Welcome to the Graduate Community of Scholars!
The Graduate Community of Scholars (GCOS) at Binghamton University offers resources to help you thrive in your personal life and gain a competitive edge in your professional life - whether you're starting your master's degree or completing your doctoral degree.
We are a learning community that welcomes all graduate students, at all levels, in all disciplines.
Each semester, GCOS hosts a series of workshops designed to develop the graduate community as scholars, teachers, professionals and members of the Binghamton University community. These workshops join with various campus organizations, departments, centers or units to tailor the information to the interests and needs of graduate life. These workshops follow the Binghamton University PREP Model, which resolves around four themes and competencies that are vital for every graduate student: planning, resilience, engagement and professionalism.
Planning: Learn skills that emphasize proper planning throughout your graduate career, such as resume- and grant-writing, thinking like a professional and creating a syllabus.
Resilience: Learn strategies to ensure and thrive through writing planning for dissertations and theses and managing mental health as a graduate student.
Engagement: Learn strategies for effective communication, networking, and active involvement in the workplace, classroom and community.
Professionalism: Learn and maintain the highest professional standards in teaching, research and publishing.
These workshops are free and open to all graduate students in all disciplines.
If you are interested in more information or if you have a request for a particular workshop topic, please email Ellen Tilden at gcos@binghamton.edu.
SPRING 2023 workshop schedule:
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Getting Ready for Spring - Planning Your Writing Project DATE: Friday, February 10, Noon - 1:00 p.m. In this workshop, you’ll do a step-by-step review of your current writing and research project. You’ll review the current status of the project and begin the process of breaking the project down into tasks and actions. Then, you’ll review those tasks and actions so that you can identify your priorities and goals for your work this semester. We will also discuss how to sustain yourself (maintain energy, maintain motivation, face setbacks) over the course of a long project. |
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Online Jungle - Finding a Coding Community on the Internet DATE: Wednesday, February 22, Noon - 1:00 p.m. Codes can be difficult to remember; you are not alone in your project. This workshop will highlight online resources that coding communities build up for others. We will learn how to find the required codes for our projects from websites like Github and Stack Overflow. Also, we will talk about online resources that help us to improve our statistical knowledge and coding skills on a daily basis. REGISTER HERE. |
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Zotero and Citation Basics DATE: Thursday, February 23, Noon - 1:00 p.m. Are you planning or actively writing a thesis or dissertation? Learn why and how to use the (free!) citation management tool Zotero which helps collect, organize, and cite your sources. This workshop will explain why other citation tools like EasyBib and Citation Machine aren't great, and demonstrate Zotero in action. Time will also be given to download and set up a Zotero account, as well as ask questions about citations tied to your work. REGISTER HERE. |
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Rapid Agent-based Model Prototyping in NetLogo DATE: Wednesday, March 15, Noon - 1:00 p.m. This is an introduction to sketching out an idea for a social science agent-based model using the NetLogo platform. Agent-based modeling specifies programs for the agents/actors in a model and then simulates outcomes by letting the agents interact in a virtual environment: some call it “SimCity with policy implications.” NetLogo is an ABM platform that is uniquely suited for this. In this workshop, we will rapidly prototype a model based on modeling choices developed and selected collaboratively by the participants. NetLogo is available as a free download here: https://ccl.northwestern.edu/netlogo/download.shtml REGISTER HERE. |
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Writing Your Teaching Philosophy Statement DATE: Friday, March 17, Noon - 1:00 p.m. Once you've identified your own teaching philosophy, it's time to write your teaching philosophy statement. In this workshop, we will look at examples to identify the features of a teaching philosophy statement with special attention to organization, contents and style. We will also discuss how to adapt your statement to different jobs, as well as strategies for drafting your statement. REGISTER HERE. |
Previously Offered Workshops
FALL 2022 workshop schedule:
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Getting Ready for Fall - Planning Your Writing Project DATE: Friday, September 9, Noon - 1:00 p.m. In this workshop, you’ll do a step-by-step review of your current writing and research project. You’ll review the current status of the project and begin the process of breaking the project down into tasks and actions. Then, you’ll review those tasks and actions so that you can identify your priorities and goals for your work this semester. We will also discuss how to sustain yourself (maintain energy, maintain motivation, face setbacks) over the course of a long project. |
