Photo of Vasundhara Sirnate

Steps to success, or how the fellowship was won

Sending in all those applications can pay off, and sometimes we hear about it. Case in point: Ph.D. student Vasundhara Sirnate was selected for a $30,000 award. She tells us how that happened.

parent with child wearing Cal gear

Graduate Division Student Parent Grant

The Graduate Division administers a need-based grant for graduate students (single, married, or registered domestic partners) living with dependent children; if funding…

OGSI winner celebrating

Outstanding GSIs and their mentors are honored: a quick preview

Outstanding GSIs, and mentors of GSIs, were honored in droves over the past few weeks.  We’ll be saying more, in detail and with pictures, in the near future, but meanwhile here are the categories — at least those which fall under the umbrella of the Graduate Division (and, in one case, its partner, the Graduate Assembly).

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Einhorn, Geissler, and Puckett are officially Distinguished

The Berkeley campus's most prestigious award for teaching, the Distinguished Teaching Award is intended to encourage and recognize individual excellence in that endeavor. This year, the recipients were
 Robin Einhorn of professor of history, Phillip Geissler associate professor of chemistry (whose 2000 Ph.D. is from Berkeley), and
 Kent Puckett, associate professor of English.

Peace Corps - Meera Chary

The Peace Corps is very Berkeley

In the half century since the Corps was founded, UC Berkeley has supplied more volunteers than any other university in the U.S. — over 3,400 in more than 120 countries.

Senator Simitian

What UC Berkeley is worth to California

In the course of a March discussion in the State Capitol about the Berkeley Center for Green Chemistry, which is exploring the development and use of safe chemicals as well as ways to impact public policy, State Senator Joe Simitian had some specific things to say about UC Berkeley’s immense value to California’s economy.

Travel warning: Japan

Please be advised that the University of California Education Abroad Programs (UCEAP) in Japan have been suspended and travel assistance providers are assisting students with arrangements to return to the U.S. Please also be aware that the U.S. Department of State issued a travel warning last night.

Photo of student waving Cal flag

Rankings: Berkeley’s not only super, it’s the greenest

UC Berkeley is a member of a totally informal yet stratospherically exclusive club, an elite “supergroup” of six universities worldwide that are regarded head and shoulders above the rest of the throng. (The others are Harvard, MIT, Cambridge, Stanford, and Oxford.)

Image of a tiger behind gate

Most life on Earth to perish — again?

Is Earth heading into a sixth mass extinction? A team of UC Berkeley professors and graduate students think it may well be. But it may be possible to stop short of the tipping point.

Photo of a person smiling

How’s your emotional intelligence?

Can you tell, from what’s written on someone’s face, whether they’re showing anger or fear? If they’re sad or embarrassed? Happy? Lusty?  Disdainful? It can be tricky, and misreads can cost you in real-world interactions with strangers, friends, coworkers, and lovers.

Andrew Szeri began serving as Dean of the Graduate Division on July 1st, 2007.

A look behind the curtain at the GRE

The Graduate Record Examinations General Test has been a milestone for many of us in the graduate community. A revised test will debut this coming August. How will it look to your college-bound younger siblings?

A quick guide to fellowships

A distillation of facts and advice from the Graduate Fellowships Office staff, tips that might save you time as you embark on your quest for funding.