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  • Let's Finish Strong!

    Let's Finish Strong!

    Apr 18, 2024 11:15 am

    Emily Wuchner shares tips and resources for decreasing stress and making the most out of the end of the semester. 

  • Lights on a wall read "work and play."

    Maximize Your Sleep, Rest, and Work

    Oct 22, 2019 10:30 pm

    In our first post on sustainability and productivity, Daniel Wong outlined three principles for a sustainable and productive life and introduced how they can apply to each of three key areas of your life. In this post, we’ll explore some actionable ways that you can implement these principles in the areas of sleep, rest, and work.

  • Graduate College Finals Playlist

    Get in the Groove with our Spring '24 Finals Playlist

    Apr 16, 2024 11:00 am

    Every semester the Graduate College assembles a Finals Study Playlist to keep you rocking during your study sessions. For this installment, we're featuring a guest contributor: John Moist, Communications Specialist at the University of Illinois Graduate College.

  • Fellowship Creates Space for Community-Centered Work

    Feb 13, 2023 2:00 pm

    Career exploration is time-consuming. For Heather Ennis, this period of discernment has been a slow, necessary evolution—one that has provided an opportunity for self-reflection about her graduate education in the humanities.

  • A student stands while having a conversation.

    Negotiating the Ups and Downs of Graduate School with Your Mentor

    Nov 7, 2023 12:45 pm

    Communicating openly with your mentor network can be a challenge. There’s no ready-made script for having effective conversations with a mentor, but building communications within a network of mentors allows you to advocate for yourself, source helpful feedback, and ask for the mentoring you need.

  • Finals playlist cover image

    We've Got a New Study Playlist!

    Dec 5, 2023 3:45 pm

    Kamau Grantham curates this year's finals study playlist to keep you grooving.

  • A business card sits on a table. Text reads: Ask Me Anything.

    Ask the Grad College: On Reading Teaching Evaluations

    Dec 10, 2023 9:00 am

    The last time I read my teaching evaluations, I dealt with some complex emotions. Some of the feedback felt constructive, but a lot of it felt mean. How do I sift through the comments and find what's helpful within them?

  • A picture of Byron Juma, sitting at a picnic table.

    One Story: Byron Juma, PhD Student in Recreation, Sport & Tourism

    Jan 29, 2024 9:15 am

    Originally from Kenya, Byron has travelled the world in the pursuit of higher education. 

  • A student having a conversation through a computer.

    Managing Stress in a Job Search

    Oct 3, 2023 11:00 am

    You came to grad school seeking knowledge and skills that would prepare you for a meaningful career. Through hard work you’ve developed expertise in your field. While you can’t avoid the stress of a job search, you can make a plan to deal with it.

  • A photograph of Emma Lundin.

    Exploring Multispecies Relationships by Walking 'with' the Forest in Sri Lanka

    Dec 8, 2023 3:45 pm

    Emma Lundin, a U. of I. doctoral student in tourism, spent two months in a rainforest reserve in Sri Lanka shadowing forest guides. Lundin sought to understand how the guides interact with other-than-humans to create tourism experiences.

  • A business card sits on a table. "Ask me anything" is written on the card.

    Ask the Grad College: On Changing Career Plans in Graduate School

    Jan 20, 2024 8:00 am

    I started my program thinking I wanted to go into academia, but I feel less and less interested in an academic job. I’m committed to finishing, but I don’t know what kinds of jobs I should look for. What do I do? 

  • AI @ Illinois

    Making AI Legible with Clara Belitz and Ali Zaidi

    Mar 5, 2024 1:00 pm

    Bri Lafond (Writing Studies doctoral candidate and Graduate College Career Exploration Fellow) sits down with Clara Belitz (School of Information Sciences) and Ali Zaidi (Computer Science) for a dynamic conversation about how generative AI has the potential to affect a lot of different aspects of our day-to-day lives.

  • Staying organized on the job market

    Staying Organized During a Job Search

    Mar 26, 2019 10:15 pm

    In his newest article on Inside Higher Education, Director of Career Services, Derek Attig, gives his tips for staying organized on the job search. 

  • A business card sits on a table. "Ask me anything" is written on the card.

    Ask the Grad College: On Taking Time off from a Busy Schedule

    Jan 15, 2024 9:15 am

    I haven’t seen my parents in two years, and I would like to plan a trip home. I have an RA in a lab with year-round research. How do I approach taking time off for this trip?

