In his remarks at Richardson Auditorium, Priestley encouraged the incoming graduate students to be “bold in your research and courageous in your pursuit of new knowledge.”
New graduate students welcomed to Princeton’s community of scholars: 'What you do here matters'
Princeton welcomed nearly 800 new graduate students to the University during Graduate School orientation Aug. 28 and 29 in events and activities across campus, from Procter Hall to Frist Campus Center and Alexander Beach. Among this year’s incoming group are students in two new doctoral programs: bioengineering and quantum science and engineering (QSE).
In his opening remarks to a packed house in Richardson Auditorium, Graduate School Dean Rodney Priestley welcomed students with rounds of applause and a warm greeting that included personal and scholarly reflections on the community they now join.
Priestley directed the students’ attention to the opening words of the University’s mission statement: “Princeton University advances learning through scholarship, research and teaching of unsurpassed quality.”
“As graduate students, you will partner with the faculty to push the boundaries of research and innovation,” said Priestley, who is also the Pomeroy and Betty Perry Smith Professor of Chemical and Biological Engineering at Princeton. “Over the next few years, you will write groundbreaking papers, deliver outstanding seminars and develop new intellectual property. In essence, because of your contributions to this community, we can achieve our mission.”
Urging students to be “bold in your research and courageous in your pursuit of new knowledge,” Priestley said, “This is an opportunity for you to follow your passions, get lost in your questions and ultimately emerge with answers — and new questions — that advance our understanding of the world around us.”
“What you do here matters,” Priestley said. “Your research will help define the future.”
He encouraged students to “learn from one another, partner with one another and uplift one another. The Graduate School is an amazing community of scholars now made better with your presence.”
Also speaking at last Wednesday’s event was Andrea Goldsmith, dean of the School of Engineering and Applied Science and the Arthur LeGrand Doty Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering, who commended the students on the achievements that have brought them to Princeton. “The preeminent faculty at Princeton in your chosen fields have been deeply impressed by your accomplishments and your vision for the research and education you hope to undertake during your time here,” she said.
Goldsmith praised Priestley and the Graduate School staff for their “dedication, passion and compassion,” and encouraged students to engage with the community and take advantage of the school’s many programs. “The conversation sparked through these activities will make you a better professional, a better leader and a citizen of the world better able to identify and address complex topics,” she said.
Laurence Latimer *01, president of the Association of the Princeton Graduate Alumni (APGA), also addressed the assembly, welcoming the new graduate students to the global community of 30,000 graduate alums and the broader University alumni community that is some 100,000 strong.
Enhanced mentoring
During his remarks, Priestley announced that Hendrik Lorenz, a professor of philosophy, will join the Graduate School as a vice dean for this academic year. Lorenz will focus on mentoring in graduate education at Princeton.
Calling the relationship between a student and research advisor “critically important,” Priestley said that he shares Lorenz's view that informal mentoring can be equally valuable. Lorenz has written that community building and informal conversations about the “unwritten syllabus,” academic etiquette, and norms and practices are vital parts of academic life that should be given care and attention.
During the year, Lorenz will work with deans in the Graduate School to build new training and support structures to enhance graduate mentoring.
This year’s participants in the Graduate School’s Graduate Scholars Program met in small multi-disciplinary groups in Taylor Auditorium at the Frick Chemistry Laboratory during the second day of a two-day pre-orientation retreat.
‘Finding a sense of identity’
The morning program also had its lighter moments. The Graduate School staff cheered and waved orange pompoms as students filed into Alexander Hall, and students laughed and clapped as Priestley lightheartedly polled the audience about their degree programs and their feelings about starting graduate school. The latest cohort of incoming students to the Graduate School joins a community of almost 3,400 graduate students from 91 countries, spread across 45 departments and programs in the humanities, social sciences, natural sciences and engineering.
Grad student Nimra Nadeem ‘21 is returning to Princeton to get a master’s degree in computer science after working in industry in New York. She admits she was nervous about coming back, knowing the rigor of graduate studies in the field. “But there's something about Dean Priestley talking about the academy — how we made it and that we should be proud, and the clapping and cheering. I feel like there was a sense of community.”
Community was also the takeaway for Daniel Williams, an incoming graduate student pursuing his Ph.D. in computer science. “I love how lively everything felt. I feel like I'm getting to be a part of the family, finding a sense of identity here,” he said. “So I'm not just attending Princeton, and it's not just where I am now, but it's a new culture I'm being brought into.”
Williams earned his undergraduate degree at the University of Maryland-Baltimore County and plans to continue his research here toward applying artificial intelligence to clean energy systems, including nuclear fusion.
The Graduate School staff cheered and waved orange pompoms as students filed into Alexander Hall. Amid the clapping and cheering, “I feel like there was a sense of community,” said grad student Nimra Nadeem ’21, who is returning to Princeton for a master’s degree in computer science after working in industry in New York.
Practical advice
Over the two days of orientation, graduate students received practical information on topics such as financial management, professional development, and library and computing resources, and attended resource fairs connecting them with campus offices and student organizations.
At the Success in Graduate School panel, three faculty members and three experienced graduate students offered advice and perspective, suggesting that students create routines, make time for opportunities and friendships beyond their work, and anticipate that their life at this “next stage” will be complicated and challenging — which, they emphasized, is entirely normal.
Erika Milam, the Charles C. and Emily R. Gillispie Professor in the History of Science and Professor of History, offered, “Graduate school is a marathon, not a sprint. It may feel like your work is never done.”
She encouraged students to develop an informal mentoring team beyond their faculty advisor, as well as friendships with other graduate students, reminding them, “You are not in this alone.”
Pre-orientation retreat builds camaraderie and skills
Earlier in the week, nearly 60 incoming graduate students from across 32 departments attended a two-day pre-orientation retreat as part of the Graduate Scholars Program (GSP), which also provides mentorship and social and academic support throughout the year. About 300 graduate students have participated in GSP since it launched in 2018.
This year’s retreat allowed GSP’s newest cohort of graduate scholars to develop connections and foster community “so everyone feels a sense of belonging even before the Graduate School orientation,” said Joseph Lewis, the Graduate School’s associate dean for access, diversity and inclusion. In addition to attending sessions focused on skills for graduate-level research, the new scholars toured campus and socialized.
“Not only have I already made friends,” said music composition graduate student Devin Greenwood, from New York, “but I'm meeting people across departments that I wouldn't have met otherwise.”
Incoming graduate students get into the Tiger spirit at orientation with Princeton’s Tiger mascot. The new students join a global community of 30,000 graduate alumni and the broader University alumni community that is some 100,000 strong.