Graduate Student Affairs

Last updated: September 21, 2022

Our Team | Services | Online Tools to Support Graduate Student Success | Tri-Campus Resources | Student Leadership & Affinity Groups

About Us

Graduate Student Affairs (formerly Core Programs) — housed within the Office of Student & Postdoctoral Affairs in The Graduate School — utilizes a holistic approach to supporting graduate students through student-centered services & programming, timely resources, and intentional tri-campus partnerships. We strive to promote the well-being of our diverse graduate student body in our tri-campus network, so they can thrive and be successful at the university and beyond. We are located in Loew Hall on the Seattle campus.

Read our Mission Statement

Our Team

Staff can generally be reached Monday – Friday (8 a.m.–5 p.m.)
Send general questions to uwgsa@uw.edu
Bill Mahoney (wmahoney@uw.edu), Ph.D., Associate Dean of Student & Postdoc Affairs
- Office hours in person per public health guidelines M, W, Th (8 a.m.–5 p.m.)
- Working remotely on F (8 a.m.–5 p.m.)
- Loew 302, Seattle campus
Jaye Sablan (sablanj@uw.edu), M.A., Assistant Director of Graduate Student Affairs
- Office hours in-person per public health guidelines M – W (9 a.m.–5 p.m.)
- Working remotely Th & F (9 a.m.–5 p.m.)
- Loew 304, Seattle campus
Visit our Facebook page

Services

Consultations with Graduate Students

Current UW graduate students can schedule a confidential, in person (per public health guidelines) or online appointment with staff to talk about:

Navigating graduate student life
Referrals to student resources
See our individual contact information above

Graduate Student E-Bulletin

Graduate Student Affairs publishes a bi-weekly bulletin for all UW graduate students, featuring tips and strategies to support their success in graduate school and beyond.

Subscribe to the grad bulletin

Events and Workshops

We host or co-organize quarterly events to support the intellectual, professional, and wellness development of graduate students.

Past Examples of Professional Development Events

Community College Careers Panel and Networking Reception
Communication Skills for International Graduate Students
Humanities and Social Sciences Graduate Student Career Development Boot Camp
Translating Your Research Into Career Opportunities – For Graduate Students and Postdocs in STEM Fields
Teaching-Focused University Careers – a collaboration between GSEE, Core Programs, and Gonzaga University
Navigating the Job Search When You’re LGBTQ
Finding Funding for International Graduate Students – a collaboration with the Graduate Funding Information Service
Thriving in Graduate School with Peer Mentoring
Career Development for First-Gen Graduate Students

Public Speaking & Presentation Skills Development

We organize Scholars’ Studio and Three Minute Thesis events with the UW Libraries Research Commons. These are fun events featuring 10 or more graduate students doing lightning talks on capstone, teaching, or research projects.

Graduate students participate in these events to:

Learn skills that are crucial for presentations at conferences and on the job market
To focus the message of one’s project and hone an elevator pitch
To learn how to communicate one’s work to a wider audience
To enliven a presentation with storytelling elements

Leadership Skills Development

Each year, 8–10 graduate students volunteer to participate in our advisory boards. They serve in leadership roles to inform and shape our initiatives and programming.

If you are interested in serving on our advisory boards, contact us at cpinfo@uw.edu

First-Generation Graduate Students

We coordinate an initiative to support the success of first-generation graduate students through social, wellness, and professional development events. We consult with our First-Gen Graduate Student Advisory Board — comprised of first-gen graduate students from across disciplines — to ensure that our services center their voices and needs. If you are interested in serving on the advisory board, contact us at uwgsa@uw.edu.

Tailored Programming for Departments

Need a tailored presentation or workshop for your graduate program? Whether you’re a graduate program advisor, faculty or student, our office can work with you to develop a one-of-a-kind event to meet your needs. Some past presentation themes:

Demystifying graduate school
Utilizing the individual development plan
Getting the mentoring you need
Coping with imposter syndrome

Current Programming & Events

Online Tools to Support Graduate Student Success

Individual Development Plan Resources

An Individual Development Plan (IDP) is a tool that can help you outline a range of academic, career, and personal goals during your time in graduate school and beyond. You can use an IDP to measure your progress when meeting with faculty mentors and advisors. As your goals change, revisit and revise the document periodically. Check out the following templates and resources below.

Individual Development Plan Template – The Graduate School, University of Washington
General IDP – Graduate School, University of Minnesota
Imagine PhD – A free, online career exploration tool for graduate students in the Humanities & Social Sciences
myIDP – A free, online individual development plan tool for graduate students in the Life and Physical Sciences

Mentoring Resources

The UW Graduate School offers informational mentoring guides for graduate students and faculty, on many topics ranging from understanding what a good mentor does to the importance of building a mentoring team.

Mentoring guides for graduate students Mentoring guides for faculty

What’s the best way to pick a lab? How can you manage a large writing project? How do you work the crowd at a cocktail party with confidence and ease? These topics — and many others — are not necessarily covered in a graduate student’s coursework. But knowing how to manage time, the best way to negotiate a salary and how to turn a dissertation into a book can be invaluable to a successful education and career. The UW Graduate School offers a series of Mentor Memos — penned by UW faculty and staff — that cover these topics, and much more.

Read the mentor memos

How to Manage Up When Working with Faculty Advisors and Mentors

“Managing Up” can be defined as actively and thoughtfully playing a role in defining and shaping an important professional relationship that likely involves a power dynamic. Learning to effectively manage up is a skill-set that you can begin to practice with your PIs, professors, and supervisors and then carry with you to help positively impact your future work relationships.

Read ten Strategies for Managing Up

Additional Resources

Tri-Campus Resources for Graduate Students

Below is a link to a general list of resources available to graduate students across the UW tri-campus. This list is not intended to be exhaustive and does not include student resources specific to each graduate program. Due to student fee restrictions, some resources are available only to students enrolled at their particular UW campus.

Student Leadership and Affinity Groups

Connecting with like-minded graduate student peers can increase your sense of belonging at the University. It can also open up opportunities for engagement and leadership. There are several student organizations, university programs, and social media sites that can facilitate such opportunities. If you would like to add your organization to the list below, please contact uwgsa@uw.edu.

List of Organizations