Contacts:

Katherine Hazelrigg, CGS  (202) 461-3888 | khazelrigg@cgs.nche.edu

Kristen Lacaillade, ETS   (609) 524-8172 | mediacontacts@ets.org

Washington, DC – Today the Council of Graduate Schools (CGS) and ETS presented the University of Montana (UM) with the 2021 ETS/CGS Award for Innovation in Promoting Success in Graduate Education: From Admission through Completion. Dr. Scott Whittenburg, vice president for research and creative scholarship and dean of the Graduate School, accepted the co-sponsored award on the University of Montana’s behalf during an awards ceremony held at the CGS 61st Annual Meeting in New Orleans.

The ETS/CGS Award for Innovation in Promoting Success in Graduate Education recognizes promising, innovative proposals to enhance student success and degree completion at the master’s and doctoral levels while promoting inclusiveness. The winning institution is selected on the strength of its proposal to meet the award’s goals and to serve as a model for other schools. The winner receives a two-year, $20,000 matching grant.

The University of Montana’s initiative, Completing the Circle: Supporting the Success of Native Graduate Students, focuses on a sub-population of underrepresented students, who are a significant regional population in the cultural life of the West: Native American graduate students. The university, which occupies the aboriginal territories of the Salish and Kalispell people, aims to address a gap in the “circle of support” that is a key component of graduate school success: peer-to-peer encounters, especially outside of the context of graduate programs, that facilitate the fullest intellectual and professional growth of our students.

The initiative includes four components: Peer Cohort Meetings, A Native American Visiting Scholar Series, A Peer-to-Peer Mentor Fellowship Program, and Tribal Listening Sessions.  Through these efforts, the university hopes to recruit more Native American students into their graduate programs, to increase retention and completion, and to strengthen connections with regional tribes to foster a reciprocal emphasis on community improvement by elevating the visibility of Native graduate students.

“The Graduate School of the University of Montana is proud to accept the 2021 Award for Innovation in Promoting Success in Graduate Education: From Admissions through Completion! Our proposal reflects our institution's acknowledgement of the distinctive contribution our Native communities make to local, state, and regional culture, including the wisdom of their traditional knowledge,” said Scott Whittenburg, vice president for research and creative scholarship and dean of the Graduate School at the University of Montana. “We look forward to investing the funding in ongoing support of Native graduate students through a new peer-mentoring program, as well as in outreach efforts to deepen our relationships with tribal partners, who can help us shape graduate education with relevance and impact.”

“Through their Completing the Circle initiative, the University of Montana commits to leveraging existing resources, programs, and relationships to substantially enhance Native American student success in graduate education. While our recent graduate enrollment and degrees data show modest increases in American Indian/Alaska Native students pursuing graduate degrees, the graduate education community still has so much work to do. This project’s success will provide CGS members with new approaches to better engage and support Native graduate students,” said CGS President Suzanne T. Ortega. “We are so grateful to ETS for their support in recognizing this innovative way to promote best practices among graduate schools.”

“We are proud to recognize the outstanding innovation in diversity by the University of Montana with the 2021 ETS/CGC Award for Innovation in Promoting Success in Graduate Education: From Admission through Completion,” said Alberto Acereda, associate vice president of global higher education at ETS. “The institution’s approach to advancing diversity, innovation and success in graduate studies addresses a critical gap and serves as an excellent example for other institutions in serving graduate students.”

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Contact: Katherine Hazelrigg  (202) 461-3888 / khazelrigg@cgs.nche.edu

Washington, DC – The Board of Directors of the Council of Graduate Schools (CGS) has announced that Dr. Karen Butler-Purry, associate provost and dean of the Graduate and Professional School at Texas A&M University, is the 2021 recipient of the Debra W. Stewart Award for Outstanding Leadership in Graduate Education. Dr. Butler-Purry received the honor at an awards ceremony held during the CGS 61^st Annual Meeting in New Orleans.

A passionate and steadfast advocate for graduate education, Dr. Butler-Purry becomes the sixth Debra W. Stewart Award recipient for her invaluable contributions to Texas A&M University and the graduate education community. As dean, Dr. Butler-Purry has prioritized graduate student’s quality of life, their educational experiences in the classroom and labs, and their professional development opportunities. In addition, she developed new pathways and funding sources for underrepresented students, providing more than 80 doctoral fellowships per year to underrepresented minority students. In 2020, Dr. Butler-Purry led efforts to elevate graduate education at the university, helping to transform the Office of Graduate and Professional Studies to the Graduate and Professional School.

