This newsletter is distributed to department heads, graduate program directors, graduate program contact staff, and graduate faculty. 

Updated Graduate School Contact Information

Graduate School contact information updated by task or activity has been posted on the Graduate School web page. We hope this will assist you in directing inquiries to the appropriate points of contact.

Graduate School FAQs related to COVID-19

The Graduate School's list of frequently asked questions addresses if/how Graduate School and university deadlines, events, and procedures have been impacted as a result of K-State's limited campus operations during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Spring Graduation Deadlines Extended to May 8

Masters and doctoral students planning to graduate this semester should be familiar with graduation requirements and deadlines. The deadline to complete all requirements (submission of final exam ballot, ETDR ballot, and ETDR) for spring 2020 graduation has been moved from April 17 to May 8. Students should refer to the appropriate Deadlines for Graduation and ETDR Submission Checklist for instructions on completing all graduation requirements.

Any graduate student not meeting the May 8th deadline will be required to enroll in the summer if they plan to graduate in August.

Spring Commencement to be Combined with Fall Commencement

As announced last week, the traditional commencement ceremony for spring 2020 graduates will be combined with the fall 2020 ceremonies scheduled for December 11. As has always been the Graduate School's practice, masters and doctoral graduates unable to attend the commencement ceremony associated with their semester of graduation are welcome to attend a later commencement ceremony. Graduates who plan to attend a later commencement ceremony simply need to notify the Graduate School.

Graduate School Document Submission

Since the Graduate School is physically closed and the team members are working remotely, it is imperative that all documents are submitted electronically, preferably using the electronic forms available on the Graduate School website. Ballots and other documents that cannot be submitted using electronic forms should be sent via email as PDF document(s) to the designated degree analyst or to grad@ksu.edu for processing. View a list of Graduate School contact information for various tasks and activities.

Note: Approval forms cannot be processed without having an approved Program of Study in place with the Graduate School.

Use of Zoom to Schedule Defenses and Processing of Ballots

The Graduate School team is supportive of graduate students continuing their scheduled defenses during this modified class schedule so they can meet graduation deadline. Major professors should work with their graduate students, members of their supervisory committees, and outside chair for doctoral students to conduct the defenses via Zoom. The video conference form will not be required during the modified class delivery time period. Major professors should contact their designated degree specialist to notify them of their defense plans. Please note that Request for Final Examination should be submitted electronically during this time.

Ballots will continue to be sent to outside chairs for doctoral students and major professors for masters. The ETDR ballot will be sent electronically to major professors.

Emails with votes for final examination of committee members can be sent to outside chair for doctoral students and to major professors for masters. These ballots can be sent as PDF document to the assigned degree analyst. Votes for ETDR ballots should be sent to the major professors. These should be submitted as PDF documents to the designated degree specialist.

For programs that normally require other students to attend the public component of defenses (seminar), the Zoom session can be recorded and the link shared with the students to view at a later date. If the public presentation is recorded, it is strongly recommended to schedule two Zoom sessions: one for seminar/public presentation and one for the committee meeting.

Home Testing & Webinar Series for TOEFL and GRE At Home Tests

ETS is pleased to announce expanded availability of at home testing for the TOEFL iBT® test and GRE® General Test. The tests will now be available in all locations where the computer-delivered tests are normally available, with the exception of Mainland China and Iran. While currently there is sufficient capacity for students to register immediately and test a few days later, we suggest that you encourage prospective students to register as soon as possible for the best chance to secure their preferred date and time.

Registration for the at home solutions for the TOEFL iBT® test and GRE® General Test is open for students in selected locations. Learn more about this new test delivery method at an upcoming webinar. There are several dates available — register today! In the meantime, find details about security measures and answers to other questions you may have on the TOEFL® and GRE® web pages dedicated to this purpose.

Graduate Program Directors

Message from Provost Taber: Remote teaching and learning will continue for summer school 2020

Read the full message at the link above. K-State will continue remote teaching and learning for intersession and summer school 2020 sessions in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. All Kansas State University summer school courses on all campuses will be online. Recognizing the financial challenges facing students and their families in this COVID-19 environment, K-State is significantly reducing its online fees for summer school undergraduate and graduate courses this year. Please note that this tuition and fee model applies to 2020 summer school courses only. For additional information, please see related FAQ.

