McNair Survival Guide 2016 The McNair Scholars Program St. Edward’s University
Welcome to the McNair Scholars Program at St. Edward’s University
Congratulations and welcome to the Ronald E. McNair Post Baccalaureate Achievement Program at St. Edward's University. You are one of a select group of highly qualified students who were chosen for interest in and potential for graduate study. We are very pleased that you have joined this program! The McNair Scholars Program is designed to enhance your skills and strengthen your education as you prepare for graduate study. All activities are calculated to improve your experience and to give you “an edge” in the competition for graduate school.
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Preface Welcome to the McNair Survival Guide. I have written this guide with one central goal: to help remind you all the federal requirements you must complete to maintain your scholarship. The McNair Survival Guide contains detailed information about how to navigate through the McNair’s scholars program. This guide breakdowns all the mandatory documents and supplemental information needed to comply with the McNair student agreement. Each section of the guide contains information about each McNair program requirement.
Why You Will Like This Guide In this guide, I have added all required paperwork with detailed instructions to ensure everything is for your program directors and instructors.
Additional Key Features of This Guide
Easy-to-remember guidelines
Marginal Notes highlights key points in the text
Required Checklists
Blank copies of all required paperwork
Timeline to applying for graduate school
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Table of Contents
Program Requirements
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Summer Requirements
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Timeline for Applying to Graduate School
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Faculty Mentorship
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Request for Travel Funds
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Program Requirements As a McNair scholar, you will be required to fulfill the following program requirements. These requirements satisfy the objectives of the McNair Scholars Program. Return signed contract Submit all required paperwork (tax documentation, proof of citizenship) Maintain a 3.0 or higher cumulative GPA Participate in a summer research experience Participate in an internship/teaching assistantship Participate in at least FOUR cultural events each semester and complete necessary paperwork (2 must be scholarly) Take the GRE Apply to at least SEVEN doctoral programs Submit a personal statement Submit a CV Attend regularly scheduled meetings with McNair Scholars Program staff a minimum of once per semester Submit a signed Faculty Mentor Agreement Meet with your faculty mentor once a month
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Summer Requirements As a McNair scholar, you will be required to fulfill the following summer program requirements. These requirements satisfy the objectives of the McNair Scholars Program. Attend ALL summer workshops Attend daily research methods course and GRE training Meet regularly with research director Attend at least THREE cultural events Submit research proposal, rough draft of final paper, final paper, and Power Point presentation to McNair Scholars Program staff by deadline Complete a program evaluation
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Timeline for Applying to Graduate School You should begin the application process at least one year before you plan to start graduate school. All times included below are approximate. You should study deadlines for specific programs carefully since they may vary significantly depending on the program to which you apply.
Summer
Write a draft of your statement of purpose. This is the most important part of the application and can be the deciding factor in the admissions process. It will be evaluated for quality of writing as well as for clarity of professional goals. Browse through college bulletins and department brochures. Spend time on-line searching for graduate programs that interest you. Talk with your Faculty Mentor or professors about at least five graduate programs you should consider.
July/ August
Sign up for standardized tests.
September
Meet the faculty members to discuss your statement of purpose and ask for letters of recommendation. Request fellowship information and applications from graduate schools.
October
Request applications from graduate programs and meet with McNair staff to discuss application status.
November
Order transcripts. Ask if your records office can send a transcript with your fall semester grades in time to meet the deadlines of the programs to which you are applying. 6|Page
December 
Complete applications (do a draft copy on the form first). Give your recommenders the forms to fill out or the addresses to which they should send their letters. It is helpful to them if you give them copies of your statement of purpose. Please remember to provide them with stamped envelopes when appropriate. Remember to thank them after they complete the recommendations.
February 
Contact programs about the possibility of visiting. A personal visit can often enhance your chance of being accepted. Departments will sometimes help with travel expenses.
April 
If you are applying for need based financial aid programs, you may have to file a copy of your federal income tax return.
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Faculty Mentorship This section tells you how to request and document your faculty mentorship agreement throughout your participation in the McNair Scholars program. By the spring semester, you will be matched with a faculty mentor. Every possible effort will be made to match you to your first choice in mentors and one who has similar research interest to your own. Once paired with a mentor, you should discuss with him or her current research projects. Discuss your own ideas and original research interests as well. It is important that you are paired with a Faculty mentor with whom you feel comfortable and share similar research interests. Faculty mentors are also excellent resources for information on graduate programs in schools appropriate for you. Similarly, they can provide you with guidance and wisdom because of their own experiences in graduate school. Additionally, they can assist you with information on how to acquire scholarships and fellowships in graduate school. faculty mentors will be asked to sign a contract sheet to document their contact with you. Your faculty mentorship is the one of the most important elements of the program. Here is the list of documents needed for proof of mentorship:
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Faculty Mentor and Scholar Acceptance Agreement 1. Fill in your first and last name 2. Fill in your mentor’s first and last name 3. Read lines A-M 4. Faculty signature needed and date 5. Scholar signature needed and date
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FACULTY MENTOR AND SCHOLAR ACCEPTANCE AGREEMENT I, , accept the opportunity to participate in the McNair Scholars Program at St. Edward’s University as a FACULTY MENTOR to . I understand that the objective of this program is to encourage and prepare the McNair scholar to pursue doctoral studies and research. Therefore, I may participate in activities such as the following: a.
Meet with the McNair scholar regularly.
b.