Dr. Butler-Purry has also been involved in many CGS projects, including Supporting the Mental Health and Well-being of Graduate Students, Understanding PhD Career Pathways for Program Improvement, Professional Development for STEM Graduate Students, and the Global Postgraduate Diversity Resource. She has served as chair of the CGS Board of Directors and is currently on the Executive Board of the Association of American Universities’ (AAU) Association of Graduate Schools. Dr. Butler-Purry has a demonstrated commitment to mentoring, receiving the American Association for Advancement of Science (AAAS) Mentor Award.

“Texas A&M University could not be more proud of Karen Butler-Purry’s recent Debra W. Stewart Award for Outstanding Leadership in Graduate Education. Dr. Butler-Purry is a tireless advocate for diversity, inclusion, and access to graduate programs on our campus and across the country,” said Timothy P. Scott, interim provost and executive vice president, Texas A&M University. “We are grateful for her continued service and passion for graduate education.”

“The CGS Board of Directors is pleased to recognize Dr. Butler-Purry’s leadership and service to the graduate education community. Karen is a passionate advocate for graduate student success and well-being. Under her leadership, Texas A&M University has developed comprehensive learning outcomes for master’s and doctoral students, increased data transparency, and demonstrated a deep commitment to ensuring access and opportunity for all,” said Dr. Andrew G. Campbell, dean of the Graduate School at Brown University and chair of the Council’s Board of Directors.

Created in 2016 by the CGS Board of Directors, this award recognizes outstanding leadership in graduate education, particularly those leadership qualities exemplified by the Council’s fifth President, Debra W. Stewart. The selection committee considers nominees with a strong reputation for ethics and integrity, a history of active participation in the graduate community, and a record of strategic vision and actions resulting in meaningful impacts. Areas of special consideration include evidence-based innovation, program development, diversity and inclusion, student learning and career outcomes, personnel management, policy advocacy in support of graduate education and research, and fiscal responsibility.

Nominees for the award must be a current senior, graduate dean at a CGS member institution (Regular or Associate) and cannot be an active member of the CGS Board of Directors. Nominations are made by member institutions and are reviewed by a selection committee of former graduate deans in the CGS community. The winner receives a $4,000 prize to support continuing innovations at the awardee’s institution.

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Contact: Katherine Hazelrigg  (202) 461-3888 / khazelrigg@cgs.nche.edu

Washington, DC – The Board of Directors of the Council of Graduate Schools (CGS) has announced that Dr. Jennifer R. Teitle, assistant dean of the Graduate College at the University of Iowa, is the 2021 winner of the Assistant and Associate Deans Leadership Award. Teitle received the honor at an awards ceremony held during the CGS 61st Annual Meeting in New Orleans.

The award was created by the CGS Board of Directors to recognize individuals who have shown exemplary commitment to graduate education by demonstrating creativity and innovation in response to institutional challenges and/or limited budgets or resources; building partnerships both internal and external to the graduate school; identifying and obtaining resources, both internal and external to the graduate school; effectively advocating on behalf of graduate education; fostering inclusiveness in the graduate community; and engaging student voices (including diverse voices).

Dr. Teitle becomes the award’s third recipient for her valuable contributions to the University of Iowa graduate community. Her many accomplishments include developing the Graduate Student Success Center to deliver professional development programming across the university; establishing a campus-wide Three-Minute Thesis (3MT) competition, leveraging winning presentations to communicate the value of graduate education to external stakeholders; building relationships with alumni across graduate programs to promote PhD career diversity; and leading campus efforts to improve mentoring and career support.

“In every aspect of Dr. Teitle’s work, she clearly advocates for graduate students, paying special attention to assuring an inclusive perspective in her work. Jen has played a critical role in supporting students during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, designing platforms, leading workshops, and overseeing adjusted appointment structures for hundreds of graduate students across campus,” said Dr. Amanda H. Thein, associate provost for graduate and professional education and dean of the Graduate College at the University of Iowa. “Jen’s colleagues and the students in the Graduate College are exceptionally fortunate to have her professional insight, drive, and dedication.”

