GradHacker
A Blog from GradHacker and MATRIX: The Center for Humane Arts, Letters and Social Sciences Online
December 13, 2011 - 4:05pm
In this post, Andrea Zellner talks about how to deal with the stress of grad school over the holidays.
Whether it be that you are agnostic about the holiday season or not, there really seems to be no escaping it. With campus closing down for next few weeks, the pressures build as we prepare for gift giving, traveling, and generally surviving the holidays. On Monday, Amy Rubens gave us some sage advice about how best to prevent potential mishaps that result when leaving our grad school homes for our homes of origin. While troubleshooting is one excellent way to handle and prevent some of the stress associated with this time of year, I believe there are particular stresses that are come with being a graduate student at the holidays.
December 11, 2011 - 4:33pm
During the first winter break of my graduate school career, I left campus for more than a month. When I returned, I discovered that all of my mail had been removed from my mailbox and had been returned to the senders courtesy of the U.S. Postal Service. Easy rookie mistake. As you wrap up the semester, start preparing for your departure from campus (if that's in the cards for you). "Winterize" your life. Even if you're leaving campus for a short period, planning ahead is important, and you should consider the needs of your academic, professional, and personal selves.
Written by Amy Rubens, Indiana University PhD candidate in English, @ambulantscholar
December 8, 2011 - 10:10pm
In grad school the focus is primarily on coursework, research and funding. While the advice we receive on these topics from advisors and talks is necessary, it doesn’t help with the other side of grad school: the emotional and social. We are more than just students, and sometimes we can get caught up in the pressure and stress of getting our degree. Some of the most common problems suffered by grads are not getting research topics or forming their committees, but rather the day to day stresses and personal issues.
December 6, 2011 - 8:25pm
Grad school is a unique experience, especially in an increasingly digital world. Often the study skills that helped us excel in undergrad no longer suffice at this higher level. The relationships with professors also changes drastically as we find ourselves in limbo between student and colleague. Grad school is an extended period of transition moving from student to teacher, from taking classes to doing independent research, and from being the novice to the expert. Given how unique this experience is, and the fact that the majority of people don’t go to grad school, making the transition can be difficult.
December 5, 2011 - 7:17am
GradHacker began as a bootcamp to introduce grad students to social media that would improve their lives. Most of our authors use a myriad of tech on a daily basis. All of us have Twitter, many are also on Google +, we own a diversity of smart phones, and our laptops are more an extension of our person than a tool. Technology is increasing important to academia, with online discussion and electronic publication becoming a frequent practice. Personally, I wouldn’t be where I am without Twitter and Wordpress opening a number of important windows of opportunity to me.
December 1, 2011 - 10:28pm
Grad school isn’t easy. It is a marathon and a test of will. As grad students, we are expected to get perfect grades, teach, publish, apply for grants, and somehow find time to work on our dissertations. Many of us balance these demands with our roles as parents, spouses, and significant others. Trapped between the worlds of students and faculty, we face a number of unique challenges. Gradhacker was created in the spirit of drawing support from our fellow graduate students.