Graduate Student Handbook - UTA
Graduate Student HandbookMaster of ScienceandDoctor of PhilosophyPrograms in ChemistryDepartment of Chemistry and BiochemistryThe University of Texas at ArlingtonAcademic Year 2018/20191
WELCOME!The faculty, staff, and students of the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at TheUniversity of Texas Arlington (UTA) are pleased you have decided to pursue your master’sor doctoral degree with us. This handbook is designed to help you get acquainted easilyand efficiently with the workings of our department and degree program. The informationdocumented here will let you know what needs to be done, where you need to go, and whocan help you with problems that might arise. This handbook, combined with the UTAStudent Handbook and the Graduate Catalog, will serve as a source of information youwill need to succeed in our graduate program at UTA.Names you Should Know:Department ChairmanDr. Fred MacDonnell302 Chemistry Research Building (CRB)The chairman is responsible for all decisions concerning the operations of thedepartment, including the funding of teaching and research assistantships, as well asscholarships.Graduate AdvisorDr. Frank Foss202 Chemistry Research Building (CRB)Most of the decisions you make concerning your academic program will be made with theassistance of the Graduate Advisor. This includes determining your curriculum,registering, adding and dropping courses, plus completing the necessary paperwork asyou pursue your degree. The Graduate Advisor is your first point-of-contact for all of thesematters.Graduate Program CoordinatorMs. Stephanie Henry303A Science Hall (SH)The Graduate Program Coordinator is available to help you with matters of the GraduateSchool, including progression through the Chemistry Graduate Program, as well as anyother University issues you may have. All Graduate School and departmentalforms, listed at the end of this handbook, must be submitted to the GraduateProgram Coordinator. Do not submit forms directly to the Graduate School.Stephanie is also the travel coordinator. She is available to help you with Departmentaltravel.Committee on Graduate StudiesDr. Peter Kroll, Chair353 Chemistry Physics Building (CPB)The Committee on Graduate Studies handles the appointment of students’Dissertation/Thesis Committee and its members, student petitions, and periodicallyreviews the progress of all students. The committee also makes major decisionsconcerning the requirements of the graduate program found in this document and theGraduate Catalog.2
Department Staff:The staff is available to answer many of your questions and help you in mattersconcerning the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry and the University’soperations. They are critical in the function of the department and experienced in findingsolutions to questions that may not be answered by the Graduate Handbook. Themembers of the office staff include Debbie Cooke, Natalie Croy, Jill Howard, and TamikaThompson.Administrative Assistant IIMs. Debbie Cooke130 Chemistry Physics Building (CPB)The Administrative Assistant in the Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry handle allaspects of your pay including appointments, tuition adjustments, and letters ofemployment. The AA’s also make sure that all paperwork for your hiring file is completeincluding copies of personal paperwork such as your passport, I-9, and for some, a copyof your comptroller ID number and your new social security number.Support Specialist IMs. Jill Howard130 Chemistry Physics Building (CPB)The Support Specialist- in the Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry handles severalthings that are important to GRAs/GTAs. She will contact you with regards to examproctoring, which is part of the duties associated with being a GTA, and will assign you toseminar duty. You may, from time to time, need help with sending faxes, making copiesor you may have a general question about the department and Jill is the one to ask forassistance. She will also assist you with getting keys and Mav access to rooms in ourdepartment.AccountantsMs. Tamika Thompson223 Chemistry Research Building (CRB)Ms. Natalie Croy223 Chemistry Research Building (CRB)The accountants ensure that all details related to research and teaching accounts arehandled properly and in accordance with University Policies. They also aid researchers inprocuring materials and equipment.Stockroom and PurchasingMs. Beth Klimek, Assistant Supervisor110 Chemistry Physics Building (CPB)The stockroom controls all chemicals and equipment received for teaching and research.3
Undergraduate Lab CoordinatorsDr. Bill Cleaver217 Chemistry Physics Building (CPB)Dr. Cynthia Griffith114 Chemistry Physics Building (CPB)The Undergraduate Lab Coordinators work with faculty and teaching assistants tofacilitate the teaching of undergraduate laboratories. They train, supervise, and evaluateteaching assistants, develop lab curriculum, and ensure that teaching labs are wellequipped. They are also responsible for the Prep Room, CPB 108.4