Maintaining Communication with Admitted Students

The Graduate School continues to process applications for summer 2020 and fall 2020 admission, and we are working to stay connected with admitted and incoming graduate students. We will inform summer admits that K-State will continue remote teaching and learning through the summer term. We also will share information about resources to assist admitted students with making a decision on their admission offer (if they have not done so already) and to help them prepare for their graduate career if they have accepted their admission offer. Additionally, the Graduate School strongly encourages graduate programs to stay connected with prospective, admitted, and incoming graduate students during this period of limited campus operations. It is important that these students know you are thinking of them and will continue to provide a quality graduate experience while teaching and learning continues remotely through the summer.

The Global Postgraduate Diversity Resource

The Council of Graduate Schools, with support from Educational Testing Service (ETS), has created The Global Postgraduate Diversity Resource. This online tool is designed to help universities improve their diversity programming by looking at resources written by university leaders, researchers, government officials, and journalists. The website currently includes over ninety resources from universities across the globe as well as essays on pressing issues in global higher education diversity from university leaders. The website aims to help faculty, postgraduate students, and administrators develop a common language for improving diversity and inclusion at postgraduate institutions around the world. This resource will be updated with new essays and resources throughout the year. If you would like to request the addition of a resource or resources, please use this online form or email Matthew Linton.

Pre-arrival Online Graduate English Support Courses

Due to test postponements as a result of the COVID-19 outbreak, online versions of DAS 176 (Reading), DAS 177 (Writing), and DAS 178 (Listening) will be offered April 6-May 29, 2020 for students eligible for admission to graduate programs for Fall 2020 who have iBT TOEFL or IELTS scores that are close to those needed to meet the English Proficiency requirement. These courses allow students the opportunity to improve their English and demonstrate proficiency by earning grades of B or above in these courses prior to their arrival on campus. Registration requirements can be found here.

Call for nominations: Distinguished Thesis and Distinguished Dissertation Awards

The Graduate School is now accepting nominations for the MAGS/ProQuest Distinguished Thesis Award and the CGS/ProQuest Distinguished Dissertation Award. This year's award categories are 1) Mathematics/Physical Sciences/Engineering and 2) Social Sciences. These awards serve to recognize theses and dissertations that make an unusually significant contribution to their field. Each graduate program may submit one nomination for the thesis award and one nomination for the dissertation award. Please visit the award web pages for more information. Nominations must be submitted to the Graduate School, 113-119 Eisenhower Hall, or via email to Megan Miller (mmmiller@ksu.edu) no later than 5:00 pm on May 1, 2020.

Graduate Faculty

Graduate Council Elections

Don't forget to cast your votes for those nominated to serve on the Graduate Council! Please remind the graduate faculty in your departments of this important event. Ballots were sent via e-mail to the graduate faculty addresses on record.

K-State team funded by $1.3 million NIH grant to combat hypertension

A team of researchers, led by Kansas State University associate professor Punit Prakash from the Department of Computer and Electrical Engineering, has been funded with more than $1.3 million from the National Institutes of Health to expand preliminary studies outlined in a project, titled "Treating primary aldosteronism-induced hypertension via microwave thermal therapy." The project is well-aligned with the Carl R. Ice College of Engineering's health research thrust as well as the internationalization theme of K-State 2025.

Online Course Design Institute replaces K-State Online Essentials

To assist faculty in transitioning new courses to the online modality, the Online Course Design Institute has been created by a partnership between Global Campus, the Teaching and Learning Center, iTAC, the Polytechnic Campus and other campus partners. This institute replaces K-State Online Essentials, previously offered to faculty. This program includes a comprehensive checklist to guide the course design process and is customizable to each instructor's experience and comfort level. For more information, visit the Keep Teaching website or contact Katie Linder at kelinder@k-state.edu, executive director for program development at Global Campus.

Virtual Event: 'Alternative Assessment Methods' in remote teaching settings

Facilitated by Brian Niehoff, Don Saucier, Laura Widenor and Katie Linder, the virtual event "Alternative Assessment Methods" will be offered on April 16 at 10 am. The event will present a variety of assessment options available to faculty that effectively measure student learning, including online exams and other alternatives. The event will include the same information and will be recorded and captioned for those who can't attend. Join via Zoom.

