Joseph Daniels, a doctoral candidate in civil engineering at the University of Arkansas, was recently awarded the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Recognizing Aviation and Aerospace Innovation in Science and Engineering (RAISE) award. This annual award recognizes innovative scientific and engineering achievements that will have a significant impact on the future of the aerospace or aviation.

Daniels is creating an anti-icing pavement system that will improve safety on airfields during winter weather. The system he’s developed, “aims to use renewable solar energy to lower operational costs of heating surfaces to prevent flight delays, cancellations and potential accidents. The idea is to incorporate wiring into concrete, then use solar energy to power the transfer of heat through the wires to warm the pavement.”

Daniels received his bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from North Carolina A&T State University and plans to complete his doctorate this summer. He was awarded the Department of Transportation’s Dwight David Eisenhower Graduate Fellowship in 2015, 2016, and 2017. Daniels also presented at a TEDx event in 2016. To learn more about Joseph’s research, visit the University of Arkansas website.

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Photo Credit: University of Arkansas

Visa data suggest decreases in the number of individuals from countries affected by the travel ban coming to the U.S. as students or for short-term business travel, a category that includes travel related to academic conferences.

It appears the U.S. is becoming a less-attractive place to pursue graduate education, and that’s an alarming trend for schools that count on tuition dollars from foreign students. Between fall 2016 and 2017, the number of international students applying to graduate school in the U.S. declined 3%, according to survey data published Tuesday by the Council of Graduate Schools, a graduate school advocacy organization.

For First Time in over a Decade, International Graduate Applications and Enrollments Decline at U.S. Institutions (1/30/2018)

New data from the Council of Graduate Schools (CGS) reveal that for the first time since Fall 2003, international graduate application and first-time enrollment rates declined at U.S. universities. For Fall 2017, the final application counts from prospective international students declined by 3%, while the first-time enrollment of international graduate students declined by 1%.

JoAnn Canales Named 2018-19 CGS Dean-in-Residence (4/19/2018)

The Council of Graduate Schools (CGS) has announced that JoAnn Canales, founding dean of the College of Graduate Studies and professor in the College of Education and Human Development at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi, has been named the CGS Dean-in-Residence for the 2018-19 academic year. Dr. Canales brings to the post significant experience leading graduate education, including launching a professional development program specifically for graduate students. Canales will join CGS on August 1.

Lauren Inouye Joins the Council of Graduate Schools as Vice President for Public Policy and Government Affairs (5/01/2018)

The Council of Graduate Schools (CGS) announced that Lauren Inouye has been named the Council’s vice president for public policy and government affairs. Her tenure at CGS begins May 1, 2018. She succeeds Beth Buehlmann, who had served in the role since 2013. Inouye comes to CGS from the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN), where she was the director of government affairs.

Statement by CGS President Suzanne Ortega Regarding Recent Immigration Proposals (6/21/2018)

“Recent proposals stemming from Congress and the Administration have focused the nation’s attention on immigration issues impacting students and families. The Council of Graduate Schools remains steadfast in its support of policies that help ensure individuals are afforded opportunities to pursue their graduate studies here in the United States, including those with DACA status and those from the international student community."

Four Minority-Serving Institutions Selected to Join CGS’s PhD Career Pathways Project (7/05/2018)

The Council of Graduate Schools today announced that four federally-recognized Minority-Serving Institutions (MSIs) will join an existing coalition that are working to gather and use data about the careers of PhD students and alumni. A grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF grant #1661272) has been supporting data collection about PhD careers in STEM fields.

Statement by CGS President Suzanne Ortega on Reversal of Guidance that Aims to Promote Diversity (7/06/2018)

“Diversity is critical to the quality of U.S. graduate programs. Our programs must be able to prepare master’s and doctoral students to work in diverse teams, to understand the impact of research and practice on different U.S. communities, and to consider our nation’s greatest challenges from different perspectives."

First-Time Enrollment Holds Steady, Application Counts Slightly Decline at U.S. Graduate Schools (10/03/2018)

Today the Council of Graduate Schools (CGS) reported that growth in first-time graduate enrollment remains flat, according to its most recent data, while the number of graduate applications to U.S. universities has decreased.

