MSRE Week 7–Tackling Journal Articles

Child, Youth & Family Studies major Brittany Sznajder-Murray, with her faculty mentor, Professor Cody Hollist

This week, two McNair Scholars touch on one of the key skills scholars hone while doing summer research: learning how to approach, read, and analyze journal articles. Many students may have come into contact with journal articles for classes, but likely have not spent a great deal of time searching for, compiling, and analyzing the content of articles for the purpose of original research. This skill, which all McNair Scholars use as they work on their research project, will undoubtedly be vital as they continue their time as undergraduates and eventually move on to graduate study.

Brittany Sznajder-Murray, a Child, Youth & Family Studies major has been paying particular attention to the way  journal articles are organized. As she explained, “I never used to pay much attention to the structure of the paper, but now I notice the structural differences of different research articles.” Paying attention to the “road signs” and structure of research papers is necessary to understand complex articles concerning new topics. Skills such as knowing how to actively and critically read a research article are integral to students ability to successfully conduct and write original research.

Computer Science major Mike Gubbels

Sometimes a difficult aspect of reading journal articles is being overwhelmed by a wealth of  information that seems impossible to understand. As Computer Science major Mike Gubbels put it, “I was somewhat disturbed by the notion of reading a paper without understanding every last detail, since this contradicts the approach I’ve learned to take when reading for classes.” This is something every student and academic has likely experienced and demonstrates how, as a scholar, one must prioritize the information they need to know, along with understanding their limits. Mike acknowleged that the act of familiarizing himself with complex and sometimes foreign topics surrounding his research ultimately  ”allowed me to feel more comfortable when I realized what I do not know.” This too, is important. As budding academics, or even as distinguished professors, there will always be new, unknown information for scholars to strive to understand–the life of an academic!

Halfway Point!

Sure enough, as the summer heat has arrived here in Lincoln, time has flown by and we are to the halfway point of the McNair Summer Research Experience! Scholars in the past weeks have been dedicated to preparing the framework needed for a successful summer research project, and are now beginning to reap the rewards. The McNair cohort has completed drafts of their Abstracts needed for the Berkeley conference, as well as a draft of their Introduction and Method sections. Many students have even begun to write their results!

McNair Scholar Brian Shreck at work

One scholar, political science major Brian Schreck, has been particularly immersed in learning the specifics of writing an academic research paper. With guidance of his faculty mentor, political science Professor Sara Michaels, Brian has been focused on accelerating his writing from the level of  a typical undergraduate term paper, to that of a formal academic research paper. This is an important distinction that McNair scholars learn during the Summer Research Experience. One significant change from typical undergraduate paper writing is the intended reading audience. Brian mentioned that he has been focused on applying this idea to his writing and, “thinking in terms of the audience for which I am writing and stepping back to make sure it would make sense to someone not completely immersed in the research like myself.” As scholars become “experts” on their topics, this lesson is one that will definitely serve them well in their future roles as graduate students!

As research papers begin to turn into polished PowerPoint and poster presentations , students will undoubtedly begin to feel a bit of  “research fatigue”.  This is typical, and hopefully scholars can use events like the one the McNair Scholars program hosted Monday night to take a break from all their hard work. Students gathered at El Portrero in the Haymarket and had the chance to informally meet their new Graduate Student Mentors. More on the important role these mentors will play in preparation for graduate study in the the future. For now, Scholars, keep up the good work, and keep working hard! We’re officially in the downward stretch!

MSRE Week Four Ends

With week four nearing its end, scholars continue to work hard on their projects.   As scholars continue to collect data, analyze, draft, and re-draft sections of their reports,  the focus of sessions this week has been on preparing for graduate school applications.  Monday marked the last of the scholar’s GRE Practice sessions, with the final post-assessment just around the corner.  During these sessions, the scholars came in and took practice tests of the section or sections of their choice.  These sessions allowed scholars to set aside 2 hours of their week to commit to practicing for the upcoming graduate school entrance requirement.

