Departmental Self Review - UCLA Academic Senate

j;..Student Degree Objective:PHDTheappropriateness ofFactors which Factors which The nature of work as a course and otherhelp your hinder your TA and/or GSR at UCLA, The reasons why some The overall degree Any questions you believeprogress progress its value as part of your students have left our intellectual requirements in the review team shouldtoward your toward your education, and the quality graduate program before quality of regard to your raise and/or areas theydegree degree of the training you received completing their degrees your program career aspirations should examine'II'1) Knowing that I 1) Having a chair 1) TA Training -- Excellent. Our As far as I know/assume: Intellectual quality No problems. I would How do professors learn towould receive who is new to department's program is well 1) The doctoral program was not of the faculty is only suggest more advise students through thefunding one way or advising students developed and addressed many for them - did not make them excellent. practical training - "how research design, fieldwork, andanother each year. through the doctoral of my questions before I had to happy. Seminars and to" advice or then dissertation writing process?.2) -~- -------. program - unfamiliar step foot in the classroom. The 2) Chairs suggested they may talks are "professional skills How as this changed with theSupport, with req's and TAC I was trained by was an not have the skills to "make it" generally training"-- job searches, environment of universities?knowledge, regulations -- has not excellent mentor beyond simply and asked them to leave excellent. publishing, structuring a Given the tremendous pressurespractical advice, yet developed a teaching pedagogy - this made a 3) No/very slow degree progress Intellectual quality dissertation, data put on faculty members, there isfriendship. personal system to great difference in my 4) Conflict with Chair of our graduate analysis, methods, not much time left over to think3) Extremely get students through. developing a teaching style and I don't think many people leave students var,ies ­ fieldwork, etc. There are about howlwhy/where gradaccessible and 2) Poor practical finding my place as an instructor. our program because of strained but I suppose this resources within UCLA, students get stuck in program. Insupportive faculty training for field 2) Most professors seem very relations or lack of support from all sorts itself out but I would like to see today's academic environmentmembers ­ research. Our sensitive to the time constraints faculty. Most people switch through extemal more department driven we no longer have the luxury ofwillingness to meet department comes faced by TAs arid do not advisors, as I understand it. It is funding and later advice on these things. an "apprentice - master"with and advise up short on the overwhelm us with work. a bit unclear how the two job searches. There is a particular relationship where we can takestudents even when practical "how to" 3) In all the courses I have TA'd (three?) people who were asked There is a rather portfolio of activities and our time working through thesenot on their advice for both for, I would feel comfortable now to leave the program last year hostile division related skills we should issues. I don't have a solutioncommittee. research and diss designing and teaching my own were notified -- there was some and self-exclusion end the program haVing and only want to point out that4) My own writing. We go into syllabUS for a large lecture anXiety among grads thinking between Bio Anth mastered or at least the environment in the universitydetermination, the field not really course. that such a decision from the and the other practiced. Many grads has changed over the pastper.severence and knowing what our 4) The only frustration I have department/chair could just subfields which is don't realize this until it decade(s) and there isn't apushiness to find faCUlty members do encountered is the lack of come out of the blue without a frustrating to is too late. system or support resources toanswers, support, in the field nor how organization and coordinallon one on one meeting and clear those of us who help grads and faculty workand opportunities. they do it. We lack from some faculty 'members .­ objectives being firs t given to the would like to have through these new timeMaking sure faculty start to finish the resulting conft..ision falls on student along with a chance to more exchange. pressures without sacrificingmembers know who understanding of the shoulders of TAs who achieve these objectives prior to It further seems quality of education. The chair ­I am. Asking how projects evolve, ultimately do not have the dismissal. counter­ grad relationship is still the cruxstudents further modify, and reach authority to fix the problem. FOr productive to the of the system, but with facultyalong for their the stage of example: changing the syllabus agenda of facing increasing expectations tosuggestions and publication. It's all a and assignments in the middle building a pUblish, teach, etc. and there isadvice. Frequent mystery through of the quarter, telling students partiCUlar school simultaneously a pressure to getcontact with my which grads go who want to protest their grades of thought for grad students through thecommillee through a hazing to talk to their TAs while the UCLA's Bio Anth. program faster -- yet themembers. process of anxiety professor does not have (or My networks with university seems to have givenand worry without follow) a clear policy, not being Biological little thought as to how theseany benchmarks. aware of ineqUitable workloadAnthropologistschanges impact the relationshipbased3) Lack of space for distribution among the team ofare all outside ofeducation model of mostgrad students in the TAs. UCLA, where doctoral programs. Somethingdepartment to work these exchanges has to give and hopefully thatout of, partiCUlarly are not won't be quality of the PhDs weduring exams and dissmissive of my produce or sanity of facultydiss writing. This is subfieldlfieldwork members.Wednesday, May 02, 2007 Anthropology, Open-Ended Comments, Graduate Council Survey. Winter 2007 Page 10 of 14