1:27 p.m., Sept. 5, 2008----The University of Delaware formally welcomed students who will be pursuing master's and doctoral degrees at the New Graduate Student Convocation, held Wednesday, Sept. 3, in the Louise and David P. Roselle Center for the Arts.

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University President Patrick Harker welcomed the audience of more than 300 graduate students, senior administrators, faculty and staff in Thompson Theatre.

“Now, you are part of a most distinguished institution, with a history extending back to 1743,” Harker said. “More importantly, this is a University that is committed to the future, to building our strengths and becoming one of the premier institutions of higher learning in the United States.”

The University currently offers 110 master's degree programs and 43 doctoral programs across seven colleges and in collaboration with more than 50 research centers.

Harker noted that the University welcomes the enthusiasm, dedication and effort of its graduate students as a key component to its plans for future success.

“You are joining UD at a very exciting time in its history. Your University is headed on a Path to Prominence^TM,” Harker said. “We will touch on the most important issues of today, for Delaware, the nation and the world, with a constant focus on creating a diverse and stimulating environment for academic research, graduate and service innovation and excellence.”

To achieve the goals of its strategic plan and roadmap for the future, Harker said that as an institution, UD must develop intellectual leaders and provide the intellectual leadership required to address current and future global challenges on a wide range of issues.

“Your achievements as scholars carry with them the personal responsibility to use the advanced knowledge you gain to improve your community and the world and to further expand the boundaries of human understanding,” Harker said. “I look forward to the energy and intellectual vigor you bring to our University community.”

Debra Hess Norris, vice provost for graduate and professional education, highlighted many of the accomplishments of the 1,191 newest graduate students and said that they “inspire me by their excitement and commitment to excellence.”

Accomplishments cited by Norris include students working on the floor of the Pacific Ocean investigating hydrothermal vents, publishing a paper reporting on brain substrates that underlie recognition memory, participating in projects that investigated autism, schizophrenia and biopolar disorder, as well as research in sustainable development surrounding regional transportation.

“In the weeks to come, you will learn more about each other, and we will be greatly enriched by your presence,” Norris said. “You will be strengthened by shared experiences and traditions, and we hope that you will start some new traditions today.”

Norris also encouraged the newest graduate students to develop friendships, explore all phases of academic life and to pursue opportunities outside of their own academic discipline.

“Work collaboratively, reveal your passion and engage the public in your work wherever possible, share your enthusiasm, skills and talents,” said Norris, who concluded her remarks with a nod to “four special musicians,” by noting that “it may be a hard day's night, on a long and winding road, but success will be yours, here, there and everywhere. Just imagine!”

Mary Martin, assistant provost for graduate and professional education, asked new graduate students to consider the letters in the word “begin” as a guide to provide value and understanding in getting started in graduate school.

• B--means that you belong;
• E--the experience and education in your background;
• G--for the goals you set for yourself and the ones you will formulate as you progress through the program;
• I--investment in time and energy and even finance; and
• N--form new relationships with those who will become your colleagues.

“As you begin your graduate education, the UD faculty and staff stand ready to help you meet the challenges and opportunities that UD has to offer,” Martin said. “The staff in the Office of Graduate and Professional Education stand ready to provide assistance and answers to questions that you may have. We will support and recognize your accomplishments along the way.”

Provost Dan Rich, who introduced the deans of UD's seven colleges, said that student success is the only true measure of success for the University of Delaware.

“In fact, I happen to believe that it is the only true measure of success for any educational institution,” Rich said. “If the students succeed, then all else follows. If the students don't succeed, nothing else compensates.”

Rich also noted that being a graduate student at UD is an opportunity unavailable to most people around the world.

“I ask that you recognize and appreciate the exceptional privilege that you have earned,” Rich said. “Never take your opportunity for a University of Delaware graduation for granted; never consider your opportunity for advanced education an entitlement.”

Michelle Maughan, a graduate-level student in the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources and president of the Graduate Student Senate, urged graduate students to get to know each other and to commit to making a difference in the UD and larger community.

“You should plan to attend graduate student get-togethers and meet your peers,” Maughan said. “We are here for you. Good luck with your semester.”

New Graduate Student Convocation also included a screening of “The Graduate Student Experience,” a video produced by Charles Marsh, a senior in the College of Health Sciences. A pair of bagpipers concluded the ceremony, which was followed by a reception.

Graduate student facts

Here are overall statistics on UD's newest group of grad students:

• Number of new graduate students: 1,191;
• Number of applications: 5,667, with 46 percent from the United States and 54 percent from 103 different countries; and
• During calendar year 2007, UD awarded 792 master's degrees, 161 Ph.D. degrees, 27 DPT degrees and 27 EED degrees. By the college (with largest group of students in each college noted in parentheses):

• Agriculture and Natural Resources, 69 (statistics);
• Arts and Sciences, 329 (physical therapy);
• Lerner College of Business and Economics, 274 (MBA);
• Engineering, 136 (chemical engineering);
• Health Sciences, 86 (nursing);
• Human Services, Education and Public Policy, 250 (educational leadership and urban affairs); and
• Marine and Earth Studies, 20 (marine studies).

The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching classifies UD as a research university with very high research activity, a designation accorded to fewer than 3 percent of the more than 4,300 degree-granting institutions in the United States.

For more information, visit the Office of Graduate and Professional Studies at [www.udel.edu/gradoffice].

Article by Jerry Rhodes
Video produced by Charles Marsh, University Media Services
Photos by Duane Perry