Commerce Bank and WT Kemper Foundation Distinguished Graduate Faculty Award

The Graduate School is accepting nominations for the Commerce Bank Distinguished Graduate Faculty Award. The award honors current members of the graduate faculty who are recognized nationally and internationally for their leadership and contributions to graduate education at K-State and their outstanding scholarly achievements. Recipients of the award will receive an honorarium and will be recognized during the fall Graduate School commencement ceremony and during a public lecture to the campus community. The materials noted below should be submitted as one Word or PDF file to dgf@k-state.edu by May 1, 2020.

Open/Alternative Textbook Initiative Information Session

The Open/Alternative Textbook Initiative provides grants from $2,000-$5,000 for instructors to adopt or create open educational resources for their classroom. The initiative aims to make education more affordable for K-State students. Since being launched in 2013, it has saved students nearly $5 million. This session will only be offered online, Tuesday, April 14 at 12:30pm to 1:30pm. Join via Zoom.

Message from Provost Taber: Guidance on A/Pass/Fail Grade Option for Students

As announced by Provost Taber, for all students, undergraduate and graduate, the deadline for selecting to have a course graded A/Pass/Fail has been extended to Friday, May 8, 2020. If a graduate student wishes to select this option, they will be required first to discuss with their advisor and obtain his/her approval and obtain the graduate program director's signature. Graduate students must earn a minimum of a C to receive a Pass (P) if approved by their major professor. From the Graduate School perspective in approving the program of study and reviewing degree requirements, we can accept a P. Students admitted on academic probation and required to earn an A or B on designated courses are not able to select this grading option.

Graduate Students

Rader and Huxman receive honorable mention for NSF Graduate Research Fellowship

For the second year, Sydni Huxman, psychological sciences graduate, Hutchinson, and Mikaela Rader, graduate student in geology, Wichita, have received honorable mentions in the National Science Foundation's Graduate Research Fellowship competition.

Virtual Brown Bag Lunch Discussion

Graduate students are invited to join Dean Shanklin, Associate Dean Dissanayake, and Dr. Miller for a virtual brown bag lunch every Wednesday at noon. This is an opportunity for graduate students to ask questions and stay connected. Join the discussion via Zoom.

GSC Zoom Coffee Hour

The GSC executive team will hold a Zoom coffee hour every Friday at 1 pm for graduate students to check in, say hello, ask questions, voice concerns, etc. Join via Zoom.

Temporary online access granted to books in K-State Libraries' collection

K-State Libraries has activated the Emergency Temporary Access Service as a member institution of HathiTrust Digital Library. The service will provide access to the digitized version of more than 50% of K-State's physical collection to authenticated K-State students, staff and faculty. Users must log in on the HathiTrust website using their K-State eID and password to view materials. Detailed instructions about how to log in and use the service are available online. 

Beyond the Professoriate Webinar – 3 Things You Should Do Now to Maintain Momentum in Your Job Search

Join Beyond the Professoriate co-founder L. Maren Wood, PhD for this webinar on job searching through these unprecedented times. April 16, 11:00am CST.

After attending the webinar, you will be able to:

• Identify 3 action steps you can take towards continuing your post-academic job search.
• Develop a strategy to prevent feeling overwhelmed.
• Develop a plan for shifting online job search strategies.

Advanced registration is required. 

Virtual Drop-In Advising via Zoom

Please join us for Virtual Drop-In Advising via Zoom. Monday-Thursday, Noon-4 p.m. (central time). The Virtual Drop-In Advising is meant for brief resume/cover letter critiques. Students can simply join the Zoom meeting or type in the Meeting ID: 894-519-640 through the Zoom app. Students requiring more in-depth support for their career documents or job search are recommended to schedule a full appointment with career advisors via Handshake.

Mental Health Support

Our world is dealing a major public health concern, and we all are learning how to navigate new approaches to school, work, and other major facets of life. As a result, students may experience heightened levels of stress, anxiety, or other emotions. The following resources are available to students in need of mental health support.

• K-State Counseling Services – available for phone consultations, 785-532-6927
• National Grad Crisis-Line – 877-472-3457

Enrollment for Summer and Fall 2020

In an effort to allow the university community time to adjust to remote teaching, learning and advising, administration has decided to delay the start of enrollment for the summer 2020 and fall 2020 semesters by one week. The early enrollment period for returning students will now begin on Monday, March 30 and end on Friday, April 24. Students may find newly scheduled enrollment time in KSIS in Student Center > Enrollment Dates. Questions or concerns should be directed to the Office of the Registrar, registrar@ksu.edu.

