Written on April 17, 2018
Quality Of Life Survey Response
After writing the Climate Survey Summary, the CSGSA identified 15 common or troubling issues that we wanted the department to directly respond to.
We asked the Graduate Committee to provide a brief response in the form of a table before the Town Hall on April 19th, so the issues can be discussed there. The table appears below.
| Issue | Department Response | CSGSA Response |
|---|---|---|
| >50% of respondents don't know who to speak to if they have a conflict with their advisor | Same as the harrassment response below, I think we should elevate and make clear the role of the graduate committee chair to handle issues like this. | |
| ~30% of respondents do not agree that they are respected members of the CS department | Address this during Town Hall on the 19th. | The CSGSA will act as a liason to facilitate communication between the department and student body about ongoing and new measures to improve the graduate experience |
| ~30% of respondents do not agree that CS provides necessary research support to graduate in a timely manner. | Follow up to determine what kind of research support is requested. | |
| Harassment reported by 10% of survey respondents | Aware Grad Students that Grad Directors of Grad Comm are the point of contact for students in this situation. The department will create a sheet of contact person vs. type of case and share with students. The department will also work on introducing an app where students can anonymously report such indcidents.GSA will help the department on the awareness side | |
| Stipends do not reflect cost of living in Boulder | 6% raise this upcoming year. However, the department is aware of this situation and has every intention of supporting any effrots to raise the stipends | UGGS is in negotations with the university about raising stipends across campus |
| Course scarcity | The established Grad Curriculum Commiteee should include a student rep and also work in coordiantion with the two Lead TAs | |
| Low Teaching Quality | The Grad Advisor has been reqeuesting for constructive feedback from students to start the conversation. | |
| Weak Community | Presence of CSGSA should help with this. | |
| Fragmented department and lack of study locations | We hope to gain more space in the Engineering Center when the Aerospace building opens in Fall 2019 | |
| Too many administrative hoops with vague requirements | Feedback is needed here: as soon as a vague requirement is spotted, it should be brought up to the graduate advisor and the gradcomm chair so it may be promptly addressed. |
Masters
| Issue | Department Response | CSGSA Response |
|---|---|---|
| Research labs are difficult for Masters students to join | We might want to introduce "intro to research" class for traditional MS students. WE need feedback on this from MS students. | |
| Masters students want more job opportunities | We will advocate with Career Services for more relevant events | |
| Masters students want better advising | Grad Advisor holds group sessions and open appointment times - no one shows up, so not sure what kind of advising students are looking for. It would be nice to figure that out. |
Distance Learners
| Issue | Department Response | CSGSA Response |
|---|---|---|
| Distance students report difficult communication with faculty | ||
| No events for distance learners | We will provide a Zoom link for the upcoming Town Hall. We are discussing the possibility of live-streaming colloquia and dissertation talks. |