  • New Year, New You: Taking a Holistic Approach to the Academic Year

    New Year, New You: Taking a Holistic Approach to the Academic Year

    Jan 16, 2024 1:00 pm

    New Year’s resolutions always seem out of place on an academic calendar. January is more of a pause, not the fresh start we see advertised in every grocery store checkout. Andrea Bridges is here to convince you that now is the perfect time to do some self-reflection.

  • Teaching and Performing to Find Her Voice

    Apr 16, 2019 9:15 pm

    The Krannert Center for the Performing Arts is a hub for exquisite music, cultural performances, ballet performances, theater, opera and lively events. From performances by musical virtuosos, symphony orchestras, ensemble groups to events like PechaKucha Night and Noche de Baila- Krannert is bustling with performers and audience goers year-round! The Lyric Theater at Krannert brings colorful and vibrant pieces of opera from throughout the ages alive to the audience!

  • A card sits on a table. The card reads "Ask Me Anything"

    Ask the Grad College: How Much Time is Enough Time?

    Feb 28, 2024 8:30 am

    I spent about 2 hours completing my first homework assignment. After I turned it in, I learned that my friend spent 6 hours on the assignment. Should I be spending more time on each assignment?   



  • A mentor converses with a graduate student in the lab.

    Mentorship Is Intentional: Establishing a Mentor-Mentee Relationship in Graduate School

    Oct 26, 2023 12:30 pm

    Claire Baytas (PhD, ’23; comparative literature) is back with a second post in our mentoring series that focuses on the processes of choosing a mentor, agreeing on mutual expectations, and maintaining productive lines of communication.

  • Navigating Job Offers

    Navigating the Surprising Stress of a Job Offer

    Feb 13, 2020 9:30 am

    Looking for a job can be pretty terrible, and it’s often a long slog. Amid that stretched-out stress, it’s easy to start thinking of a job offer as a kind of holy grail, a singular solution to all your problems. But what I see over and over again, among the hundreds of graduate students I advise each year, is that the job offer is often its own source of emotional turmoil. A sudden offer, or the sense that one might be incoming, can prompt as much panic as delight.

  • Toyosi Tejumade-Morgan, photographed against a black background.

    HRI Interseminars Spotlight: Toyosi Tejumade-Morgan

    Nov 9, 2022 8:00 am

    Toyosi Tejumade-Morgan (Theatre) shares her experiences as a member of the 2022–2023 graduate cohort for “Imagining Otherwise: Speculation in the Americas,” the inaugural Interseminars initiative funded by the Mellon Foundation. 

  • AI @ Illinois Graphic

    AI @ Illinois: Complex Conversations Around Generative AI

    Oct 6, 2023 12:00 pm

    The proliferation of generative AI products has led to a wide variety of opinions about the efficacy, ethicality, and potential impact of AI on different dimensions of our lives. We asked Illinois graduate students for their thoughts.

  • On the Job Hunt: How to Keep Your Options Open

    Jun 30, 2020 7:15 pm

    In the coming months, facing uncertainty head-on and doing what you can to prepare for multiple possible job outcomes is the best thing you can do for your future self, advises Derek Attig.

  • Teachers make the world a better place

    Resilient and Ready to Lead, Teachers Make the World a Better Place

    Apr 20, 2020 1:15 pm

    In a time of uncertainty, as instruction and learning transition to digital technologies, College of Education students have an important message to share.

  • Marrying Math and Art through Outreach

    Apr 7, 2016 10:15 am

    When Michelle Delcourt was presented with the choice between math or art summer programs in high school, she knew that by choosing mathematics, she’d never leave art far behind. “For me, math is a very creative process,” she said. “Math and art are very similar, the process of doing research in doing mathematics is similar to the way that I approach making a painting or seeing a piece of artwork.”

    Now, the 5th year PhD candidate and winner of this year’s Graduate Student Leadership Award uses her love of math and art to engage young girls and underrepresented minority students in math through community outreach programs. She hopes that her approach could help attract students who might not otherwise choose mathematics.

  • Podcast: Your Portfolio Will Never Be Perfect or Done

    Feb 25, 2021 4:45 pm

    Landscape designer Saloni Chawla (MLA '18) sits down to talk with us about how she landed her dream job and why she considers it a perfect match.

  • Graduate students stand with their mentor during the doctoral hooding.

    What is a Mentor? Reflections on the Mentor-Mentee Relationship in Graduate School

    Sep 29, 2023 9:15 am

    Claire Baytas (PhD, ’23; comparative literature) reflects on lessons she learned about the mentoring process during her time in graduate school: from thinking about the nature of a mentor in the context of grad school to busting the myth of the "super mentor." 

