Graduate Outreach and Admission
To ensure the enrollment of a diverse graduate student body at Berkeley, the Graduate Diversity Program:
• Conducts outreach visits (workshops, conferences, graduate information days, independent institutional visits, etc.) and cultivates long-term relationships with various institutions. The Graduate Diversity Program (GDP) works with Divisional Diversity Directors, departments and programs to optimize campus-wide recruitment and outreach efforts. The Graduate Diversity Program sponsors nationwide outreach visits targeting institutions with a high population of underrepresented students while also focusing on institutions in the state of California. The outreach itinerary generally includes most UC campuses, many state universities, several out-of-state research institutions, and several institutions with a significant population of underrepresented students, including several Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU). The GDP director, GDP outreach coordinator, other Graduate Division staff, diversity directors, student coordinators, departmental staff, and faculty are among those representing the UC Berkeley campus. For more information, contact the GDP Office (643-6010, grad.diversity@berkeley.edu).
• Provides name exchange lists, outreach information, and recruitment publications to departments. The Graduate Diversity Program participates in various name exchanges (such as McNair Scholars and National Name Exchange) to obtain information on potential underrepresented applicants. The Graduate Diversity Program sorts information by department and provides electronic mailing lists of potential students to each department. Outreach cards (or pertinent information on them) collected from the outreach visits are forwarded to appropriate departments so that the departments may provide information and application materials to potential applicants. For more information, contact the GDP Office (643-6010, grad.diversity@berkeley.edu).
• Provides departments with information and support for their outreach efforts. This includes conducting campuswide outreach training workshops and strategic planning assistance.
• Sponsors the Summer Research Opportunity Program (SROP). This program helps prepare and encourage under-served and underrepresented undergraduate students to continue their educational journey. The Graduate Diversity Program hosts students from institutions around the country for eight weeks during the summer. The students are matched with faculty mentors and conduct graduate level research during these eight weeks. The students also participate in workshops and seminars designed to provide additional insight into pursuing a Ph.D. One of the chief goals of the program is to increase the number of underrepresented scholars receiving graduate degrees at Berkeley. The program strongly encourages applications from undergraduates who have been educationally or economically disadvantaged, and who show potential to benefit from exposure to the environment of a research university. All applicants will be considered without regard to race or gender. For more information, contact the GDP Office (643-6010, grad.diversity@berkeley.edu).
• UC LEADS Program. This program helps prepare underrepresented undergraduate students at Berkeley for graduate programs in the sciences, math, and engineering. Students are selected to conduct research at Berkeley during their first summer in the program and then spend eight to ten weeks at another UC campus during their second summer. The program also provides each student with a faculty mentor, guidance, and financial support in preparing for graduate school. The program is coordinated by the Professional Development Program, under the aegis of the Division of Equity and Inclusion. For more information contact the UC LEADS Coordinator (643-6260).
• Provides information, advising, and referrals to potential applicants. The Graduate Diversity Program provides initial contact and follow-up attention to potential applicants nationwide via campus visits, workshops, individual appointments, drop-ins, email, letters, and telephone calls. The Graduate Diversity Program emphasizes the importance of contacting faculty (and current students) and provides assistance in doing so.
• Assists departments in the recruitment of admitted underrepresented students. For example, the Graduate Diversity Program coordinates and provides travel funding assistance for Diversity Day and other departmental visitation events. For more information, contact the Graduate Diversity Program (642-6010).
• Administers fellowships and awards. The Graduate Services Fellowships Office (in the Graduate Division) offers fellowships and awards to graduate students including several diversity fellowships for incoming and continuing students. For more information, contact Graduate Services Fellowships (642-0672).
• Assesses admission and enrollment data. The Graduate Division collects data on admission and enrollment patterns; this allows the campus to be aware of significant demographic changes (improvements or declines) and to plan outreach and retention accordingly.
• The American Indian Graduate Program (AIGP). AIGP, housed within the GDP component of the Division of Equity and Inclusion, is a special recruitment and retention program for American Indians and Alaska Native graduate students. AIGP mails information to tribal agencies, American Indian alumni, tribal newspapers, and colleges and universities with American Indian studies programs. AIGP also provides social support and advocacy services, and co-sponsors a special graduation ceremony each year. AIGP conducts a variety of outreach activities aimed at increasing the number of American Indian and Alaska Native students who enroll in and complete Berkeley graduate programs. AIGP will work with departments to coordinate specific outreach efforts. If your department would like to work with AIGP or have the program disseminate departmental information, please contact the AIGP coordinator (642-3228, aigp@berkeley.edu).
