July 17, 2017
Dear Graduate Students,
I hope you are having an enjoyable and productive summer. My name is Nathan Urban and I am the new Vice Provost for Graduate Studies. The Provost provides academic oversight for the entire University, and as the Vice Provost for Graduate Studies, my role is to ensure that Pitt is an outstanding place for graduate and professional education and training. You can learn more about me and my thoughts on graduate studies at Pitt in a recent Q&A.
I am excited to work with you, your faculty, and many others to build on the excellence for which Pitt graduate programs are known and to enhance your experience and your achievements as graduate students. I also look forward to hearing from you. My impression is that Pitt graduate and professional students are very diverse in their educational and co-curricular needs. I’ll be working to find opportunities to meet with you, to learn more about your perspectives, and to use that information to gain insight into ways to support you throughout your graduate school experience. I will be reaching out to you and to your elected leaders across campus to set up times when we can gather for conversation, but if you would like to share your thoughts sooner, please email me at graduate@pitt.edu.
There are changes underway that I want to let you know about. Several of these changes focus on better informing graduate students about programs and supports offered by the University.
First, we are developing a new website focused on pulling together resources and opportunities available specifically for graduate students. This site offers news and information about the many programs available for support of graduate students and their training. It just went live last Friday, and we’ll be asking you for feedback on questions it should answer and how it can be made more useful to graduate and professional students.
Graduate student orientation, this year on Tuesday, August 22nd, is also being enhanced to give new students more opportunities to learn about services and programs offered by the University. The orientation will occur from 2:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. at Soldiers & Sailors Memorial Hall & Museum, with a picnic and cookout to follow from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. on the Cathedral of Learning Lawn by the Log Cabin. This event is organized by the Graduate and Professional Student Government (GPSG), with support from Graduate Studies in the Office of the Provost For more information, see the GPSG orientation site.
Look for additional e-mails later in the summer and in the Fall with information about programs and opportunities. If you have news to share or stories that you think I should hear, email me at graduate@pitt.edu.
Nathan Urban
Vice Provost for Graduate Studies