In and Outside Academia, Humanists Say Their PhD Programs Prepared Them Well (10/18/2018)

“While these findings represent the first wave of our data, they provide a strong indication that humanities PhDs find their training relevant to diverse career contexts,” said CGS President Suzanne Ortega. “Perhaps the most intriguing finding is that people eight and 15 years out of their PhDs find their training more relevant to their jobs than the earlier cohort.”

In Master’s Degree Programs, Admissions Processes Prioritize Retention (12/04/2018)

Among the project’s key findings is that both master’s program faculty and graduate deans consider the ability to successfully complete coursework to be an important criterion for evaluating candidates for admission.

Carrie Hyde Receives 2018 Arlt Award in the Humanities (12/06/2018)

"The Arlt award recognizes exceptional work by early-career humanities faculty, and Dr. Hyde’s work is an invaluable contribution to understanding the history of U.S. citizenship and its complexities,” said Dr. Suzanne Ortega, president of the Council of Graduate Schools.

Vanderbilt University Receives ETS/CGS Award for Innovation in Promoting Success in Graduate Education (12/06/2018)

"Vanderbilt’s Russell G. Hamilton Leadership Development Institute is a model that addresses the needs of all graduate students, with particular attention to first-generation students, underrepresented minorities, and women in the academy and is one that could be replicated on other campuses,” said CGS President Suzanne T. Ortega.

Steven W. Matson Receives Debra W. Stewart Award for Outstanding Leadership in Graduate Education (12/06/2018)

“Steve Matson works for our graduate students in every possible way. From encouraging their research and teaching at Carolina to preparing them for the rapidly changing global job market, he has tirelessly served as Dean of The Graduate School since 2008,” said UNC-Chapel Hill Chancellor Carol L. Folt.

Winners of 2018 CGS/ProQuest Distinguished Dissertation Awards Announced (12/06/2018)

The Council of Graduate Schools / ProQuest Distinguished Dissertation Awards, the nation’s most prestigious honors for doctoral dissertations, were presented to Mohamed S. Ibrahim and Eiko Strader during the Council’s award ceremony during the 58th Annual Meeting in Washington, DC.

The number of prospective international students applying to and enrolling in US postgraduate programmes has declined for the first time in 13 years, figures show. Applications from prospective overseas graduate students declined by 3 per cent between autumn 2016 and autumn 2017, while first-time enrolment of international graduate students dropped by 1 per cent, according to a survey by the Council of Graduate Schools.

The number of first-time international students enrolling in American graduate programs declined by 1 percent from fall 2016 to fall 2017, according to new survey results from the Council of Graduate Schools.

For the first time in more than a decade, applications and enrollments by international graduate students at American colleges and universities declined in 2016-17, a new study has found. The study, conducted by the Council of Graduate Schools, suggests a continued softening of interest in American institutions among foreign grad students, an ebbing that was noted a year ago.

US graduate programmes are starting to formalize expectations for the skills and competencies that PhD students should have by the end of their studies, finds a report from the US Council of Graduate Schools (CGS) in Washington DC. In a 2016 survey of its 241 member institutions, the CGS found that 65% of those responding reported that all or most of their doctoral programmes had developed formal ways to assess whether students are learning specific skills that are relevant to the workplace.

Samantha Hernandez was finishing up an argument for her dissertation about Latinos and affirmative action on Thursday when the emails started pouring in with the subject line “Congratulations.” President Trump had finished a celebratory news conference to announce the completion of a sweeping overhaul of the nation’s tax code, and graduate students were breathing a deep sigh of relief. House Republicans had targeted them for a hefty tax increase, one that many of them could not hope to pay, but they had escaped unscathed.

Graduate students across the country have loudly protested a controversial provision of the tax plans that moved through the House and Senate in recent weeks. The proposal would have significantly driven up the tax burdens for those who receive tuition waivers from their schools. They are often teaching and research assistants.