McNair Summer Research Week 3 Underway

Scholars Mike Gubbels and Sherri Skelenar work together to peer review one another's work

Week three marks the point where McNair scholars are officially 1/3 of the way through their summer research experience. This week, students have been busy writing drafts of their Introductions, Literature Review, and Theory sections of their research papers. As they’ve begun to write their Introductions and Background portions of their papers, scholars have also had the opportunity to peer review the work of others in their cohort.

Michael working with his texts in Love Library

Some McNair Scholars have been getting hands-on and independent research experience at the same time. Michael Harpster, an English major, has been benefiting from the work and solid research plans that he already had in place before the summer research experience started. Although Michael’s faculty mentor has been out of town, Michael has been doing extensive background reading under the direction of his mentor, and then independently employing theories and methods from the articles he has been reading to his own research. This skill is a perfect example of what scholars learn to do during the summer research experience. The ability to work independently while actively communicating with his research mentor via email has led Michael to already begin to draft his research paper. Great work Michael!

Another scholar who has been hard at work these past few weeks is Geology Major Drew Nelson. Drew has been conducting research in the field in New Mexico and Wyoming. Though consistently putting in 12 hour days while gone, Drew is looking forward to returning to Nebraska to continue his summer research project.  Clearly, McNair scholars are some of the hardest working students around!

As we approach the half way point of the summer research experience, McNair scholars will no doubt start feeling the crunch of looming deadlines,  professor’s expectations, and research projects needing to be finished. Don’t be discouraged, Berekely is just around the corner and all of your hard work will pay off! Keep up the good work!

McNair Summer Research Begins

The 2009 McNair Senior Scholars have begun their 10 week “Summer Research Experience (also known as MSRE). Scholars have been busy learning about the typical structure of research papers in their respective disciplines, and have begun outlining their research projects which they will ultimately present at the California McNair Scholars Symposium at UC Berkeley in August.

Scholars Michael Harpster, Jeanette Samuels, Brian Shreck, and Morgan Conley attend the session, "Fundamentals of Research Writing"

Scholar Morgan Conley has gotten into the swing of things noting that her faculty mentor already has her working on background reading for her upcoming research. Like others in her cohort, Morgan says that in the coming weeks, she’ll be using her spare time to study for the upcoming GRE exam.

The McNair cohort has been busy attending sessions on preparing for the GRE (Graduate Record Examination), taking practice GRE exams, and attending workshops designed to help outline and write the introduction, literature review, and theory portions of their papers. Students have been extremely busy! As Sherri Sklenar described her first week, “when it was over, I couldn’t believe it!  It was a blur!”

Great work McNair Scholars on all of your hard work in the first week. Keep it up!

How to Be a Successful Graduate Student by William Bauer

Success in graduate school isn’t something that occurs naturally.  You have to work at it.  Here are some recommendations and strategies that have worked for me:

Success in graduate school isn’t something that occurs naturally.  You have to work at it.  Here are some recommendations and strategies that have worked for me:

1. Be a careful observer

• Keenly observe department norms and how people interact and work together for daily activities, departmental functions, as well as seminars you participate in.
• In your seminars, observe the types of questions asked and how senior graduate students (and other faculty that may be attending the seminar) approach issues.
• In your readings, attend to the overall argument or idea and relevant details, maintaining reading notes. Outline the main points and questions you have to prepare for the seminar.  Note items of special interest that may be good research topics for that seminar or for later research projects.

2. Be disciplined

• Have a schedule and stick to it, completing all work on time. Much of your time will be flexible, and you’ll be expected to be self-sufficient, but it can be very useful to form study or discussion groups with peers in order to structure your time.
• Know the department and graduate studies milestones and make them your milestones. Meeting these milestones on time means that at each stage of your program you’ll be able to focus your energy on that stage.
• Don’t take incompletes in your seminars, unless absolutely necessary.