Help develop the McNair scholar’s research, scholarship skills, and professional work habits.
c.
Introduce the McNair scholar to the culture of academia.
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Provide motivation, support and direction for the McNair scholar and help the scholar understand the rigors of graduate education and the importance of persistence.
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Help the scholar make contacts with appropriate graduate schools and programs.
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Help the student structure a curriculum vita for inclusion in a graduate school application.
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Assist the scholar with graduate school application and writing a personal statement.
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Direct the McNair scholar to appropriate seminars.
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Introduce the student to pertinent professional organizations.
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Encourage the scholar to think critically, ask questions, express opinions, and respect different points of view.
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Point out readings with which the student should be familiar.
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Assist the McNair scholar with research activities such as the research proposal, oral presentations and research papers.
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Evaluate the McNair scholar’s achievements and overall performance as well as the program’s effectiveness.
Faculty Signature
Date
McNair Scholar Signature
Date
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Faculty Mentor/Scholar Meeting Report 1. Fill in your first and last name 2. Fill in your mentor’s first and last name 3. Fill in the date of the meeting 4. Fill in the subject and the key points of the meeting 5. Mentor’s signature needed
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Faculty Mentor/Scholar Meeting Report McNair Scholar: Meeting with:
Date:
Meeting Notes:
Signature:
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Progress Report: Faculty Mentor 1. Fill in date of report
6. Fill in faculty’s department
2. Fill in McNair Scholar first and last name
7. Summarize the scholar’s progress in the program
3. Fill in academic year when the report was written
8. List suggestions for academic improvements for the scholar
4. Fill in academic semester when the report was written
9. List any comments or recommendations for the scholar
5. Fill in faculty mentor first and last name
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Requests for Travel Funds This section will tell you how to request travel funds to visit graduate schools or to present at academic conferences. These instructions will tell you how to request travel funds for each event. Each step must be done correctly to receive funds prior to your travel date. A completed application to the McNair Scholars Program office, Moody Hall #126, at least two weeks prior to the deadline for conference registration or before embarking on graduate school visit(s) or other travel. Keep in mind that group visits are planned usually by the program. Limited funds are available for individual school visits. Money is not available for return graduate school visits.
Searching for Graduate School Programs To help you structure your graduate school search, the following project will help you decide potential graduate schools. Through this project, you will acquire all necessary information for requesting travel funds. If you need any help completing this project, please visit the McNair Scholars Program Office. 1. Use the following web sites (or others if you’d like) to search for at least nine (9) graduate programs in your field or fields of interest. a. www.gradschools.com b. www.petersons.com c. www.princetonreview.com 2. Complete the Graduate School table provided. Include other information that may be of interest to you in the table (i.e. cost of attending, number of students accepted into the program, housing options, etc.)
3. If you cannot find information in the web sites provided, refer to the university’s homepage for more information. (For example, if I want to attend Notre Dame, but Petersons.com does not include cost of attending, I might go to www.notredame.edu to find more information about the program that I am interested in.) 4. Return the completed table to the McNair Scholars Program office. We can make a copy for your own use. We can also send you a file to fill out from your own personal computer (just email us). We will also post this information on Blackboard and on the McNair web page at http://think.stedwards.edu/mcnair/. We recommend that you also take the following steps to help you plan for graduate school: □ Create a file or portfolio for your personal use where you can organize graduate school information (i.e. applications, copies ments, FAFSA, etc). □ Develop a plan and timetable for applying to graduate school. Keep a file of sent applications, housing information, scholarship information, resumes, personal state □ Once you know when the application deadlines are, you can plan when to write your personal statement and have it edited by McNair staff, when to ask for letters of recommendation, etc.) □ Plan to visit graduate schools. The McNair Scholars Program can help with this too. Just ask us! Once you find that a program MATCHES your interests, plan to talk to their admissions counselors, or visit. □ Gather and begin reading academic work of faculty. If there is a program that you are interested in, explore the research that faculty members in that department are conducting. See what interests you and read some of their research papers. □ Explore the fellowship opportunities available at the graduate schools. We will learn more about searching for grad school funds, but it doesn’t hurt to start looking!
Request Travel Forms
Front of Form
Back of Form
Travel Form Part 1:
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1. Clearly write your first and last name. Fill in your SEU student ID number and today’s date 2. Check the box that closely describes your reason for travel i) If presenting or attending a conference fill in official name of the conference and exact location ii) Fill in the precise dates of the conference
Worksheet for Reimbursement of Travel Funds This worksheet will help you calculate how much funds to request for. Each section are all pre-approved items for McNair funds.
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1. Check the box with your proposed form of transportation a. If traveling by commercial transportation attach a website print out showing the cost of the ticket (airplane, train, or bus ticket) b. If traveling by personal car use MapQuest to calculate your mileage. Attach a website print out showing the mileage. Multiply total miles (roundtrip) by 57.5 cents to calculate reimbursable expense.
***McNair Staff will fill out meal calculation
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***McNair Staff will fill out lodging calculation 1. Fill out the exact conference registration fee 2. Attach a copy of the agenda
Travel Form Part 2:
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1. Fill in the total amount for transportation costs 2. Fill in the number of meals (i.e. breakfast, lunch, dinner) 3. Fill in the total costs for all meals 4. Fill in number of nights and the daily rate 5. Fill in total amount for lodging costs 6. Fill in the total amount for conference and registration fees 7. Fill in an estimated amount for public transportation 8. Fill in total funds requested
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