Orientation, New Center and Other Resources Available for Graduate Students

Dedicated to fostering a supportive community for all graduate students, San Diego State University has introduced or expanded programs and services, including a universitywide orientation, housing, expanded financial support and a resource center tailored to meet their specific needs. 

The New Graduate Student Orientation on Aug. 13 will complement program-specific orientation sessions being held this summer and fall and help facilitate a successful transition for graduate students into their advanced programs.  

Graduate students are invited to register for the university-wide virtual orientation by July 30 at 11:59 p.m. (PDT), and to select a morning or afternoon session. More information is available on the New Graduate Student Orientation website.   

“Everything we have developed and continue to introduce at SDSU in service to our graduate and professional students is meant to support them academically, professionally and socially,” said Tracy Love, recently appointed as the inaugural dean of the College of Graduate Studies.   

Students who choose to register to attend will pay a $250 fee, which may be paid through the existing student fee structure when due later this year. The cost will cover access to the following:

• A pre-orientation module covering many aspects of university life and resources 
• A live 3.5 hour virtual orientation event on August 13
• An in-person campus tour conducted in small groups during Aug. 17-19, followed by lunch and implicit bias training.
• Welcome packets with SDSU swag. 
• A monthly seminar series during the academic year (eight events) jointly designed and led by Student Affairs and Campus Diversity and the College of Graduate Studies. Topics will include:
  • Research support
  • Innovation, ideation and invention
  • Dissertation and thesis support
  • Career planning and networking
  • Teaching development 
  • Communication with confidence 
  • Planning for second year 

To complement program-specific orientation events for new students, the university-level orientation is an introduction to campus and university resources.   

“Together, the orientation programs provide our graduate students with a strong foundation as they begin their transition,” said J. Luke Wood, vice president for Student Affairs and Campus Diversity.  

The universitywide orientation is one in a suite of dedicated resources, training offerings, research opportunities, career-building activities and other support offered specially for graduate students.   

Following the charge of the university’s strategic plan, additional funding resources in support of graduate students have been dedicated, including the Master’s Research Scholarship. Created in 2020, the scholarship will provide $900,000 in new direct financial support to SDSU master’s students engaged in research, scholarship and creative activity during the 2021-22 academic year. 

The University Graduate Fellowship program will also allocate $1.2 million more during the 2021-22 academic year, primarily to doctoral students. 

The Division of Student Affairs and Campus Diversity, in partnership with the Division of Research and Innovation, also began accepting faculty applications this year to hire more graduate-level and other students. The 2021 Emergency Spring Funding for Student Assistance with Research, Scholarship, and Creative Activities (RSCA) program provided additional and critical financial support to hire students. 

SDSU has also begun developing other comprehensive programming, resources and support tailored to the specific needs of graduate students, which will be offered through the new graduate student center. The center will also host expanded co-curricular activities, mentoring activities, dissertation and thesis support and other development and well-being support for graduate students. 

This fall, graduate housing will be available at Zapotec, featuring fully furnished units that offer residential education support. 

The university also is expanding the level of assistance offered directly in support of graduate students. This fall, the Economic Crisis Response Team will begin offering expanded services for graduate students through the graduate student center. Graduate students are encouraged to request assistance from ECRT at any time if they are in need of additional financial support. 

“Our graduate and professional students are competitive nationally and significantly contribute to our research and teaching missions at SDSU,” Love said. “It is an imperative to offer the types of programs and support that help provide the very foundation graduate students need to be successful whether in the classroom, in the lab or on the field.”