“It is a pleasure to recognize the outstanding efforts of our assistant and associate dean colleagues who tirelessly work on behalf of our graduate students, and Dr. Jennifer Teitle is no exception. Her advocacy and collaborative approach to graduate education stood out among her peers. Additionally, she is lauded for promulgating practices and programs with external partners and professional organizations, donating her time and talent to these endeavors,” said Dr. Sheryl Tucker, selection committee chair, and vice provost and dean of the Graduate College at Oklahoma State University.

Nominees for the award must be a current assistant or associate-level dean at a CGS member institution (Regular or Associate) with primary administrative responsibility in graduate education. Assistant or associate deans whose graduate deans currently serve on the CGS Board are not eligible to be nominated for the award during the dean’s active years of board service. Nominations are made by CGS member institutions and are reviewed by a committee selected by the CGS Board of Directors. The winner receives a $1,500 honorarium and is invited to plan and participate in a session at the CGS Summer Workshop on a topic of their choosing.

CGS gratefully acknowledges Liaison’s financial support of the Assistant and Associate Deans Leadership Award.  Liaison, a higher education admissions management and marketing automation software and services company, is a CGS Sustaining Member.

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Contact: Katherine Hazelrigg  (202) 461-3888 / khazelrigg@cgs.nche.edu

Washington, DC – The Council of Graduate Schools (CGS) has awarded the 2021 Gustave O. Arlt Award in the Humanities to Dr. Tae-Yeoun Keum, assistant professor of political science at the University of California, Santa Barbara. The awards ceremony was held during the CGS 61st Annual Meeting in New Orleans.

Bestowed annually, the Arlt Award recognizes a young scholar-teacher who has written a book deemed to have made an outstanding contribution to scholarship in the humanities. Dr. Keum becomes the award’s 51st recipient for her book, Plato and the Mythic Tradition in Political Thought (Belknap Press of Harvard UP, 2020). She received her PhD in political theory from Harvard University in 2017.

In Plato and the Mythic Tradition in Political Thought, Dr. Keum considers the work of Plato, particularly his philosophical myths and their role in shaping modern political thought. She traces Plato’s impact on texts from the early modern era through the twentieth century, demonstrating how his classical mythmaking has influenced political theory across many centuries. While some philosophers viewed Plato’s myths as trivial work from the “inventor of rational philosophy,” Keum contends that mythic tradition “helps us rethink some of the default assumptions we tend to make about what philosophy is, and what it ought to look like.”

“We are honored to present Dr. Keum with this year’s prestigious Arlt Award. Her brilliant work reminds us that rethinking the traditional boundaries of knowledge enhances voices on the margin and reiterates the importance of diversity of thought. Through an analysis of Plato’s classical myths and their treatment by philosophers across many literary periods, Keum elevates the role and importance of myths in modern political discourse and argues they are integral to human understanding,” said Dr. Suzanne Ortega, president of the Council of Graduate Schools.

“Dr. Keum's receipt of the 2021 Gustave O. Arlt Award in the Humanities recognizes not only her impressive achievement, but also the centrality of humanistic approaches to understanding politics. Reaching across disciplinary boundaries, Dr. Keum's work suggests that even the most rationalistic of systems draws upon the power of symbols and mythic representations. It is truly a tour de force,” said Leila Rupp, interim Anne and Michael Towbes Graduate Dean, University of California, Santa Barbara.

Created in 1971, the Arlt Award honors the first president of CGS, Gustave O. Arlt. The winner must have earned a doctorate within the past seven years, and currently be teaching at a North American university. Nominations are made by CGS member institutions and are reviewed by a panel of scholars in the field of competition, which rotates annually among seven disciplines within the humanities. This year’s field was Linguistics and Philosophy. The winner receives a $1,000 honorarium and travel to the awards ceremony.

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Contacts:

Katherine Hazelrigg, Council of Graduate Schools  (202) 461-3888 | khazelrigg@cgs.nche.edu

Gilia Smith, ProQuest   (734) 277-7320 | gilia.smith@proquest.com

Washington, DC – The Council of Graduate Schools / ProQuest Distinguished Dissertation Awards, the nation’s most prestigious honors for doctoral dissertations, were presented to Caitlin Cornell and Denisa Jashari during an award ceremony held at the CGS 61^st Annual Meeting in New Orleans. Dr. Cornell received her PhD in physical chemistry and biophysics from the University of Washington in 2019; Dr. Jashari completed her PhD in Latin American History at Indiana University Bloomington in 2020.