3. Be proactive

• Talk frequently to your professors and peers about ideas that interest you. Follow-up on comments that your professors give about your work.
• Be creative in the content of your work and how you approach your work.
• Actively reflect upon discussions and projects. Ask: How could this have gone better? How can I apply this in the future?
• Besides these examples of being proactive, there are three things you can start doing right away to make your graduate experience successful…

Recommended Actions:

1. Keep a research/ideas journal

• Keep this focused on topics of most interest to you from seminars, discussions, and readings; the seeds of your dissertation and further research might be in here; keep your journal with you wherever you go.

2.Make and update a goals matrix

• Create a cell in the matrix for each semester of your program; for example, if you’re in a 5-year program, you’ll have 10 semester cells, plus summers. In these cells, enter the classes you plan on taking, courses you want to teach/TA, program milestones, and planned dates for submitting papers to conferences and/or journals.

3. Seek a mentor

• You may not need to establish a faculty mentor in the first year, but you should keep an eye out for who might be a good mentor (be observant.) Talk to senior graduate students about how they sought a mentor.
• It’s likely that your eventual mentor will be a professor you did work for or wrote a paper for that really sparked your passion. Consider revising your project and/or pursing further questions pertinent to it, and seek more feedback from that professor. It’s possible that such projects may be the beginnings of your dissertation.

2009 McNair Recognition Reception

The McNair Family!

On Friday, April 24, the McNair Scholars Recognition Reception was held at the Lied Center. In addition to celebrating scholar accomplishments, faculty and graduate student mentors were recognized for their support of the program. Over 80 faculty and graduate student mentors, friends, and family members attended the dinner reception.

Master Scholars graduating in May 2009: Maegan Stevens-Liska (top left), Martin Diaz (top right), Acacia Caraballo, and Juan Canagas.

Honored guests for the evening were the May 2009 graduates, including: Joshua Alvarez, anthropology; Rebecca Beals, sociology; Acacia Caraballo, chemical engineering; Juan Cangas, psychology; Martin Diaz, electrical engineering; Kyle Jackson, environmental studies; Willie Novotny, biochemistry; Chelsea Rivera, child, youth and family studies; Maegan Stevens-Liska, history; and Mo Wax, business administration.

Senior Scholars (* indicates May 2009 graduates): Joshua Alvarez*, Willie Novotny*, Mo Wax*, Jeff Belmont, Khoa Chu, Kyle Jackson*, Tara Cossel, Rebecca Beals*, Chelsea Rivera*, and Adrian Soltero.

The graduating seniors shared their post-graduation plans, and were awarded a dictionary embossed with their name and McNair Scholars Program. The graduates also received a sky blue honor cord, in memory of Dr. Ronald McNair’s flight suit, to wear for the commencement ceremony in May. Congratulations to all of our graduating scholars!

Senior Scholar Willie Novotny receives his blue honor cord from Dr. Bellows. Willie was accepted to the University of Southern California Keck School of Medicine, and will begin an M.D. program in August 2009.

Outstanding McNair Faculty and Graduate Student Mentors

Dr. Hollist (left) and Tony Kelly

For his mentoring and support of our scholars and his commitment to
the McNair Program, Dr. Cody Hollist received the 2009 McNair Faculty Appreciation Award. Dr. Hollist has served as a McNair faculty mentor for three years working with Corey Minchow, Chelsea Rivera, and Brittany Sznajder-Murray. As a first-generation college student, Dr. Hollist has a deep understanding of McNair scholars and the challenges they often face. Dr. Hollist serves as proof positive that with a lot of hard work and some great mentoring, you can compete with the best. Last fall, Dr. Hollist shared his experiences as a first-generation college student with the incoming scholars and described his journey to becoming a faculty member at UNL. In presenting his award, Dr. Laurie Bellows quoted Sir Isaac Newton, “If our scholars are able to ’see further’, it is because they’re able to stand on the shoulders of giants, like Cody Hollist.”

Advice For Students Looking For Funding

Dr. Laura Damuth (center) spoke to the McNair Scholars about applying for Graduate Fellowships. Following the session, Morgan Conley (left) and Mike Gubbels (right) asked Dr. Damuth follow-up questions.