  • Creating Connections with Advice from the Surgeon General

    Jul 20, 2023 1:15 pm

    Andrea Bridges shares tips for fostering connection in our lives.

  • Matthew Klopfenstein at the newly-opened Zariad’e Park, with the Kremlin in the background

    Meet Our Fellows: Matthew Klopfenstein, Fulbright Fellow in Moscow

    Apr 23, 2018 12:45 am

    Matthew Klopfenstein has spend the last seven months deep in the world of Russian archives exploring how the deaths of female pop stars in the early 1900s entered the public realm and became national phenomena. Read about Matthew's day to day life as a Fulbright Fellow living in Moscow, Russia.

  • Punit Singhvi's Asphalt Concrete Brownie with Hot Fudge Sauce

    Nov 1, 2020 5:00 pm

    Doctoral student Punit Singhvi reads aloud his award-winning 2020 Image of Research entry and shares his recipe for success.

  • A person sits in their home and works on a laptop and takes notes.

    3 Quick Everyday Tips for Surviving & Thriving on Zoom

    May 7, 2021 5:30 pm

    Zoom fatigue is real. We share a few quick tips for before, during, and after online meetings that you can do to avoid burnout.

  • Jay Lopez

    Get to Know Recreation, Sport & Tourism Online Master’s Student, Jay Lopez

    Sep 10, 2021 5:00 pm

    Meet Jay Lopez, an online master’s student in Recreation, Sport & Tourism. Jay lives and works in Long Beach, California, with his wife, Emily, and their two young children.

  • Joe Coyle

    Ethnography: Anthropological Research on Queer Pentecostalism in Brazil

    Jan 26, 2022 4:30 am

    "I think of anthropological method as the art of being in relation with others, and ethnographic description as the art of writing those relations. It’s a difficult art, stepping into other people’s lives and describing the relations you think you see."

  • Katie Frye

    One Story Video: Get to Know Microbiology Ph.D. Student, Katie Frye

    Sep 10, 2021 5:00 pm

    Meet Katie Frye a Ph.D. student in Microbiology and a COVID-19 SHIELD: Target, Test, Tell team member.

  • A woman dancing between trees.

    Development is a Dance: Tips for a Non-Linear Journey

    Jun 1, 2022 8:30 am

    "A baseball scout once told me, 'Development is a dance.' He was talking about how young baseball players don’t improve on a linear path. Some take steps forward and then back, or laterally, before figuring it out."

  • GYSS attendees stand beside an outdoor installation.

    Illinois Graduate Students Share Experiences from the Global Young Scientists Summit

    May 19, 2023 2:00 pm

    Ten graduate students from the University of Illinois traveled to Singapore for the Global Young Scientists Summit. We chatted with them about their experiences—and why others should consider attending. 

  • Person sitting in a classroom with a laptop, wearing a mask and gesturing with hands.

    Starting a PhD During a Pandemic

    Feb 23, 2021 4:45 pm

    Starting grad school in the middle of a pandemic has not been easy, but the ISE Department has been incredibly supportive! 

  • Illustration of a woman with a pencil, guitar, mountains and other thoughts above her head.

    Podcast: The Fine Art of Balance

    Jun 17, 2021 4:00 pm

    Theatre doctoral student Vincent Carlson performs "You and Your Work," a poem he wrote inspired by boundary setting and conflicting ideas about work ethic. 

  • Teaching (and Learning) Beyond the Classroom

    Sep 21, 2015 11:45 am

    For many Illinois graduate students, the classroom is just one avenue for teaching and learning. We asked three graduate students to reflect on their experiences working with programs that served middle school, high school, and incoming graduate students. Although their research interests and programs differ, they shared a common outcome. Through mentoring, they’d learned as much as they taught.  They shared their thoughts with Grad Life.

  • Irisbel Guzman Sanchez

    Where Are They Now?: Irisbel Guzman Sanchez

    Oct 1, 2018 10:30 am

    Irisbel Guzman Sanchez graduated from the University of Illinois in 2015 with a PhD in Biochemistry. After graduation, she became a Presidential Management Fellow which led to a full-time position in Health Informatics for the United States Department of Veteran’s Affairs (VA). She is currently a Health Science Specialist for the VA New England Healthcare System, where she analyzes data and develops new tools for decision-makers to better understand operational healthcare databases and analyses.

