Image alt

Graduate Education Policies & Resources Survey - From Health to Conflict Resolution and Career Development

Megan Damico, Michael Rudokas, Christina Kling, Alessandra Zimmermann

In 2020, members of the National Science Policy Network’s (NSPN) graduate education committee created a working group to evaluate the perception of policies and resources available to graduate students in higher education institutions throughout the United States. Many reports had indicated an increase in graduate student health, workplace, and career preparation issues that should have been addressed by current institutional policies and resources. To identify the source of these issues and why the available resources were insufficient, the working group decided to study the graduate student perceptions of these policies and resources. This lead to the development of a national survey which was administered in Spring of 2021. The results of this survey were then analyzed and documented in several publications.

Mapping Graduate Student Perceptions of Policies and Resources (Full Report, 2022)

Knowledge of the policies and resources that protect and assist graduate students varies wildly between students - to everyone’s detriment. This report looks at trends in graduate and professional student’s understanding of the policies that govern and the resources available to them, their commentary about the ones they’re aware of, and proposed next steps to make policies and resources more effective in the future. The study found that on top of improving current resources, better advertising and discussion of policies on a more regular basis will help students navigate tough times, utilize the skill building resources available, and make the most of their time in graduate school.