Bestowed annually since 1982, the awards recognize recent doctoral recipients who have already made unusually significant and original contributions to their fields. ProQuest, Part of Clarivate – whose ProQuest^® Dissertations & Theses Global^™ database (PQDT) features the world's most comprehensive collection of dissertations and theses – sponsors the awards, and an independent committee from the Council of Graduate Schools selects the winners. Two awards are given each year, rotating among four general areas of scholarship. The winners receive a certificate of recognition, a $2,000 honorarium, and a travel stipend to attend the awards ceremony.

“The CGS/ProQuest Distinguished Dissertation Award recognizes the innovative research of young scholars and their momentous impact on their disciplines and the broader graduate education community,” said CGS President Suzanne T. Ortega. “The significant contributions Dr. Cornell and Dr. Jashari have made in their respective fields continue the tradition of excellence. Their work represents the best of graduate education and research and merits recognition.”

“We’re proud to honor the incredible breakthroughs these researchers have made,” said Angela D’Agostino, vice president of product management, dissertations at ProQuest. “The past few years have been immeasurably difficult for PhD students, which makes Dr. Cornell and Dr. Jashari’s outstanding works even more impressive and well-deserving of the 2021 Distinguished Dissertation Award. ProQuest is pleased to include their research in the PQDT corpus where it can be discovered and expanded upon by other researchers around the world."

Dr. Cornell received the 2021 Award in Biological and Life Sciences for her dissertation, Lipid Membranes: From Organizational Strategies in Cells to the Origins of Life. Cornell’s dissertation research “bridges the gap between synthetic model membranes, cell-derived membranes, and living yeast organellar membranes.” Her work examines cell membranes, from the simplest forms to the most complex, to better understand how lipids found in cell membranes may contribute to improved protein function. In addition, she investigates the formation of the earliest protocell membranes billions of years ago. Dr. Cornell is currently a James S. McDonnell postdoctoral fellow at the University of California, Berkeley’s Fletcher Lab.

The 2021 Award in Humanities and Fine Arts was presented to Dr. Jashari for her dissertation, Cartographies of Conflict: Political Culture and Urban Protest in Santiago, Chile, 1872-1994. Jashari’s work tracks disputes over urban spaces in Santiago, Chile, beginning with the social reform period of 1872-1970, through the Marxist government of Allende and dictatorship of Pinochet, to democratic rule from 1990-1994. She “historicizes the political importance of space and moves [...] between national and street-level dimensions of social and political struggles in urban space,” while expanding the period of study beyond the more narrow scope of current scholarship. Dr. Jashari is currently an assistant professor of Latin American history at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro.

Two outstanding scholars received honorable mentions: Kathleen Houlahan (nominated by the University of Toronto) for the Award in Biological and Life Sciences, and Ariana Brazier (nominated by the University of Pittsburgh) for the Award in Humanities and Fine Arts.

More information about the CGS/ProQuest Distinguished Dissertation Award is available at https://cgsnet.org/2021-cgs-award-winners-announced. For a list of past ProQuest Award Winners visit https://about.proquest.com/en/dissertations/spotlight/.

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Washington, DC — New data from the Council of Graduate Schools (CGS) on graduate enrollments and degrees demonstrate the continued demand for graduate education in the U.S. According to a CGS report released today, both graduate applications (7.3%) and first-time graduate enrollment (1.8%) increased overall for the Fall 2020 semester, welcome news during the disruptive COVID-19 pandemic. While international graduate first-time enrollment declined 37.4%, domestic enrollment grew 12.9% — growth driven, in part, by increases in traditionally underrepresented students. First-time, part-time graduate enrollment increased by 13.5%. These data are part of the latest CGS/GRE Graduate Enrollment & Degrees: 2010-2020 report.

“Graduate schools had to pivot quickly as the pandemic disrupted traditional modes of instruction, increasing part-time, virtual, and hybrid learning options,” said CGS President Suzanne Ortega. “To see continued growth in first-time enrollment rates during a global pandemic shows confidence in the value of graduate education and the importance of increased flexibility in delivery methods.”

Ortega added that an increase in flexible learning options has supported diversity. “It’s striking that 43.4% of graduate students are enrolled part-time and these students are more likely to be women and students from traditionally underrepresented groups. We’ve long believed that improved access would further diversify the graduate student body, and these data provide supporting evidence.”

