New Students

New Graduate Student Welcome

Wednesday, August 30, 2023
11 am – 4:30 pm
Varsity Hall, Union South

The Graduate School invites all newly admitted graduate students to participate in the New Graduate Student Welcome event each year.

New Graduate Student Welcome is an opportunity to hear from the Graduate School and campus leaders, get advice 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.

Welcome Sessions

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11 am - 1 pm: Resource Fair

Varsity Hall I & II

Meet representatives from campus and community services that support graduate students to succeed at UW–Madison. Learn about their resources and pick up some swag on your way through the fair.

See a list of the campus and community organizations at the 2023 Resource Fair.

11:45 am or 12:30 pm: Resource Flash Talks

The Marquee

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

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

View presentation slides from the Resource Flash Talks.

1:15 - 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.

Choose the panel that best fits your program of study:

  • 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

2:30 - 4:30 pm: Welcome Remarks & "Meet and Greet" Reception

Varsity Hall III

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 Charles Isbell
  • 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 at 3 pm in Varsity Halls I & II. Refreshments will be served.

Four people stand together for a group photo while Bucky Badger spreads out in a show-off manner in front of them. The people in the photo are wearing red t-shirts with the words Graduate School Dash and Bash.

Graduate Student Welcome Week

August 28 – September 5, 2023

Each fall, the Graduate School offers a lineup of events during the week or so before classes begin to welcome and help acclimate new graduate students to campus and to welcome back current graduate students.

2023 Welcome Week Events

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Setting Up for Success in Your Mentoring Relationships: Aligning Expectations

The Delta Program in the Graduate School will offer an interactive online workshop on research mentorship, with a focus on aligning expectations. We will explore signs of misalignment, how it might occur, as well as strategies for preventing and realigning. At the conclusion of the interactive workshop, participants should be equipped to take a proactive approach to aligning mentor-mentee expectations.

Beyond the Grade: Professional to Possibility

What if alternative paths to personal and workplace advancement proved more beneficial over the long run? In this session learners will examine how they define success, understand how traditional expectations and established norms in graduate school and society can impose accidental barriers, and learn ways to navigate grad school and life “differently”. Let’s debunk the myth of being “self-made” and learn how to leverage MAPS (Mentors, Allies, Partners, and Sponsors) for strategic advancement. Break free from traditional measures of success and navigate graduate school with the support you need while building a powerful personal brand. Attend this session if you are ready to move beyond the grade!

View the recording of “Beyond the Grade”

Time Management for Graduate Students

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.

View the recording of “Time Management”

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 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.

View the recording of “Flourishing in Graduate School”

Cool Tools: Apps and More to Increase Productivity

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 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.

View the recording of “Cool Tools”

The Power of Inclusive Teams

The most successful teams are diverse, but diversity in the absence of intentional and inclusive practices is not enough. Evidence from the interdisciplinary study of teams reveals that diversity’s power depends upon purposeful inclusion. This interactive workshop will explain how diversity helps teams improve their productivity and generate more innovative ideas while exploring the concepts of psychological safety and the inclusion mindset.

Psychological safety allows team members to feel safe to engage in interpersonal risk-taking, which is essential for team performance and innovation. The inclusion mindset helps us reframe how we interpret situations, promoting acceptance and learning while preventing defensiveness and alienation. Psychological safety and purposeful inclusion are essential for leveraging the richness that diversity adds to the collaborative process. This workshop will provide practical insights and concrete, tangible applications for participants and their teams.

Graduate School Dash & Bash

The Graduate School invites you to celebrate the start of the academic year at the Graduate School Dash & Bash. Whether you plan to “Dash” to the finish line, handcycle the route, take a scholarly stroll, or join the “Bash” activities just for the fun of it, all are welcome and encouraged to participate in this free event – new and current graduate students, faculty, staff, and family members. Dash participants and the first 200 attendees at the Bash will receive a commemorative UW–Madison 175th anniversary t-shirt.

Dash & Bash event details.

BIPOC Graduate Student Welcome Reception

Students are invited to engage in community with one another and with leadership across campus at the BIPOC Graduate Student Welcome Reception. Students will have an opportunity to network and socialize with peers, as well as connect with campus resources and leadership.

This event is co-hosted by the Graduate School Office of Diversity, Inclusion, and Funding and the Graduate School Office of Professional Development.

Enhancing Your Graduate Degree with a Certificate

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.

Donuts and DiscoverPD for Graduate Students

Come enjoy donuts and coffee or tea and meet other graduate students while learning about professional development. At this drop-in event, we will share exciting news about our professional development tool, DiscoverPD, and how it can be used to develop a wide variety of skills (such as career development, networking, leadership) and connect you with campus resources. Attendees will also receive a free tote bag and a copy of the book, A Field Guide to Grad School: Uncovering the Hidden Curriculum, by Dr. Jessica Calarco – an essential resource for grad students! (Giveaways are while supplies last.)

Anytime - Successful Online Learning

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.