UBC now offers free teaching professional development through the The Centre for the Integration of Research, Teaching, and Learning (CIRTL).  We have opportunities both in our local learning

community  http://cirtl.ubc.ca/ and the CIRTL cross-network learning community, a consortium of 45 research-intensive universities working together to improve STEM education (https://www.cirtl.net/)

At UBC, students can receive certification as a CIRTL Associate, Practitioner, or Scholar. To become a CIRTL Associate, students can either take an Instructional Skills Workshop (ISW) http://ctlt.ubc.ca/programs/all-our-programs/instructional-skills-workshops/ or a new non-credit course called ‘Foundations of Pedagogy1’, next offered in September 2017. 

For other CIRTL cross network on-line courses, which are open to students from UBC, see the CIRTL-central website https://www.cirtl.net/p/cirtls-spring-courses-open-for-registration.  

CIRTL also offers a massive open online course (MOOC), which begins January 30th (https://www.cirtl.net/p/cirtls-spring-moocs-open-for-registration). If you decide to take the MOOC, please let us know ( cirtl.info@ubc.ca), and we can organize a meet-up of interested participants for teaching-related discussions. 

For questions about CIRTL, please email Jens at cirtl.info@ubc.ca.  Note, we had a problem with our original email, so our apologies if you tried to reach us. Please try again and don’t hesitate to ask questions.

Sincerely,Lacey 

Professor A. Lacey Samuels

Department of Botany, CIRTL UBC co-leader

University of British Columbia

Vancouver, BC, Canada, V6T 1Z4 

phone: (604)

822-5469

 

Where do you see your GSS in the next five years?

You can reshape your graduate student society. Let your voice be heard 

Your GSS is developing a strategic plan that establishes the priorities and direction of the Society for 2017-2021. You are invited to attend an information and consultation session: 

On-Campus

• Tue. Jan. 24, 5-6pm, Rm. 1510 – Life Sciences Centre
• Thu. Jan. 26, 5-6pm, GSS Loft in the AMS Nest, 4th Floor

Off-Campus

• Wed. Jan. 25, 5:30-6:30pm, BC Cancer Research Centre (BCCRC), Dorothy Lam Boardroom (1st floor)

Come and learn more on the GSS Strategic Plan, have your questions answered, and give us your feedback. All comments and questions are welcome.
Light refreshments will be provided. 

GSS Strategic Plan
The proposed GSS Strategic Plan encompasses three themes to support the success and well-being of UBC graduate students:

1.     Graduate Student Academics

2.     Graduate Student Community

3.     Our Graduate Student Society

Within each theme are goals that your GSS will work towards, including steps to achieve each goal and specific actions for each step. Many of these actions are already underway at the GSS; they have been included because they constitute essential steps in the five-year vision of the GSS. 

Please read the GSS Strategic Plan – Draft and let us know your thoughts! 

GSS Catch Up

Multimedia Communications Manager

Got the knack for digital multimedia design?

Gain essential work experience with your GSS in the creation and management of our visual content across a broad range of media. This is a paid, work-learn position. Apply by Jan. 22

Count on Our Vote Campaign Coordinator

Volunteer and connect with other UBC graduate students

We’re looking for an enthusiastic UBC graduate student to help engage fellow graduate students in the upcoming BC Elections, encourage them to register to vote, and collect pledges to vote. Apply by: January 31, 2017, 5pm 

Knowledge Mobilization Commissioner

Volunteer Leadership Opportunity

Your GSS is looking for a UBC graduate student to volunteer as our Knowledge Mobilization Commissioner who:

• Advises the GSS Executive on how the Society can promote knowledge mobilization and community engagement within UBC’s graduate student community
• Works in concert with the Executive on various initiatives that support knowledge mobilization and community engagement

GSS Programming

To the Ends of the Earth – Film Screening

WE’RE ALL GOING TO DIE…? SUSTAINABILITY DOCUMENTARY SERIES
Wed., Feb. 8, 2017, 6:30-8:30pm, GSS Penthouse

Every two weeks through the spring semester, a new documentary film will be shown on a different topic surrounding sustainability, followed by an interactive discussion.

To the Ends of the Earth
Directed by award winning David Lavellee

Our first film To the Ends of the Earth follows concerned citizens living at the frontiers of extreme oil and gas extraction, bearing witness to a global crossroads. They call for human ingenuity to rebuild society at the end of the fossil fuel era. 

