blog posts

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  Day in the Life: Beth Ann Williams

  Mar 20, 2017 3:30 pm307 views

  Beth Ann Williams is a fourth year African History graduate student. She is currently living near Arusha, Tanzania conducting research for her (tentatively titled) dissertation: Women We Must Learn: Christianity and Gender Change in Post-Independence East Africa. Take a look at what a typical "Day in the Life" looks like for Beth Ann this year.

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  Day in the Life: Donzell Lampkins

  Nov 25, 2015 9:30 am780 views

  In this new series, Illinois graduate students share a look at a more-or-less typical day in their lives in their own words. Our first "Day in the Life" author is Donzell Lampkins, a 1st year graduate student pursuing a Master of Social Work with a concentration in Healthcare. In addition to his coursework, Donzell works as a graduate assistant for the school of social work and as a graduate mentor for the College of ACES. He also works as a research Assistant for Dr. Venera Bekteshi (Assitant Professor, School of Social Work) whose research investigates Breast-cancer related health (cancer) disparities and immigrant populations, integration challenges, and immigrant women.

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  Day in the Life: Illinois Summer Research Symposium

  Jul 29, 2019 4:00 pm294 views

  Anna Flood is an incoming graduate student in the Department of English. This summer she participated in the Summer Predoctoral Institute and conducted independent research with Dr. Candice Jenkins as her mentor. Her summer work revolved around speculative fictions of slavery, particularly the novel "Kindred "by Octavia Butler. Anna and 38 other SPI fellows, as well as undergraduates from a variety of programs,  had the opportunity to present at the Illinois Summer Research Symposium. In this post, see a “Day in the Life” during the second day of ISRS, when the roundtables and oral presentations take place.

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  Day in the Life: Liselle Milazzo

  Aug 6, 2018 10:30 am747 views

  My name is Liselle and I am a second year PhD student in the Department of Recreation, Sport, and Tourism. My research interest is on film-tourism, specifically looking at sites of imagination (think Harry Potter World and Hogwarts!), in order to investigate culture, commodification, and meaning. This summer, I'm preparing for prelims and wrestling with big ideas related to theory and methodology for my work. It feels like everday I read something inspiring and thought-provoking!  In my department, the Prelim exam takes place before you can begin work on your dissertation proposal. I’m planning to take my prelim exam this fall, so I’m dedicating my summer to preparing for the exam. Here’s a look at a pretty typical day of prelim prep for this social sciences PhD student!

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  Day in the Life: Living and Researching in Barcelona, Spain

  Feb 11, 2016 3:30 pm1028 views

  Hello again from Barcelona! Since I last wrote, I’ve settled into my life as a Fulbright Research Fellow conducting research in the Chemical Engineering Department of the University of Barcelona. The work on my project is going well and overall my experience so far in Barcelona has been a rewarding one, both on an academic and personal level.

  As you might expect, my life here is quite different from what it was living in Champaign, but I have been enjoying the change and have met so many kind and supportive people in the process. I’d like to show you what a typical work day in Barcelona is like for me.

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  Day in the Life: Monica Chinea Diliz

  Feb 6, 2017 11:30 am455 views

  Hi, my name is Monica and I am a third year PhD student in the School of Molecular and Cellular Biology. My research focus is molecular neuroscience and in particular my lab studies the RNA binding proteins involved in Fragile X Syndrome, the leading cause of inherited cognitive impairment.

  As a graduate student doing research in a laboratory, most days there is an ebb and flow that is primarily dictated by the experiments that are taking place. The stereotype of a scientist hunched over test tubes 24 hours a day does not represent the many ways that science actually unfolds. One of the most valuable things that I have learned thus far in my graduate career is that the time I spend thinking about science is nearly as critical as how much time I am putting in at the bench. It is also very important to cultivate habits that contribute to overall wellbeing outside of the lab.

  This is my first semester without taking any classes, which has freed up more time to focus on my research. Here is what a recent Monday looked like.