Engaging Students: How do I engage students in graduate studies?
One thing that distinguishes the graduate student experience from the undergraduate student experience is the departmental nature of graduate study which means that opportunities to improve graduate student engagement occur mostly within the graduate student’s home department. Studies conducted on graduate student engagement and satisfaction at the U of T and elsewhere tell us that though graduate students are very satisfied with the academic quality of their programs, they are less satisfied with the co-curricular aspects of their programs (including opportunities for professionalization in their field), with the resources available to them, and with the lack of interaction with other disciplines. In general, what graduate students say they want more of in their graduate experience is community: opportunities to develop relationships with faculty and students in their department, nationally and internationally in their field, and across disciplines. Several studies have indicated the