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Conducting A Statistical Project with STATA and R DATE: Thursday, September 22, Noon - 1:00 p.m. Running a statistical project can be cumbersome as it requires merging statistical knowledge and coding skills. This workshop will illustrate how to conduct a statistical project in both STATA and R environments. We will discuss how to upload a dataset, check its summary statistics, generate plots of certain variables, and explore correlations between dependent and independent variables. |
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NSF DDRIG (Doctoral Dissertation Research Improvement Grant) Info Session DATE: Friday, September 30, Noon - 1:00 p.m. This info session will introduce graduate students to the National Science Foundation’s Doctoral Dissertation Research Improvement Grant programs (DDRIG). The DDRIG provides funds up to $20,000 for doctoral students to improve the quality of their dissertation research. An overview of the DDRIG programs, successful proposal preparation, NSF review criteria, and the submission process will be provided. We will also discuss an upcoming DDRIG writing support group for graduate students to help draft and submit their proposals, which will be offered by the Office of Strategic Research Initiatives. NSF currently offers the following DDRIG programs: Archaeology; Biological Anthropology; Cultural Anthropology; Decision, Risk, and Management Sciences; Economics; Human-Environment and Geographical Sciences; Law & Science; Linguistics; Methodology, Measurement, and Statistics; Political Science; Science and Technology Studies; and Sociology. |
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Defining Your Teaching Philosophy DATE: Friday, October 7, Noon - 1:00 p.m. When graduate students face the prospect of writing the Teaching Philosophy Statement, they often realize that they’ve never quite worked out their philosophy of teaching. In this workshop, we’ll look at questions to ask yourself about how you approach teaching and how you understand the goals of teaching in your discipline. We’ll explore some resources about teaching that can help you clarify your thinking. This is a workshop for graduate students at any stage in their program or teaching career. |
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Generating Data from the Web DATE: Thursday, November 10, Noon - 1:00 p.m. In this workshop, we will discuss how to automate the extraction of data from websites. Web scraping helps us gather large data sets and then build statistical models to conduct analyses. |
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Writing Your Teaching Philosophy Statement DATE: Friday, November 11, Noon - 1:00 p.m. Once you've identified your own teaching philosophy, it's time to write your teaching philosophy statement. In this workshop, we will look at examples to identify the features of a teaching philosophy statement with special attention to organization, contents and style. We will also discuss how to adapt your statement to different jobs, as well as strategies for drafting your statement. |
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Mathematica Essentials: Introduction & Overview DATE: Thursday, December 1, Noon - 1:00 p.m. Mathematica is a computer software package for doing mathematical computation and exploration. It contains hundreds of mathematical functions, commands for producing graphics, and a complete programming language. During this one-hour workshop, attendees will get a hands-on introduction to using Mathematica. They will learn how to use Mathematica to create notebooks, perform symbolic and numeric calculations, and generate 2D and 3D graphics. |
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Dissertation Bootcamp DATES: Monday, January 9 - Friday, January 13 A week-long, writing intensive workshop for graduate students working on their dissertation or thesis that will consist of morning and afternoon sessions and include "Write on Site" sessions, writing accountability groups, and faculty presentations. Space is limited and it is expected that students who register will attend all sessions during the week. |
SPRING 2022 workshop schedule:
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Getting Ready for Spring - Planning Your Writing Project Friday, February 11, Noon - 1:00 p.m. In this workshop, you’ll do a step-by-step review of your current writing and research project. You’ll review the current status of the project and begin the process of breaking the project down into tasks and actions. Then, you’ll review those tasks and actions so that you can identify your priorities and goals for your work this semester. We will also discuss how to sustain yourself (maintain energy, maintain motivation, face setbacks) over the course of a long project. |
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How to Ask for What You Want (and Get It) Friday, March 4, Noon - 1:00 p.m. What is the secret to increasing the likelihood that you'll get what you want when you ask for it? In this session we will explore how to identify what you really want and will reveal the number one mindset shift you can make to make it more likely that you will get it. |
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The Coding World; Tools and Languages Wednesday, March 23, Noon - 1:00 p.m. The coding world in a maze. To find the right path, we must know the basics of this world. In this workshop, we will review the tools and languages that are available to us. Specifically, we will cover Python, R, STATA, JavaScript, Java, HTML and CSS. |
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Writing Your Teaching Philosophy Statement Friday, March 25, Noon - 1:00 p.m. Once you've identified your own teaching philosophy, it's time to write your teaching philosophy statement. In this workshop, we will look at examples to identify the features of a teaching philosophy statement with special attention to organization, contents and style. We will also discuss how to adapt your statement to different jobs, as well as strategies for drafting your statement. |
