[Bgsa] additions to letter

[Darren Rebar]

Hi all,

First off, many thank yous for those who gave feedback on the first draft of the letter.  We are in the process of incorporating all of the suggestions.  So, thank you for taking the time to let us know what you think.

Second, there are a couple additions that we would like to add to the letter and just wanted to pass them by you for approval.  Please take a look at them and feel free to comment - we're hoping to have a final draft ready by Monday, Dec. 1, so please respond before then.

Thanks again,
Darren

Here are the additions:

First, the addition of a phrase to our request about communicating more openly with foreign students in their acceptance letters that would mention the amount of time required to finish the program (foreign students are expected to finish in 5 years, at least if they want to avoid paying non-resident tuition).  The new version would say:

"they should be informed, in their acceptance letter, of how the average time to achieving candidacy status and completing a degree in EEOB compares to the university requirements."

Second, the addition of a section on making funding more flexible to facilitate fieldwork:

"Flexibility to facilitate fieldwork.  The current system for providing funding to graduate students in our program places serious barriers in the way of doing field studies.  These barriers could be greatly lessened by administrative changes that would provide greater flexibility in how funding is provided.  For instance, in the past it was possible for students to take a double teaching load in one term and then receive funding in another term without having to teach. This made it possible for students to carry out field research during academic terms without having to find money to support themselves
during a substantial portion of the year.  Domestic students also have sometimes taken a research leave of absence in order to carry out field studies.  However, this option is apparently not open to foreign students because their status during terms when they take a leave of absence invalidates their student visas.  Because of non-resident tuition, as well as exchange rates that favor the U.S. dollar over most foreign currencies, paying tuition and fees during the terms when a student needs to do field work may not be a viable option for many foreign students. We understand that there are difficult administratrative hurdles to be crossed in order to facilitate field research carried out during regular academic terms.  However, if faculty believe that field research is an important part of the EEOB graduate program, then greater efforts must be made to make it easier for students to receive funding, or at least avoid having to pay fees and tuition, during terms when they need to be in the field.  Because of the timing of the quarter system and barriers created by the inflexibility of the system for providing funding, many current students find it difficult to recommend our program to prospective students who are interested in doing field studies."

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Darren Rebar
EEOBGSA President
MS Student
Department of Biology
University of California, Riverside
Riverside, CA 92521
Cell: 951.202.9377
Email: darren.rebar at email.ucr.edu

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