsin–Madison.

• 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 and Chief Diversity Officer LaVar Charleston

The Welcome Remarks will be followed by a “Meet and Greet” Reception. Refreshments will be served.

Want to make graduate school a time to thrive and not just survive? This workshop will focus on promotion of psychological well-being in graduate school. Topics covered will arm 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. This event is presented by the Graduate School Office of Professional Development in collaboration with University Health Services.

In this interactive workshop, you will learn tips and techniques for staying on track and managing your time. We’ll cover goal-setting, minimizing distractions and staying focused, and overcoming some of the most common challenges to staying on task. Participants will leave with strategies that they can apply immediately. The strategies we’ll cover are appropriate for students in any discipline.

Some of the most important things you need to know in order to succeed in graduate school—like how to choose a good advisor, how to get funding for your work, and whether to celebrate or cry when a journal tells you to revise and resubmit an article—won’t be covered in any class. In this talk, we’ll discuss what’s included in the hidden curriculum, why it’s hidden, the consequences of that hiddenness, and how that hidden knowledge can be made more accessible to all.

What are graduate certificates, and how can they add value to your graduate degree? In this virtual session, faculty and staff representing several graduate certificate programs (and their equivalent doctoral minors) discuss the multiple benefits that these programs provide to graduate students across campus—including fulfilling breadth requirements, expanding interdisciplinary knowledge, mastering new skills, creating community and networking opportunities, and building cultural competence. Attendees will also have the opportunity to speak with each certificate representative in smaller groups.

As we strive to foster a welcoming and inclusive campus, it is critically important for graduate students and professionals across all disciplines to understand how implicit or unconscious bias can influence our interactions with a diverse array of people. More importantly, it is essential that we develop and consciously practice evidence-based strategies for reducing the application of these biases as we cultivate relationships with people from different backgrounds, experiences, and cultures. This interactive talk introduces graduate students to the underlying concepts and language used in the psychological and social psychological literature to describe implicit or unconscious biases, describes how these processes function as habits of mind, and focuses on how they influences our interactions and can lead to microaggressions. Students will learn effective strategies for minimizing the application of implicit bias and for addressing microaggressions when they commit, witness, or experience them. Lunch, including a vegetarian option, will be provided at 12:15 pm.

Prepare to maximize your time and energy this semester by taking advantage of software available to UW–Madison graduate students that can help streamline your workflow. This virtual workshop, presented by Pete Valeo from Software Training for Students (STS), will introduce you 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.

Join fellow graduate students, faculty, staff, and family members for the Degree Dash, hosted by the UW–Madison Graduate School. Set your goal for 5.39 miles for the Doctoral Derby (8 am start) or for 1.94 miles for the Master’s Mile (8:30 am start). Race distances are based on approximate average time to degree – but whether you come in first or last place, you’ll get a diploma at the finish line! After the race, mingle and enjoy free food and giveaways.

Explore strategies to prepare to learn remotely, engage in your courses, and maximize your time. This module, from the Graduate School, is for grad students taking their first online course or those looking for some new resources on online learning. Enroll in the Successful Online Learning Canvas course at any time.