Between Fall 2019 and Fall 2020, first-time enrollment among underrepresented minorities grew at a healthy pace. First-time graduate enrollment of American Indian/Alaska Native students increased 8.8%, with corresponding increases of 16.0% for Black/African American students and 20.4% for Latinx students. While this growth is encouraging, Black/African American students constitute 12.8% of U.S. citizens and permanent resident graduate students overall, and remain considerably underrepresented in physical and earth sciences (3.8%), engineering (6.2%), and biological and agricultural sciences (6.6%). Similarly, Latinx students constitute 12.0% of U.S. citizens and permanent resident graduate students, and remain considerably underrepresented in mathematics and computer sciences (9.9%) and physical and earth sciences (10.4%).

Institutions responding to the CGS/GRE Survey of Graduate Enrollment & Degrees for Fall 2020 enrolled more than 1.7 million graduate students. Nearly three quarters (72.9%) of total graduate enrollment was in master’s programs. Over one million of those graduate students, or 59.7%, were women. Education (63.8%), business (53.0%), and health sciences (43.0%) continue to be the three largest broad fields of study and the fields with the largest proportions of part-time graduate students.

About the report

Graduate Enrollment and Degrees: 2010 to 2020 presents the findings of an annual survey of U.S. graduate schools, co-sponsored by CGS and the Graduate Record Examinations (GRE) Board. It is the only annual national survey that collects data on graduate enrollment by all fields of study and is the only source of national data on graduate applications by broad field of study. The report includes responses from 558 institutions and presents statistics on graduate applications and enrollment for Fall 2020, degrees conferred in 2019-20, and trend data for one-, five- and ten-year periods.

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

 Contact: Katherine Hazelrigg (202) 461-3888 / khazelrigg@cgs.nche.edu

Washington, DC — Today the Council of Graduate Schools (CGS) announced a cooperative agreement with the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF# 2105723) to lead the Innovations in Graduate Education (IGE) Innovation Acceleration Hub, which is designed to foster learning and collaboration among awardees of NSF’s IGE program and the broader STEM graduate education community. The Hub aims to amplify the impact of the NSF IGE grantees’ projects by providing mechanisms to support creative, widespread, and sustainable change across U.S. graduate institutions.

Over the five-year project, CGS will work with IGE grantees to design Hub activities, develop strategies for greater visibility for the grantees’ work, and engage a broader audience of stakeholders. By creating opportunities for IGE project teams to communicate regularly, the IGE Innovation Acceleration Hub will provide a platform for participants to share lessons learned, promoting scalable, successful practices within and across grantee institutions. Increasing the number and competitiveness of proposals from historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs), other minority-serving institutions (MSIs), and other institutions serving underrepresented populations will be a core component of the project.

“The goals of NSF’s Innovations in Graduate Education (IGE) program are closely aligned with CGS’s core mission of advancing master’s and doctoral education and research, and we’re well positioned to leverage our role as a membership organization to broaden awareness for the wonderfully innovative work developed by IGE awardees,” said Suzanne Ortega, president of the Council of Graduate Schools. “We’re dedicated to facilitating the development and implementation of bold, transformative approaches to STEM graduate education training.”

The range of Hub activities will include assessment of needs and interests among Hub participants, the development of a dedicated website, workshops, and a range of activities that engage disciplinary societies and other organizations with a strong commitment to graduate education. An external evaluation will help CGS to continuously refine Hub activities to support participants’ needs and advance the goals of the IGE program.

“This cooperative agreement with the Council of Graduate Schools will accelerate national innovation in graduate education in STEM and broaden participation in the IGE program,” said Sylvia Butterfield, acting assistant director for NSF's Education and Human Resources Directorate.  “The IGE Innovation Acceleration Hub will strengthen and expand the community of researchers, educators and administrative leaders engaged in identifying and implementing evidence-based best practices in graduate education.”