I.HOW TO GET STARTED IN THE DEPARTMENT:A. HR Orientationi. International Students1. All international students are required to attend theInternational Student Orientation. This orientation session ismandatory and you will not be able to attend an advisingsession, enroll in classes, or get paid unless you attend. Allstudents who will be paid in any form must have a socialsecurity number. International students will have to attendthe orientation session and then apply for a social securitycard immediately. New international students: please referto Appendix 2 at the back of this handbook titled “Steps foran International Employee on F1 or J1 Status Applying fora Social Security Number” for directions on how to completethis process. The Office for International Education islocated in the Swift Center; 1022 UTA Boulevard, Room 113.The phone number is 817-272-2355. Email:international@uta.edu2. You are also required to attend a new employee orientationsession for all new employees at the Human ResourcesOffice; 1225 W. Mitchell Street, Room 212. The phonenumber is 817-272-5554. You will need to bring your Visa,Social Security Card (if applicable), and appointment letter.This session is mandatory and you will not be paid until youattend. In order to schedule your time, you will need toallocate about two hours for this orientation.3. All international students, whose native language is notEnglish and who are the recipients of a Graduate TeachingAssistantship, are required by the state to meet Englishproficiency requirements within their first academicsemester. This is mandatory. For more information pleasesee First Year Program Requirements beginning on page 10of this document.ii. U.S. Students1. Students who are US citizens, Permanent Residents, orResident Aliens must also required to attend an orientationsession for all new employees at the Human ResourcesOffice; 1225 W. Mitchell Street, Room 212. The phonenumber is 817-272-5554. You will need to bring both yourSocial Security Card and either a Texas Driver’s License orsome other form of valid identification to the session alongwith your appointment letter. This session is mandatory andyou will not be paid unless you attend. In order to schedule5
your time, you will need to allocate about two hours for thisorientation.iii. Payroll and Human Resources1. The Human Resources Office provides the faculty, staff, andstudents with assistance in the areas of policies, procedures,benefits, compensation, and employment training anddevelopment. They provide new employee orientation fornew employees, located at 1225 W. Mitchell Street in theWetsel Building Room 212. The Payroll Services Departmentis also located in the Wetsel Building in Room 207.B. MavExpress Cardi. During registration you will be directed to the MavExpress Office,which is located at the north end of the University Center’s mainlevel, where your picture will be taken and a University ID card willbe issued. This card will allow you access to the chemistry buildingsas well as to various campus events, the library, recreational sportsfacilities and the Health Center. In addition, it serves as a source ofidentification to verify that you are a UTA student, and it may allowyou to receive discounts from several vendors around the campus.C. Building Keysi. Jill Howard in CPB, Room 130, will arrange for keys and access tothe appropriate buildings. All keys must be picked up from KeyControl Services located in the Wetsel Building, suite 100.D. Desksi. All new students will initially be given desks and will move intoresearch space when they choose an advisor.E. Parking Passi. If you plan to park at UTA, then you will need to purchase a parkingpass from the Parking Office, suite 112, located next to Key ControlServices in the Wetsel Building. Busses, shuttles, and rideshareservices operate in and around UTA, and offer an alternative toparking on campus. Check UTA Parking and Transportation, as wellas the City of Arlington Transportation for current options.F. Mailboxesi. Student mailboxes are located in Room 130, CPB. You must checkyour box daily for messages, particularly in your first few weekshere, since many things are happening and most of them are very6
important. The room is locked after hours, so you may feel fairlysecure about mail in these boxes.G. Email Accountsi. Your NetID and email account are automatically created at thebeginning of your first academic semester.1. Your NetID is a campus computer account. This account isyour key to accessing many computing resources on campusand off, such as UTA domain login and network disk space(J: drive, e-mail, Internet connections, and web page space).a. To activate NetID, manage your NetID identificationquestions, review your pin number, and/or viewinformation about your accounts, etc. by going tofollowing link for e/b. If you run into difficulty then go to the CentralLibrary’s OIT (Office of Information Technology)Help Desk2. Your email account is where you receive officialcommunications from the department, the faculty, and fromother students.a. To find out about the student MavMail system and tolearn how to set up your new email account please goto the following . Please note that it is a requirement for all graduatestudents employed on an assistantship with theChemistry Department to check their UTA email atleast once a day. There are times when we will needyour assistance (proctoring, grading, etc) and willnotify you via email. Claiming that you did not checkyour email is not an acceptable excuse for missingsuch assignments! All official communication betweenthe Chemistry Department and the graduate studentsoccurs via e-mail. Most of the time graduate studentswill also be issued a hard copy of the communicationwhich is placed in their departmental mailbox.7
