Grad students in the spotlight at Graduate Research Symposium May 9

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grad student presenter at 2013 symposium

Biomolecular engineering graduate student Samuel Vohr at the 2013 Graduate Research Symposium. (Photo by Carolyn Lagattuta)

UCSC's 10th annual Graduate Research Symposium on Friday, May 9, will feature research presentations by graduate students in a wide range of disciplines from all five academic divisions at UC Santa Cruz. The event takes place from 1:30 to 4:30 p.m. in the "Information Commons South" area on the second floor of McHenry Library.

The symposium will include graduate student presentations in a variety of formats, including posters, 10-minute talks, films, and other media.

Tyrus Miller, vice provost and dean of graduate studies, said the Graduate Research Symposium has become a strong tradition at UCSC that showcases the development and maturing of the campus's graduate programs. "The presentations represent the full breadth and richness of graduate research at UCSC, including theoretical and creative work, lab work and field work. You can really see the diversity in the approaches and modes of research used in different disciplines across campus," he said.

Miller said he was pleased to see students from a broad range of disciplines participating in the symposium, including programs that in the past have not had a strong graduate research presence at UCSC. The Arts Division, for example, is now well represented at the symposium, with graduate students presenting a variety of films, music, multimedia, and other creative works.

The Graduate Research Symposium encourages students to communicate their research in a way that is engaging and accessible to a general audience. A panel of judges will award prizes for best presentations in each division, as well as best-of-symposium awards.

"It's an important opportunity for students to communicate their work to an interested and non-specialized audience, which is different from going to a professional conference. They'll have to translate the specialized language of their discipline into something more accessible," Miller said.

More information about the symposium is available online.