The Hub Advisory Committee members include:

• Lisa Amini, Director, IBM Research Cambridge; Member, CGS Employer Roundtable
• David Asai, Senior Director, Science Education, Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI)
• Lorelle Espinosa, Program Director, DEI in STEM Education, The Alfred P. Sloan Foundation
• Norman Fortenberry, Executive Director, American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE)
• Cynthia Fuhrmann, Assistant Dean of Career and Professional Development, Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, UMASS Medical School; Principal Investigator, pd|hub
• LaTrease Garrison, Senior Vice President, Education and Membership, American Chemical Society
• Ann Quiroz Gates, Vice Provost, Faculty Affairs and Director, CAHSI INCLUDES Alliance, University of Texas at El Paso
• Juan Gonzalez, Dean of the Graduate School, University of Texas at Dallas
• Clay Gloster, Vice Provost of Graduate Research and Dean of the Graduate College, North Carolina A&T State University
• Sara Hernández, Associate Dean, Inclusion and Student Engagement, Cornell University; Chair, CGS Diversity and Inclusion Advisory Committee
• Maureen Hoyler, President, Council of Opportunity in Education (COE)
• David Kieda, Dean of the Graduate School, University of Utah
• Christine Ortiz, Morris Cohen Professor of Materials Science and Engineering, MIT; Founder, Social Entrepreneur, Station1
• Michelle Penn-Marshall, Vice President for Research and Associate Provost, Hampton University
• Talitha Washington, Director, Atlanta University Center Consortium (AUCC) Data Science Initiative

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Contact: Katherine Hazelrigg, CGS: (202) 461-3888 / khazelrigg@cgs.nche.edu

Washington, DC — The Council of Graduate Schools (CGS) has announced that Lisa Tedesco, currently vice provost for academic affairs – graduate studies and dean of the James T. Laney School of Graduate Studies at Emory University, has been named the CGS Dean-in-Residence for 2021-2022.  Tedesco, a long-time advocate for graduate education, has served as a member of the boards of CGS and the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) and as president of the Association of American Universities (AAU) Association of Graduate Schools.

CGS established the Dean-in-Residence program to incorporate a campus-based perspective across the Council’s projects and initiatives. The program offers an opportunity for graduate deans and associate or assistant deans at member institutions to spend an academic year at CGS’s headquarters in Washington, DC. Each year the CGS president selects one applicant to pursue projects aligned with the dean’s interests and the Council’s needs.

Tedesco will help the Council on projects connecting best practices for mentoring and mental health/well-being. 

“Lisa has spent her academic career dedicated to building environments where students can do their best work, supporting student mental health and well-being, creating opportunities for interdisciplinary study and professional development, and ensuring equitable access to quality graduate education,” said CGS President Suzanne T. Ortega. “Her expertise in health promotion and wellness will help CGS members better understand the power of high-quality mentoring, in addressing the value of wellbeing for student success.”

In accepting the appointment, Tedesco expressed her readiness to join the CGS team. “I’m so looking forward to this opportunity. Much of my academic career has focused on collaboration across teams. The dean-in-residence role will allow me to work on connecting and expanding best practices representing the commitments and values of CGS and the graduate communities served by our leadership. The Council is an essential resource for anyone interested in graduate education, and I look forward to contributing to its mission.”

Tedesco received her doctorate in educational psychology from the University at Buffalo, State University of New York. Before her time at Emory, she was a professor and associate dean in the School of Dentistry at the University of Michigan (UM) and also served as UM’s Vice President and Secretary and as Interim Provost. She will step down from her current role at the end of August; her Dean-in-Residence position begins on Oct. 1.

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:                                                                                 Contact: Katherine Hazelrigg

August 18, 2021                                                                           (202) 461-3888 / khazelrigg@cgs.nche.edu

Washington, DC — Today the Council of Graduate Schools (CGS) announced grant funding from The National Science Foundation (NSF# 2100343) to explore the role of master’s education in preparing, upskilling, and reskilling the STEM workforce. The project will expand our understanding of how master’s education across all fields prepares the STEM workforce, examining the extent to which skills, expertise, and competencies instilled through master’s education align with rapidly evolving jobs and industries of the future.

Understanding Roles of Masters Education in Entry Into, and Upskilling and Reskilling for, the STEM Workforce, will contribute to the development of a data infrastructure for future research on master’s education while providing more nuanced insights into labor market outcomes of master’s degrees by various fields of study, gender, race/ethnicity, and career stages. Recent Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) data reveal that many of the fastest-growing fields will require master’s degrees, but little information exists about professional pathways. This research will shed light on how master’s education may facilitate transitions to STEM careers for non-STEM undergraduate majors.

