University Council on Graduate Study Meeting Minutes Tuesday, February 13, 2024
The minutes from the December 2023 meeting were approved (27 in favor) pending the following edit: Add Academic Structure Subcommittee members: Matt McKenzie and Soumalya Ghosh.
The minutes from the January 2024 meeting were approved (30 in favor) pending the following edits:
- Add Graduate Advising and Mentoring Subcommittee members: Jacob Cuyler, Gerard Dorve-Lowis, Brooke Dresden, Sai Vivek Chara, and Danielle Nahas.
- Add Course Repeat/G Grade Subcommittee member: Ketki Raina.
- Add Graduate Faculty Subcommittee recommendations: 1) State that faculty who leave or retire be converted to Auxiliary status, and 2) Add language regarding suspending or revoking graduate faculty status which would require recommendation from Dean to Provost.
Academic Program Proposals
Proposal to establish a micro-credential on Public Policy Theory and Analysis
The Graduate School of Public and International Affairs proposed to establish a micro-credential to benefit PhD students across campus whose planned dissertation research bears some relevance to public policy. Specific relevant units might include political science and economics. The combination of coursework on theory of the policy process, policy analysis, and a third course on a substantive policy area (potentially directly related to their own work) that make up this micro- credential will provide a broader, interdisciplinary lens to their own policy-relevant work than they might receive through purely within-discipline coursework. The micro-credential will be promoted to all PhD Program Directors across campus and there are no prerequisites to a student being enrolled.
A motion was made and seconded to recommend to the Provost that the proposal be approved. Members present voted in favor of recommending approval to the Provost (29 in favor; 3 abstain).
Announcements
DOD student service members statement
The University of Pittsburgh will promptly readmit a service member with the same academic status they had when last attending or accepted for admission. This requirement applies to any student who cannot attend school due to military service.
Clarification and a point of contact was requested of the Office of Veteran Services for the section in the statement, “The cumulative length of the absence and of all previous absences from the University of Pittsburgh for military service may not exceed five years. Only the time the student spends actually performing service is counted.”
Guidance from the Office of Veteran Services for how a School can provide support to a readmitted student “to resume the program at the point where they left off” as it pertains to an academic program with a student cohort.
Report on graduate admissions and national trends
Jennifer Walker presented on graduate and professional admissions and enrollment. She summarized what has happened since 2020 with the implementation of GradCAS and its integration with PeopleSoft. Data was then presented on total applications and yield (enrolled) for research doctorates and masters and professional doctorates and masters in fall 2022 and fall 2023. Data included underrepresented student populations, Pennsylvania residents, international students, test optional (96% of all graduate and professional programs do not require GRE), and holistic admissions (100% of all programs). The next steps include integrating first generation student status and Pell eligibility into the data, reviewing the decision-letter template, continuing the support for holistic admissions and graduate program marketing and student recruitment.
Attendance
Guests: Daniel Jones (GSPIA), Jennifer Walker (OTP)
- Katz Graduate School of Business - Rebecca Badawy
- School of Law - Chelsea Beaulieu
- Swanson School of Engineering - Bryan Brown
- School of Public Health - Jessica Burke
- School of Computing and Information - Sai Vivek Chava
- Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences - Robert Clift
- School of Pharmacy - Jacob Cuyler
- School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences - Mark DeRuiter
- School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences - Michael Dickey
- School of Education - Gerard Dorve-Lewis
- School of Medicine - Brooke Dresden
- Katz Graduate School of Business - Dennis Galletta
- Office of the Provost - Chair - Amanda Godley
- School of Nursing - Susan Grayson
- School of Education - Michael Gunzenhauser
- Office of the Registrar, Observer - Jonathan Helm
- School of Social Work - Hyun Jin Lee
- Katz Graduate School of Business - Abdoulai Jobe
- School of Computing and Information - James Joshi
- School of Medicine - Saleem Khan
- School of Medicine - Robin Lee
- School of Medicine - Wendy Mars
- Office of the Provost - Shannon Mischler
- Graduate School of Public and International Affairs - Erica Owen
- Swanson School of Engineering - Bob Parker
- School of Social Work - Helen Petracchi
- School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences - Ketki Raina
- School of Dental Medicine - Nadine Robert
- Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences - Pernille Roege
- SEPC - Michelle Schein
- School of Nursing - Elizabeth Schlenk
- School of Dental Medicine - Christine Wankiiri-Hale
- Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences - Jonathan Woon
- School of Public Health - Ada Youk