II.UNIVERSITY FACILITIESA campus map can be found in the University Graduate Catalog. Some of thefacilities with which you will have the most contact are listed below. Aninteractive map can be found here: www.uta.ed/maps/A. Office of Research and Graduate Studiesi. Can answer questions and supply the necessary forms that are notavailable in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry office.The Office of Graduate Studies is located in Room 348 Davis Hall,817-272-5164.B. Office of Records and Registrationi. Check with this office for tuition payment and due dates. The Officeof Records and Registration (Registrar’s Office) is located in Room129 Davis Hall, 817-272-3372.C. Librariesi. The University has several libraries, including the Central Library,the Science and Engineering Library (SEL) and the Architectureand Fine Arts Library. A full description of the library system isgiven in the Graduate Catalog. Most of the holdings of interest tothe Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry are located in theScience and Engineering Library, located in the basement ofNedderman Hall, while some of the older holdings are archived inthe Central Library. Most journals can now be accessedelectronically from computers either on or off-campus. To use thiselectronic access, a UTA computer account is necessary.D. Health Centeri. The UT Arlington Health Services is available to meet some of yourmedical needs. It is located directly east of the Chemistry PhysicsBuilding in the Heath Center Building. The Graduate Catalogcontains a full description of the services offered by the healthcenter. The Health Services website also contains the aboveinformation along with their operating hours and other contactinformation, and it can be found at:http://www.uta.edu/healthservices/E. University Centeri. The University Center has numerous facilities and offices of interestto all students. University Center houses 13 private dining/meetingrooms, several lounges, two ballrooms, two huge food service areas,a Starbucks coffee shop, a post office, a general store, an art gallery,and much more. The center is also home for 160 campus studentorganizations, Student Congress, and the Student Activities Board.8
The Housing Office and MavExpress Office are also located in theUniversity Center.9
III.REQUIREMENTS OF THE PROGRAMAs in any doctoral program, you will be required to accomplish a number of tasksbefore being awarded your degree. In this section, the entire process will beoutlined step by step. Please read this carefully and refer to it often. It is yourresponsibility to know and follow the deadlines stipulated here.A. The First Yeari. International Students1. International Student Orientation must be attended uponarrival at UT Arlington before you may meet with theGraduate Advisor. Once this is complete you may go to nextstep.ii. All New Graduate Students1. A Graduate Advisor meeting will be scheduled for the initialadvising session before you may register for classes. You willbe notified (by email) before the start of each semester of theadvising schedule. Make sure you check your UTA emailaddress regularly.2. Note: Registration requires seeing the Graduate Advisor andfilling out a Registration Advising Form. Your initial advisingsession will consist of a meeting with the Graduate Advisor,chairman of the department, chairman of the Committee onGraduate Studies, and other faculty representatives. Theadvising form complements the degree timeline (seeAppendix) which will give you a good idea of the expectedprogression of events. The deadlines for the completion ofcertain important requirements, such as the proposaldefense, will be set at the advising session and are discussedin detail later in this handbook. These deadlines cannot bechanged except by petition directly to the Committee onGraduate Studies Chairman. If you have graduate coursework from another University, the Graduate Advisor, withthe consent of the chairman of the Committee on GraduateStudies, is empowered to waive course requirements if thestudent can clearly demonstrate previous course work whichis equivalent to that offered at UTA. This is handled on acase-by-case basis at the time of your initial advisement.iii. English Proficiency1. If you are an International student whose native language isnot English and who is a recipient of financial support in theform of a Graduate Teaching Assistantship (GTA) and/or aSTEM Fellowship, it is mandatory that you meet Englishproficiency requirements within the student’s first academic10
2.3.4.5.semester. For details on the requirement and the deadlinesplease visit the UTA graduate catalog gradcatalog.php)The consequence of not meeting this deadline is that NoSTEM Fellowship will be considered after this deadline.To accomplish this, students must satisfy one of thefollowing:a. Achieve a score of at least 23 on the TOEFL IBTspeaking subtest within your first semester.b. Achieve a score of at least 7 on the speaking section ofthe IELTS within your first semester.c. Take and pass the UTA English Language Institute’sDevelopmental English Course. Contact the EnglishLanguage Institute at 817.272.2730 for details,including the current class schedule and charges. Nodepartment funding will be used to cover the expenseof this course.Students who have not satisfied this requirement beforearriving on campus must take either the TOEFL IBT, or theIELTS at a local testing center and achieve the requiredminimum score. Current information about TOEFL IBT testdates, locations, and registration procedures are publishedby ETS at http://www.ets.org/ Current information aboutIELTS test dates, locations, and registration procedures arepublished by IELTS at http://www.ielts.org/ Official testscore reports for the Test of English as a Foreign Language(TOEFL) are issued by the Educational Testing Service (ETS)and sent by ETS directly to the Graduate School. Official testscores for the International English Language TestingSystem (IELTS) are reported on an IELTS issued Test ReportForm (TRF) and sent directly to the Graduate School fromIELTS.Students who do not achieve scores on the TOEFL IBT, orIELTS high enough to satisfy the English proficiencyrequirements for graduate teaching assistants must enroll inthe Developmental English Program and be certified forEnglish proficiency. This 10-week program offered by the UTArlington English Language Institute emphasizes accentreduction and oral presentation skills needed by teachingassistants. Contact the English Language Institute at817.272.2730 or visit their Web site at http://iep.uta.edu fordetails, including current class schedule and charges.11