  • Photo by Rakicevic Nenad from Pexels

    "Shoot for the Moon" and Other Lessons I Learned from My PhD

    Oct 19, 2020 12:30 pm

    Chelsea Yu, PhD candidate in Finance, has learned a lot about herself and being productive through the process of figuring out the best motivational strategies to help support her goals as a PhD student. In this piece, originally published on her LinkedIn page, she explores 9 lessons she's learned during her PhD and how they helped her navigate her way through to candidacy.

  • Where Are They Now? Daniel Harnos

    Feb 11, 2019 12:30 pm

    A close call with a tropical cyclone as a child led Daniel Harnos to become fascinated with the weather. This led him to earn degrees in Atmospheric Sciences from the University of Illinois in 2010 (MS) and 2014 (PhD). Now, he works as Meteorologist at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)'s Climate Prediction Center where he helps others prepare for weather and climate changes by delivering real-time meteorological information and forecasts.

  • Cartoons of adults in a variety of fun activities.

    Podcast: Bringing Childlike Approaches to Self-Care

    Jun 17, 2021 3:00 pm

    Abby shares some techniques to lower stress in elementary school students, such as a 5-4-3-2-1 mapping exercise, that might also work for grad students. 

  • A set of concentric rings inside of a circle. The rings are labeled: Macrosystem, Exosystem, Mesosystem, Microsystem, Self.

    Lessons Learned from a PhD Student who Studies PhD Students’ Stress and Coping

    Dec 7, 2023 12:00 pm

    Joe Mirabelli has spent years studying graduate students' experiences with stress. Now he's sharing tips for managing the feelings and stressors of graduate school.

  • Using Job Ads for Career Exploration

    Jul 31, 2018 12:00 pm

    Reviewing advertisements of all sorts can help you identify appealing job types and sectors that you may never even have heard of, advises Derek Attig in this post originally published on Inside Higher Ed.

  • GradLIFE: AI @ Illinois

    AI @ Illinois: How Are Illinois Graduate Students Using Generative AI?

    Oct 5, 2023 9:00 am

    Generative AI is here, and it's making waves. We asked grad students at Illinois about how they're using AI in their everyday lives and work. This is what they told us.

  • Podcast: A Research Pivot, One Year Later

    Mar 15, 2021 3:00 pm

    It has been a year of COVID. Grad student podcasters share their funniest Zoom stories and Burning Man expert Caitlin Brooks shares insights on the power of community in times of isolation.

  • Lexi Shurilla

    Where Are They Now?: Lexi Shurilla

    Aug 20, 2018 1:30 pm

    Lexi Shurilla graduated from the University of Illinois in 2015 with an M.S. in Recreation, Sport, and Tourism with a Sport Management focus. She currently works for AmPride Communications, Inc. as the Editor-in-Chief of Community Concierge Magazine (CCM), a quarterly magazine featuring the best of the Champaign-Urbana community. She is responsible for the content and quality of CCM by ensuring stories are accurate, engaging and informative.

  • Bringing the Magic of Iranian Music to the Heartland

    Apr 29, 2019 11:45 am

    The University of Illinois, Urbana Champaign is home to a highly diverse student body and their respective student associations, which aim to cultivate and share with each other their music, food, art and traditions.

    In this piece, we feature an event organized by the Iranian Cultural Association (ICA) on our campus during the Spring 2019 semester. ICE hosted Kayhan Kalhor, a globally recognized musician from Iran known for his transcendental music and for his ensemble collaborations with other musicians across the globe. Kalhor is known to play several instruments in particular the Kamancheh and the Setar. This event was made possible by the ICA along with support from Center for South Asian & Middle Eastern Studies and several other units on campus. 

  • Courtney Richardson's Transformation of Historical Information

    Nov 1, 2020 5:45 pm

    Doctoral student Courtney Richardson reads aloud her award-winning 2020 Image of Research entry and shares how she created it.

  • Karen Barton

    Where Are They Now?: Karen Barton

    Dec 17, 2018 11:30 am

    Karen Barton graduated from the University of Illinois in 2013 with an M.S. in Library and Information Science and certificates in Community Informatics and Youth Services. She currently works at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio (UT Health San Antonio), where she is the Liaison to the School of Health Professions and Community Engagement Librarian. Karen is the single point of contact for library services for students, faculty, and staff for one of five schools within the institution and works on various campus and community engagement initiatives to promote library resources and services in support of education, research, and community health.