Academic Achievement Center Online Resources

K-State's Academic Achievement Center is offering the following academic success resources online and available to support all K-State students as they complete coursework and other academic activities remotely for the remainder of the semester.

• Academic Coaching is available to all K-State students from 9 am-5 pm Monday-Friday. No appointments are necessary. Academic Coaches can help with, navigating online learning, connecting to campus resources, understanding course expectations, academic and time management challenges, and more!
• Academic Success Tools: The AAC has many academic success tools and resources online along with guides and videos to implement these tools.

Career Center Online Resources

The Career Center is committed to assisting students during this challenging time and has a variety of resources available:

• Individualized appointments with career advisors via Zoom, phone or email. Students may schedule through Handshake.
• Job/Internship listings via Handshake: Employers are still adding opportunities, and they are updated daily. Please go to the main Career Center webpage and sign in with purple "Student Login" button.
• Zoom presentations on career related topics—for classes or clubs. Contact Andrew Kohls at andrewkohls@ksu.edu for more information.
• Andrew's Advising Resources—Resume/Interview Guide, Salary Negotiation Tips, Resources for Diverse/Multicultural students and more.

Graduate Student Council Travel Awards 

May 1 is the deadline for graduate students to apply for GSC travel awards for travel to academic and professional events that begin anytime in July.

CONFERENCES CANCEL IN RESPONSE TO COVID-19: The GSC is aware that many professional conferences have been canceled in an effort to mitigate spread of the coronavirus (COVID-19). Students who were allocated a GSC travel award for an event in March or later were sent a message with instructions for requesting reimbursement for non-refundable expenses.

FUTURE TRAVEL AND TRAVEL AWARDS: The GSC will continue to accept travel award applications for events scheduled in June and beyond, and applications must be submitted by the appropriate deadline. However, per the announcement made on March 14, all university-affiliated or sponsored travel is banned until further notice, and students should not make travel arrangements until the ban is lifted.

Accepting Applications - Science Communication Fellowship

The Science Communication Fellowship is specifically designed for graduate students and post-doctoral researchers and is Sunset Zoo's flagship program of it's Behind the Science initiative. Fellows will enhance their science communication skills through a dynamic, engaging, and participatory workshop series. They also will develop a hands-on educational activity to use in multiple settings at Sunset Zoo and beyond, as well as a personalized webpage to engage multiple audiences with their work on Sunset Zoos Behind the Science website. Application and more information available on the Sunset Zoo website. The application deadline is May 1 at 5:00 pm.

Graduate Research Opportunities at DOE National Laboratories

The Department of Energy's (DOE) Office of Science is pleased to announce that the Office of Science Graduate Student Research (SCGSR) program is now accepting applications for the 2020 Solicitation 1. The SCGSR program supports supplemental awards to outstanding U.S. graduate students to conduct part of their graduate thesis research at a DOE national laboratory/facility in collaboration with a DOE laboratory scientist for a period of 3 to 12 consecutive months—with the goal of preparing graduate students for scientific and technical careers critically important to the DOE Office of Science mission. The SCGSR program is open to current Ph.D. students in qualified graduate programs at accredited U.S. academic institutions, who are conducting their graduate thesis research in targeted areas of importance to the DOE Office of Science. Direct questions to the SCGSR Program Manager, Dr. Ping Ge, at sc.scgsr@science.doe.gov. Applications are due 5:00pm Eastern Time on Wednesday, May 6, 2020.

MD Anderson Cancer Center's TRIUMPH Translational Postdoctoral Fellowship

The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center is currently accepting applications for the CPRIT TRIUMPH Postdoctoral Fellowship in Translational Cancer Research. This three-year fellowship provides basic, translational, and clinical training and aims to further develop talented PhD or MD/PhDs into successful clinical/translational research scientists. Applications are reviewed quarterly with the next cycle due date of June 30, 2020. Additional information regarding eligibility, application process, and current trainees and program alumni profiles are found on the CPRIT TRIUMPH website. Please contact Dr. Kari Brewer Savannah, Program Manager, with any questions.