Every semester, students must register for between 1-9 credits of BIOL797. Each student must submit a workload plan for the semester to their research advisor that lists a set of research goals as well as their teaching/service responsibilities and coursework. The plan must consist of a list of realistic goals (~3) that a student needs to complete in order to receive a grade of satisfactory in Biol. 797. A good approach is for the student to determine what research accomplishments they could reasonably achieve in one semester within the context of their other responsibilities and assuming that all goes according to plan, and then only propose half of these items . The intent here is to describe what would constitute “satisfactory” progress, not “superlative” progress.
The academic mentor for each student will review the proposed workload plan, suggest any modifications they feel are appropriate, and schedule a meeting with the student where they come to a final consensus on the student’s research-related goals for that semester. Research advisors should encourage their students to restrict their proposed goals to those that are essential to the advancement of their thesis. Research goals may include experiments or writing. Students and research advisors must sign and submit the final workload plan to the graduate chair by the end of the first two weeks of the semester. The workload plan is not a contract. It is a means by which students and advisors can establish mutual expectations as well as ensure steady degree progress.
If disagreements over the workload plan cannot be resolved by the student and mentor, then the plan should not be signed, and both the student and mentor must submit a statement of their concerns to the Associate Chair for Graduate Studies. The issue will then be reviewed and resolved by the Graduate Committee.
Since unforeseen challenges (both scientific and personal) to a student achieving the agreed upon goals for a semester can arise, justifiable deviations from the workload plan should be communicated in writing to the mentor and Associate Chair of Graduate Studies as soon as the challenge to meeting a goal becomes evident. Appropriate accommodations to address these challenges should be agreed upon between the student and their mentor, and a written copy of the agreed upon accommodations must be sent to the Associate Chair for Graduate Studies. If the appropriate, and agreed upon, accommodations are met, then the deviations from the original workload plan will not be held against the graduate student.
The graduate chair is the instructor of record for BIOL797, so at the end of the semester research faculty provide the graduate chair with a designation of “Satisfactory” or “Unsatisfactory” for each of their students. In assessing performance, faculty must consider the context of the students’ full responsibilities and unforeseen roadblocks, be they technical or personal in nature. For instance, a student may have proposed two experiments, but needed to troubleshoot a technical issue and thus completed neither. This would still be considered “Satisfactory”.
If a student receives a grade of “unsatisfactory” in Biol. 797 and they consider it to be unjustified, they are encouraged to follow the University’s grade appeal procedure that is found on the Provost Office website.
Workload Plan Template Downloads
BIOL797 Workload Plan (Fillable PDF) BIOL797 Workload Plan (DOCX)
Workload Plan Template Format
BIOL797 Student Workload Plan
Name:
Effective Semester and Year:
Degree (e.g. MS or Ph.D.):
Courseload (include credit hours for all courses)
Milestones that you plan to meet (e.g. POS, quals, etc.):
Teaching responsibilities (e.g. TAship, mentoring, guest lectures):
Scholarship: (Be Specific About Goals and Deadlines)
Experiments:
Conferences:
Fellowships:
Publications:
Resources needed:
Concerns or other issues to note:
Student Signature:
Date:
Faculty Signature:
Date: