More Time in the Ivory Tower?: Pursuing Graduate School

AICHE Brownbag

Wednesday, September 28, 2011

Today’s Brownbag

• Is graduate school for you?

• What does a professor actually do? (Prof. Ferri)

• Faculty panel

• Slides will be available on Lafayette chapter AICHE sites (sites.lafayette.edu/aiche)

Why Choose Graduate School?

• Graduate school is not for everybody.

• On average, a 4.5-6 year investment of time

• People who enter grad school should be:– Self-motivated

– Inquisitive about engineering AND science

– Interested in why things are happening, not just what is happening

–Willing to handle failure and learn from it

– Unafraid to ask questions

Undergraduate vs. Graduate

• UG is (primarily) closed-ended problems where a solution is available following some procedure.

• A Ph.D. involves solving open-ended problems where the solution is unknown and the path to solving the problem is often murky at best.

• Graduate school will enhance and develop your analytical skills to allow you to solve any problem.

Grouping Description

Coursework Advanced courses in thermo, transport, kinetics and applied math.Science/engineering electivesMost completed in first two years

Qualifiers Show competence in coursework and/or ability to conduct research

Teaching (most) 1 or 2 courses as a teaching assistant

Oral/Poster Presentation Work presented at symposiums or conferences

Publications 1-4 (Varies from school to school and from research group to research group)

Thesis Compilation of original researchFinal approval from research advisor and thesis committee (2 or 3 in department, 1 external)

What are the Requirements of a Ph.D.?

Am I Going to Accumulate Loans?

• In virtually all ChemE programs (and most other science/engineering), no. (For Ph.D.)

• Research is funded by a wide range of entities.– Covers cost of “employees” (grad students et al.)• Tuition/fees

• Stipend (~$25-35,000, dependent on school)

• Health care (typically)

• Attendance at conferences (% coverage varies)

Will I Like Research?

• The best way to find out is by actually completing research.

• At Lafayette– Excel program (the earlier, the better)– Can go outside of the major

• Externally– Summer REU programs (

http://www.nsf.gov/crssprgm/reu/list_result.cfm?unitid=10006)

– Other federal/university level organizations (NSF, NIH, etc.)

Applying For Grad School

Requirement Description

Transcript Imperfect grades can be overcome by quality undergrad research

GRE Not as important as you may think, but still required

Personal Statement 1-2 pages discussing why you want to attend grad school (and the particular school) and what makes you a good candidate

Letters of Recommendation

3 letters is a typical minimum.All recommenders do not have to be from the major.Provide ample time, a resume and an update to your recommenders.

Application Cost Money

• Typically due around January 1 (variation exists)

How Do I Pick a Grad School?

• Researching schools is important –Most to all research groups have a group website

where a flavor of their work is available. (upkeep)

• What are your research interests?– Any particular area of interest (energy, bio, etc.)?– Experimental? Computational? Both?

• The school– Prestige (be careful)– Location (size/weather/rural vs. urban)– Number of professors interested in (be careful)

Senior Year Timeline

Sept. Dec. Jan. Feb. Apr.

• Research potential schools• Ask faculty or others for advice/insight• Look into fellowships (NSF etc.)• Take GRE

• Narrow list of potential schools• Ask for letters of recommendation• Send e-mails to faculty you are interested in.• Prepping applications (GRE, personal statement)

• Ensure letters of recommendation have been completed and sent• Submit application

• Notification of acceptance• Notification of award package

• Recruiting weekends

• Final decisions

What Can I Do with a Ph.D. (Besides be a Professor)?

• Remember, your thesis research will a little slice of science/engineering that you are the expert.

• You may be expected to run experiments or oversee others completing experiments.

• Senior Engineer

• Research Scientist

• Consultant

Where are They Now?: Postdocs

Where are They Now?: Jobs

A Few Parting Words

• Don’t choose grad school solely because finding a job is difficult.

• Grad school will change the way you think and approach problems.

• Even though it’s not industry, networking is just as important in grad school.

• What you get out of grad school is directly related to what you put into it.

Chemical Engineering in AcademiaWhat does a professor do?

James K. Ferri

Department of Chemical and Biomolecular EngineeringLafayette College

Faculty Positions

Non-tenure Track vs. Tenure Track

Adjunct, Visiting, Instructor

One to three year appointmentGenerally non-renewable

Assistant (Associate)

One to three year appointmentsRenewable during probationary period“Up or out”

Salary Scale: PUI

Assistant ($59,150, $86,600) - $74,000Associate$88,600Full $115,700

Research (R-1)+ $8,000-$12,000

Job Description

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Teaching

Course Load: (varies by institution)

Teaching-oriented: (3/3) Most (all) teaching and grading done by faculty

Research-oriented: (1/1) Lectures taught by faculty; laboratory and recitation/quiz sections by graduate assistants Occasionally, lectures taught by adjunct or other non-tenure track instructors (Nearly) all grading done by assistants

Example:A College in Easton, Pennsylvania

3/2

Student evaluations:Written commentsStudent comments

Peer observation

Educational materials development

Academic advising

Teaching: evaluation of job performance

This seeks to provide perspective

This is how to excel.

Good is not good.

Valued but not quantified.

Scholarship

DisseminationPublications peer reviewed non-peer reviewed (conference papers, book chapters)Presentations invited seminars and public lectures (think LSS) conference presentations

Support

Grants NSF, NIH, DOE, DOD, NASA EPA, FDA, …Industry cooperation sponsored fundamental and applied research

Professional development

Scholarship: evaluation of job performance

DisseminationPublications peer reviewed 1 paper per year is annual expectation non-peer reviewedPresentations invited seminars and public lectures conference presentations

Support

Grants NSF, NIH, DOE, DOD, NASA EPA, FDA, …Industry cooperation sponsored fundamental and applied research

Professional development

Anything here is good

Anything here is good(and might be necessary; see above)

Service

Departmental Service:Standing committees: Outreach, Student Experience, etc.Operational activities (open houses, outreach, individualized learning experiences)

Institutional committees:

Standing committees: Judical, Compensation, Policy, …Ad-hoc (“for this”): faculty searches, special appointments

Professional service:

Organization of professional meetingsPeer-review of journal articles and grant proposals

Job Description

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