Students may not be eligible for STEM funding if Englishproficiency requirements are not met.iv. Research Advisor1. All new graduate students must select a research advisorduring the first semester. Students need to have a discussionwith at least three faculty members, before they make agroup selection. The faculty will have to sign off on a signingsheet that the student needs to submit together with hisselection/choice to graduate studies committee chair, Dr.Kroll, by end of the first semester. The faculty will review thechoices and then make the decision based on your top threechoices.2. Note: You are strongly encouraged to talk to a large numberof faculty members about potential research projects. This isperhaps the most important decision you will make duringyour stay at UTA, and it should be made carefully. To helpyou with this decision, each fall the department will offerCHEM 6100, a series of faculty seminars. Attendance atthese seminars, as well as the regular Friday afternoondepartmental seminars, is mandatory. You must beginresearch no later than the start of your second semester here.This is usually the spring semester and may only meanreading the relevant literature and planning your upcomingresearch activities. However, you must select a researchadvisor by the end of the first semester of your first year atUTA.v. Departmental Seminars1. Attendance at regular Friday afternoon departmentalseminars as well as the series of faculty seminars ismandatory. You are assigned seminar duty when takingCHEM 6100, which all graduate students are required totake twice during their studies in the graduate program.These duties will be explained to you as they arise.vi. Academic Work1. Your first year will be devoted primarily to course work. Thedetails of the course offerings are listed in the GraduateCatalog, and the requirements that pertain to you are thoselisted in the catalog that is current at the time you enter theUniversity. It is important to save this catalog. Unless youhave course deficiencies to be made up, you will take mainly"core" courses in the first year. The Office of Research and12
Graduate Studies requires that you maintain a 3.0 gradepoint average (GPA) in all course work taken as a graduatestudent and, in addition, the Department of Chemistry andBiochemistry requires
matters. Graduate Program Coordinator Ms. Stephanie Henry 303A Science Hall (SH) The Graduate Program Coordinator is available to help you with matters of the Graduate School, including progression through the Chemistry Graduate Program, as well as any other University
A through M me1@mae.uta.edu N through Z me2@mae.uta.edu AE students:students: A through Z ae@mae.uta.edu. Checklist 1. Carefully review your filled form. 2. Send it to the correct e‐mail else it will not be processed. 3. Give us 2 business days to process the form. 4. In case you are not able to regitister bdbeyond 2 days after subiibmission .
UTA's (Undergraduate Teaching Assistants) will aid the professor during labs and lectures and will also likely lead a lab. UTA's are expected to hold meeting hours. A UTA can not grade or administer exams. To be eligible for a UTA position, you must have previously been an LA. The maximum time commitment for a UTA is 10 hours a week.
The University of Texas at Arlington (UTA) processes payroll using PeopleSoft's Human Capital Management System. Total UTA salaries and wages were 296,274,922 in Fiscal Year 2019. Coordination between the following is critical to help ensure accurate and timely payroll processing. Payroll Services - Payroll Services is part of UTA's Division of
POLiCY FORm SERiES CF-960201-UTA, CF-940101-UTA & CF-940101-UTA wiTh CF-940101-UTA-BiA DesCription: A lump sum benefit cancer policy payable on first diagnosis of internal cancer or malignant melanoma. Benefit amounts are state specific
Adhere to the UTA Agreement and UTA Program. Must return the utility tunnel key and UTA Map upon the agreed time. Disseminate all UTA Program information to utility tunnel entrants and assure compliance. Account for all utility tunnel ent
UTA Santa Fe), and the UTA Research Institute (UTARI) unless otherwise noted . The Report discloses crime statistics for Clery crimes. 2. occurring in UTA’s Clery geography. 3. that have been reported to a UTA Campus Security Authority (CSA). The UTAPD collects on-campus crime statistics daily through its normal law enforcement operations.
University of Northern Iowa Graduate Student Handbook Page 2 of 20. Dear Graduate Student, Unlock your Potential. Start your Future. Our Graduate Student Handbook is designed for you, our newest members of the UNI graduate community. You will find resources to help you start achieving before you even step on campus. The handbook will unlock some
Graduate Student Profile must be submitted by the end of a student's second week on campus to the Graduate Student Coordinator, who maintains profiles of MAE graduate students. This ensures the department has current contact information. An updated Graduate Student Profile form should be submitted to the Graduate Student Coordinator