“This project has the potential to bolster institutional capacities to gather comprehensive outcomes data on master’s education at the program level. This is critically important for graduate programs seeking to better align their curricula with core competencies and to make career outcomes more transparent to prospective students,” said Suzanne Ortega, president of the Council of Graduate Schools. Ortega noted that the project will also address the role of master’s programs in creating a more diverse STEM workforce. “By illuminating the role of master’s education in entering and advancing in STEM careers--- not to mention building bridges to STEM doctoral education— the project has the potential to inform efforts to broaden the participation of women and persons of color in advanced scientific and engineering occupations.”

The value of this project is echoed by members of the CGS Employer Roundtable. “As a leading government contractor, Peraton’s ability to support national security missions of consequence relies on employing a diverse group of people who have the deep technical knowledge demanded in the space, cyber, defense, homeland security, and citizen services markets,” said Chris Valentino, chief strategy officer, Peraton. “I support this new CGS project because it will help us better understand the role of master's education in preparing students for careers in critical STEM fields.”

Over the three-year project, a census of all master’s degree recipients will be conducted through an exit survey at ten CGS institutions, serving as a complement to the NSF Survey of Earned Doctorates (SED). The ten universities will be chosen through an RFP process that will assess applications based on the number of master’s programs offered and degrees conferred. The RFP will be issued in fall 2021.

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:                                                                                 Contact: Katherine Hazelrigg

August 12, 2021                                                                           (202) 461-3888 / khazelrigg@cgs.nche.edu

Washington, DC — Today the Council of Graduate Schools (CGS) announced awards designed to catalyze innovation in the preparation of humanities PhDs for diverse careers. Through a competitive sub-award process, a committee selected ten U.S. doctoral-granting institutions to join The Humanities Coalition, which will develop and assess initiatives for better supporting humanities PhD students transitioning from graduate programs into the workforce.

Universities will be working in one of two areas: grant-writing and resource development, and building professional networks. One set of universities will prepare current humanities doctoral students to identify and cultivate funders of research, scholarship, and programs and to develop successful proposals for financial support. This area of focus, which will support Howard University; Loyola University; Purdue University; Southern Mississippi University; University of California, Irvine; and University of Texas at El Paso, is designed to prepare doctoral students for careers in areas such as university sponsored programming, non-profit leadership, and corporate relations. 

A parallel group of awardees—City University of New York, University of Arizona, Wayne State University, and Michigan State University— will develop programs to help current humanities doctoral students build professional networks and relationships. Activities will include building programs that connect current doctoral students with PhD alumni in a broad range of careers, developing opportunities for doctoral students to build networks that inform and advance their career goals, and piloting modules that help humanities PhD students develop their professional networks. 

This latest project is an expansion of prior work that included developing and supporting a network of 75 U.S. doctoral institutions as they collect data from STEM and Humanities PhD students and alumni about their professional aspirations, career pathways, and career preparation. In general, data from the project yield a positive picture of humanities doctoral education. Most alumni reported that they are engaged in meaningful work and believe their doctoral work prepared them for their current job responsibilities. However, data also indicate that humanities PhDs who were employed in business, non-profit, or government, particularly those in the early stages of their careers, feel less prepared than their peers working at universities.

“Building on the extraordinary work of the PhD Career Pathways project, The Humanities Coalition will develop, expand, and scale up a suite of programs and practices in key areas of need. We’ve been conducting research in career diversity for nearly a decade, and this work will take the next logical step from better understanding aspirations to preparing for successful careers,” said Suzanne Ortega, president of the Council of Graduate Schools. “We know that humanities PhDs have many possible career paths in front of them. We need to make sure they know their options, how to access them, and that they’ve developed the skillsets necessary for success.”

The Humanities Coalition includes grantees as well as universities that submitted competitive proposals to participate. The full list of participating organizations, includes: Arizona State University; CUNY Graduate Center; Howard University; Indiana University Bloomington; Loyola University Chicago; Michigan State University; Purdue University; Texas A&M University; The University of Southern Mississippi; The University of Texas at El Paso; University of Arizona; University of Arkansas; University of California, Irvine; University of Missouri; University of Rochester; University of Wisconsin-Madison; and Wayne State University.

The current project builds upon three earlier phases of CGS research: a feasibility study supported by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation and The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation; a survey development phase supported by the Mellon, Sloan, and National Science Foundations (NSF #1534620); a survey implementation phase supported by the Mellon Foundation and NSF (#1661272); and an examination of factors likely to impact retention and persistence in STEM careers, particularly for underrepresented students, supported by NSF (#2000750).

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