Zumba Class

Mondays, Jan. 16 – Apr. 10, 2017, 5:30-6:30pm, GSS Ballroom

You can still sign up and join the class. Registration open until Jan. 23

 Yoga Class

Tuesdays, Jan. 17 – Apr. 4, 2017, 5:45-6:45pm, GSS Ballroom

Missed our first class? No fret! You can still join. Registration open until Jan. 24.

Waitlist registration is now open for the Instructional Skills Workshop (ISW) March 11, 12 18 2017.The ISW is an internationally recognized program and students receive transcript notation for their participation.  It is a 3-day intensive workshop that develops participant’s teaching skills and confidence.  It is appropriate for first time teachers or those with years of experience.  Join the thousands of students who have taken this workshop. 

IMPORTANT: The workshop runs from 8:15am-5:00pm. Please note you must be able to attend all three days, i.e. the entire 24-hour workshop.  Please find attached the policy for registering in an ISW and an FAQ sheet.  

This workshop is always in high demand. To register for the March 11, 12, 18 2017 ISW, please go to the following link and sign-up: http://ctlt.ubc.ca/instructional-skills-workshops-isw-registration/. Waitlist registration will close on Sunday at 4:30pm. By clicking this link, you can register for the waitlist, however this does not register you for the workshop. If you are accepted into the workshop, you will be contacted directly by our office. 

Please let me know if you have any questions. 

Elissa Morris 
Events Assistant | Centre for Teaching Learning and Technology
The University of British Columbia | Vancouver
214-1961 East Mall, Vancouver BC, V6T 1Z1 Canada
Phone 604 827 4871| elissa.morris@ubc.ca

http://www.ctlt.ubc.ca | @UBC_CTLT

Degree granted in February 2017
Congregation ceremony will be in May, 2017.  Please advise students that Enrolment Services will not accept any late applications for graduation, and there will be no exceptions to January 20, 2017 deadline. 

Students completing their program requirements after January 21, 2017 should wait and apply to have their degree granted in May 2017.   The application for the degree to be granted in May 2017 and the May 2017 congregation ceremony will open on January 21, 2017 on the Student Service Centre. 

Friday, January 20, 2017 

Last day for applications to be submitted to Enrolment Services by all graduate students expecting to have degrees granted in February.  Congregation ceremony will be in May. Application is made through the Student Service Centre. 

Last day for final master’s theses and doctoral dissertations to be accepted by the Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies for February degree granting. Must be approved and accepted by 4:00 pm.

Last day for graduate programs to notify the Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies that all requirements (including major papers) have been met for non-thesis master’s degrees for February degree granting.

Saturday, 21 January, 2017

Application for May degree granting and May Congregation opens.

 

January 17, 2017

Postdoctoral Fellow Position Soil Ecology Lab University of Sherbrooke Sherbrooke, QC CANADA

The Soil Ecology Lab at the University of Sherbrooke invites applications for a Postdoctoral Fellow position.  The Postdoctoral Fellow will contribute to projects that explore the relationships between plant roots and soil organic matter decomposition, the effects of alternative cropping systems on soil arbuscular mycorrhizal communities, and the interactions between silvicultural treatments and climate regimes in controlling forest productivity. On the latter project, the candidate is expected to coordinate the activities of several graduate students as well as conduct experiments of her or his own.  The candidate will also have the opportunity to develop her or his own experiments within newly funded projects in agroforestry, or on the ecological impacts of exotic earthworms in forest soils.  Collectively, these projects afford the opportunity for the candidate to form collaborative ties with researchers in Scotland, Sweden, the Czech Republic, other Canadian Universities as well as government labs.

Qualifications: The candidate must have earned a Ph.D. degree in soil ecology, plant-soil relationships, biology or in a related field within the past three years. The candidate should be proficient, autonomous, well-organized and have a solid background in field sampling and laboratory analyses. Although the candidate is recognized to be an early-career researcher, she or he must already have shown a promising record of refereed publications, good interpersonal and leadership skills, and experience working both independently as well as within collaborative environments.

Target start date: As soon as possible.

Salary: $35K annually for two years

The University of Sherbrooke is a premier Canadian research institution in Canada. It was recently ranked No. 1 in Canada and 18th in the world (among 516 universities from 74 countries) for its excellence in sustainable development, according to the GreenMetric World University Ranking.  The city of Sherbrooke is known for its proximity to nature and ranks among the least expensive university towns in North America.  For example, the monthly rent for a two room + bathroom apartment is in the $400–$500 range (CND $).

Please submit a curriculum vitae, statement of research interests, and the coordinates of three potential referees to Dr. Robert Bradley (Robert.Bradley@USherbrooke.ca). Review of applicants begins February 6th 2017 until the position is filled.