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Stress Management Guide for Graduate Students Thursday, April 7, Noon - 1:00 p.m. This workshop will focus on stress management and coping techniques, as well as discuss the signs of depression and anxiety, and how to tell the difference. |
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Copyright and Your Thesis or Dissertation Friday, April 8, Noon - 1:00 p.m. Not sure if copyright applies to an image, data, text, or other information in your thesis or dissertation? Librarians can help! This workshop will address copyright considerations from creating your work through submitting the final copy electronically. We will discuss other resources including Creative Commons, Open Access content in the ORB (Open Repository), and additional options for digital projects. Bring your questions! |
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Python for Beginners Wednesday, April 13, Noon - 1:00 p.m. Python is one of the most popular languages in the coding world. It is used for data wrangling, exploration, analysis, and visualization. This workshop will illustrate the basic functions, packages, and integrated development environments (IDE's) that are available for users. |
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Introduction to Text Analysis Wednesday, May 4, Noon - 1:00 p.m. Text analysis offers a powerful data-gathering process to extract meaning from digital text. This workshop will examine methods and practices for text analysis. We will cover the major techniques for mining and analyzing text data to discover interesting patterns, extract useful knowledge, support decision making, and find and prepare texts. To do so, we cover computational text analysis techniques and statistical approaches that can be generally applied to arbitrary text data in any natural language. You will learn the basic concepts, principles, and major algorithms in text mining and their potential applications. The goal of the workshop is for you to walk away knowing how to assemble a corpus and some of the tools available to analyze it. |
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Getting Ready for Summer - Planning Your Writing Project Friday, May 13, Noon - 1:00 p.m. In this workshop, you’ll do a step-by-step review of your current writing and research project. You’ll review the current status of the project and begin the process of breaking the project down into tasks and actions. Then, you’ll review those tasks and actions so that you can identify your priorities and goals for your work this summer. We will also discuss how to sustain yourself (maintain energy, maintain motivation, face setbacks) over the course of a long project. |
FALL 2021 workshop schedule:
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Getting Ready for Fall - Part I: Set Your Writing Project Goals Friday, September 10, Noon - 1:00 p.m. In Part One of this two-part series of guided workshops, you’ll do a step-by-step review of your current writing and research project. You’ll review the current status of the project and begin the process of breaking the project down into tasks and actions. Then, you’ll review those tasks and actions so that you can identify your priorities and goals for your work this semester. We will also discuss how to sustain yourself (maintain energy, maintain motivation, face setbacks) over the course of a long project. |
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Getting Ready for Fall - Part II: Map Your Goals to Time Friday, September 17, Noon - 1:00 p.m. In Part Two of this two-part series of guided workshops, you’ll explore how you can map your priorities and goals to the time available. We will do a step-by-step review of your time commitments so that you can identify the best times for you to write. We will discuss how to organize your writing sessions so that you can use your time well and discuss strategies that help writers maintain motivation and maintain a sense of control over the process, such as routine reflection. We’ll continue a discussion of how to prioritize sustaining yourself even when you feel as though you have no time. |
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Teaching Assistant (TA) Training Workshop Friday, October 1, Noon - 2:00 p.m. Join us to learn more about improving your teaching skills, overcoming common classroom issues, and developing active learning strategies for your students. |
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Defining Your Teaching Philosophy Friday, October 8, Noon - 1:00 p.m. When graduate students face the prospect of writing the Teaching Philosophy Statement, they often realize that they’ve never quite worked out their philosophy of teaching. In this workshop, we’ll look at questions to ask yourself about how you approach teaching and how you understand the goals of teaching in your discipline. We’ll explore some resources about teaching that can help you clarify your thinking. This is a workshop for graduate students at any stage in their program or teaching career. |
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Dissertation Bootcamp Monday, January 10 - Friday, January 14 A week-long, writing intensive workshop for graduate students working on their dissertation or thesis that will consist of morning and afternoon sessions and include "Write on Site" sessions, writing accountability groups, and faculty presentations. Space is limited and it is expected that students who register will attend all sessions during the week. |
Ellen Tilden
Associate Director for Academic and Graduate Student Affairs
Graduate School
