Fall 2010 Academic Advisement

Students may call beginning July 12th to schedule advisement for the upcoming fall semester. The advisement period will run from August 16th to September 2nd. Please remember that all students who are still completing course work must have an advising appointment before receiving access codes for fall courses. Students who will only be registering for Maintenance of Matriculation are not required to have an appointment.

Please call 212-998-8070 starting July 12th to schedule an appointment

This information will remain available on the Draper website, under News and Events.

MA Thesis Workshop Recap, Shanna Farrell

In addition to Scott Campbell's response to Draper's recent MA Thesis Workshop, we now have a post from Shanna Farrell, who also attended the event that evening. Shanna's recap is below; let us know if you attended and would like to contribute your thoughts!

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On Friday evening, March 12th, Draperites gathered for a thesis writing workshop given by Professors Daniel Thurs and Rebecca Colesworthy. Attendees discussed each of their thesis topics, which are in various stages of completion. After a brief overview of the workshop and a summary of each attendee's topic of research, the floor opened for an informative Q&A session. Questions spanning the spectrum from general to specific were asked, which prompted the half running joke/half earnest response "ask your advisor".

This led to the subject of choosing and working with an advisor, which seemed to be a pertinent issue for everyone present. Several important pieces of information were discussed. When a student approaches a potential advisor, the better the two know each other the more inclined a faculty member might be to accept the challenge. (It should be emphasized that faculty reserve the right to say no.) One way to make time with an advisor more efficient is for a student to present the advisor with as many writing samples as possible. Preliminary bibliographies, similar pieces or studies, and specific questions can also help an advisor help their advisee. Some Draperites raised concerns about the feasibility of having multiple advisors or advising committees. One response to this question was that some faculty members who have similar research interests as a student don't necessarily require an official advisor/advisee relationship to offer help and insight. In fact, a faculty member might be more willing to assist if a student doesn't need much more than some general guidance.

MA Thesis Workshop Recap, Scott Campbell

Since many students were unable to attend Draper's most recent MA Thesis Workshop, we've asked a few attendees to share some of the tips and advice that they found most useful during the session. Scott Campbell's write-up is below, and a few more students may contribute their thoughts on the workshop shortly. If you attended the workshop and would be willing to add to this discussion, please let us know!

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Reflecting on the Master's thesis workshop, I found several pieces of advice to be particularly useful. The first was when thinking about your topic to come up with three keywords that would describe the major focuses of your paper. These can serve as both frames for your thesis and as suggestions to guide your research, leading to sources that may not deal specifically with your topic, but do engage the keywords in a manner that would benefit your thesis. A second bit of advice was to try to find a source that makes a similar argument to the one you plan to make. This is not to copy the source or to be discouraged, but instead to serve as a guide to what is already out there and can help deepen your ideas. Also, if you can't find a source, reflect on what this might say about your topic. Is it too broad or difficult to be dealt with effectively in 50 pages? Finally, the part that adds an extra layer for my thesis project is the human component. Remember that even if all you are doing is talking to another human being and using that person as a source for your thesis, then you likely need approval from the University Committee on Activities Involving Human Subjects and NYU's Institutional Review Board. Not only will the certification and approval process take some time, but think about the impact it may have on your sources when you present them with a waiver to sign, and also the impact it may have on your thesis if at any time they decide to revoke their participation.

-Scott Campbell

Master's College Program Board Events

The GSAS Master’s College Program Board invites you to participate in these great events:

Sunday, March 28
Ice Skating at Wollman Rink
Free admission to the ice rink and metro card fun pass for all registrants, participants pay only for skate rental.
Meet at 1 pm at 6 Washington Square North in front of the Lions.

Wednesday, April 7
Trivia Challenge and Pub Night!
Come join us on Wednesday, April 7th at the Common Ground Bar and Restaurant, 206 Avenue A between 12^th and 13^th streets at 8pm for trivia night! Wear your finest NYU apparel and test your knowledge against other teams. First place receives at $50 gift certificate to the Common Ground and second place a $25 one. The first round is on us.

Saturday April 10
Meals on Wheels: Make a Difference, Make a Friend

Join masters students from across GSAS for a morning of service and camaraderie. Students will be volunteering Saturday April 10th from 9:15am to 11:00am delivering prepared meals to homebound seniors. Please consider donating your time to make a difference in the lives of elderly New Yorkers and to make new friends in the masters community. Following our volunteer engagement, we'll meet back in the Graduate lounge for pizza, drinks, and some time to chat and decompress. Free metro card fun pass for all registrants.

Saturday, April 10^th meet at 9 am at 6 Washington Square North in front of the Lions.


Tuesday, April 20
Master’s Study Break
At the Grad Lounge; Room 120 in the Silver Center

Need to blow off steam and regroup right before spring semester finals? Join fellow master's students for a study break to socialize and recharge. Refreshments will be served.

"Afterlives" English Conference at UCLA Call for Papers Still Open

UCLA English Department's Southland Graduate Conference, "Afterlives" takes place June 4, 2010.

Keynote Speakers are Mark Seltzer (Evan Frankel Professor of Literature, UCLA) and Saree Makdisi (Professor of English and Comparative Literature, UCLA)

Call for Papers is still open! Deadline is March 22nd.

More details on this blog, here.