In addition to directing the UCARE Program, Dr. Laura Damuth serves as Undergraduate Fellowship Advisor. Recently, Dr. Damuth
presented a workshop for the McNair Junior Scholars entitled, Graduate Fellowships: What They Are and How to Apply. She stressed
that the fellowship application process can be complicated and the criteria are very specific. She advised Scholars to allow themselves
sufficient time to search for the appropriate fellowships, but Dr. Damuth suggests to “always start by contacting the graduate program
itself.”

Dr. Damuth offered this advice for students looking for funding:

1. Contact the graduate program itself to ask about available financial support. Some universities will have a fellowship office that
   can help you identify opportunities for financial support.  For example, the UNL Office of Graduate Studies Set has an extensive
   list of available external fellowships. Check out this list at http://www.unl.edu/gradstudies/current/funding-external.shtml

   Contact the graduate program itself to ask about available financial support. Some universities will have a fellowship office that can help you identify opportunities for financial support.  For example, the UNL Office of Graduate Studies Set has an extensive list of available external fellowships. Check out this list at http://www.unl.edu/gradstudies/current/funding-external.shtml

How to Be a Successful Graduate Student Panel

This spring, McNair Senior Scholars met with a panel comprised of both new and experienced graduate students who offered their advice on how to be a successful graduate student.

Malcolm Tassi, a first-year physics graduate student, told the scholars that “there is no way to prepare for the intensity of graduate school, but the rewards are profound.”  Asked how graduate school is different from undergraduate studies, Tassi said, “Graduate school changes your perspective. It makes you look at things in a different way.” He encouraged scholars to draw from the passions and excitement of fellow graduate students.

Emily Haferbier, a first-year sociology student-and former McNair scholar-said she was most surprised at the amount of work in graduate studies. She advised scholars to “expect much more work than you have as an undergraduate.” She also described how she often felt like an imposter, like she didn’t belong, but she assured scholars that “everyone feels this way at the beginning.”  (Her fellow panelists all agreed.) Emily found a network within the department to support her. She offered one final word of advice, “Don’t get caught up in department politics.”

Jenny Green, a fifth-year doctoral student in statistics, encouraged scholars to look to the advanced graduate students for mentoring.  ”Experienced graduate students,” she said, “are there to support you.  They know the unwritten rules and can be extremely helpful as you navigate your first year.”  She also advised scholars to “take breaks from studies and enjoy time away from school. Don’t be afraid to ask for help. Remain open-minded and seek opportunities that interest you.”

Bill Bauer, an advanced doctoral student in philosophy, advised scholars to keep and maintain a goals matrix, and update it each semester. He also noted that successful graduate students keep a “research and ideas” journal to keep track of ideas that you’d like to further explore.   On the following page, Bill offers his tips for graduate school success.

(from left to right) Malcolm Tassi, Physics; Bill Bauer, Philosophy; Jenny Green, Statistics; and Emily Haferbier Trotter, Sociology.

This spring, McNair Senior Scholars met with a panel comprised of both new and experienced graduate students who offered their advice on how to be a successful graduate student.

Malcolm Tassi, a first-year physics graduate student, told the scholars that “there is no way to prepare for the intensity of graduate school, but the rewards are profound.”  Asked how graduate school is different from undergraduate studies, Tassi said, “Graduate school changes your perspective. It makes you look at things in a different way.” He encouraged scholars to draw from the passions and excitement of fellow graduate students.

Emily Haferbier, a first-year sociology student-and former McNair scholar-said she was most surprised at the amount of work in graduate studies. She advised scholars to “expect much more work than you have as an undergraduate.” She also described how she often felt like an imposter, like she didn’t belong, but she assured scholars that “everyone feels this way at the beginning.”  (Her fellow panelists all agreed.) Emily found a network within the department to support her. She offered one final word of advice, “Don’t get caught up in department politics.”