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Introductory Material for New Graduate Students

Welcome to UTEP! We are thrilled to welcome you to our biology department. I would like to give you a student's perspective on the process which must be followed after you have been accepted. Although all these things can be performed when classes begin, it will be easier to do them before the crowds arrive, allowing you to manage your time more effectively. I tried to list the questions in chronological order according to the tasks which must be performed.

*International students: you must report to the Office of International Programs immediately after arriving in El Paso to check in and start the Social Security Number (SSN) application process. Additionally, there is a mandatory orientation in August.*

1. How will I receive communication from the biology department?
   1. Activate your UTEP Miners email account. Email is the primary means of communication among members to the department. If you have problems accessing your account, you can contact IT Support at 747-5257 or visit them in person at the Hawthorne building which is across the street from the Academic Services Building on Hawthorne Street.
2. What can you tell me about financial aid?
   1. Financial Aid is available to US Citizens and residents in the form of subsidized and unsubsidized loans. If you require financial aid,
3. 1. Fill out the FAFSA and select UTEP to receive it.
   2. Check your Miners email account for the confirmatory email that says that UTEP has received your package, offering your financial aid award.
   3. If you have never obtained loans from UTEP before, you must attend the financial aid seminar in person. They are offered every couple of weeks during the summer and are about 2 hours long.
   4. Once your financial aid training seminar has been completed, you will be given the opportunity to select a lender online and to sign a promissory note.
4. What payment plans are available?
   1. Payments can be made online through Goldmine or at person in the payment desk of the administrative office. You can pay in full, take an emergency loan, or pay by installment plan. If payments are not made prior to the first week of classes, your courses will be dropped from the system.
5. When and where do I get a parking pass?
   1. Parking decals are ordered online or in person starting in July. There are a range of options and prices. Most students who work in the Biosciences building park in P4; those who work in the Biology building often park in P2.
6. How do I find out about graduate appointments for employment?
   1. Ensure funding is secure the semester prior to your enrollment. If you receive a paid position, you will not sign your contract for your position any sooner than the week prior to the beginning of classes. You will be informed by email once your contract is available. You need to bring your Social Security card (if a US Citizen) or your I-20 verification form (if an international student) with you when you come to sign the employment paperwork. **International students: you must be completely finished with the I-20 process prior to accepting a position at UTEP.** You will need to go to the Department of Human Resources once the contract has been offered to complete tax paperwork and to make an appointment with Bert Garcia at 915-747-5202 or bgarcia@utep.edu to sign up for insurance plans: either the Mega Insurance plan (paid for by the Ãå±±ÂÖ¼é) or the UT Select BCBS medical and pharmacy benefit plan (deducted from your paycheck, starting at $184.56/month for a single person with no dependents). You may also enroll to receive vision coverage, dental coverage, or life insurance. Coverage will begin September 1. After that, you will need to visit Payroll in the same building to set up direct deposit or other method of payment. For your records, make a copy of the contract once everyone has signed it. Any delays in on your part in following these procedures may equate to delays in receiving your first paycheck. You can anticipate receiving your first paycheck after you have worked a full 4-6 weeks at the Ãå±±ÂÖ¼é, so plan accordingly.
      1. If you have applied for a TA/AI position, you need to complete your departmental TA position request form ASAP. Not everyone receives a TA position; they are competitive and are offered on a year-to-year basis. Decisions on TA positions are not made any sooner than the month prior to the first week of classes. For questions concerning the TA positions, you may contact Dr. Garza, the chair of the TA funding committee, atkgarza@utep.edu.
      2. If you have been offered a RA position, this is offered by your mentor as funds are available. Contact your mentor if you have any questions.
      3. A few departmental scholarships are available, but most of them are offered to 3rd and 4th year students.
      4. You are always welcome to bring in outside scholarships. Feel free to use the search engines for scholarships and apply. TA positions (and most RA positions) do not cover tuition.

*A little more regarding RA & TA Positions:

RA Positions: 12 month appointments—you agree to work 20 hours a week at the minimum in your lab. You are generally placed in charge of 1-2 undergraduates who will assist you with your project.

TA (or AI) Positions: 9 month appointments—with a possibility for summer employment, although there are very few positions. MS and PhD students appointed as TAs or AIs, respectively, will teach two sections a semester, for half-time employment of 20 hours a week. You would be assigned a particular lab to teach for each semester; normally, your research interests are matched with your teaching assignment. Once the assignment has been awarded, please contact your faculty lab coordinator for scheduling information and a copy of your laboratory manual.

General: Lab safety handouts must be obtained from Melinda in the Biology office to be distributed to students the first laboratory period. You may also see Melinda about getting a TA mailbox in the biology office. Additionally, you must talk to Enrique in the Biosciences building to arrange for a key to your classroom assignment. TAs, whether taking the course for credit or not, are required to attend all graduate and guest seminars. TAs are also required to take a full course load (9 credit hours in the fall/spring, and 3 credit hours in the summer).

*Neither the RA nor the TA positions give full tuition waivers; however, you must speak with Annette in the biology office so that the form can be completed and delivered to the financial aid office, verifying that you are receiving a TA/RA position. This entitles you to receive in-state tuition, even if you are not an in-state resident.

• How do I register?
  1. PhD Students: Register with Dr. Elizabeth Walsh (ewalsh@utep.edu) (by appointment only). You are required to take the rotation course (Advanced Research Techniques) your first semester, but it is not a traditional course with assignments, just laboratory performance under your mentor. Most students take two other courses their first semester as well. MS Students: Register with Dr. Jerry Johnson (jjohnson@utep.edu) (by appointment only). Most MS students take 3 three credit hour courses their first semester.
     *Classes are around 10-25 students and are often led in a discussion friendly, journal-based manner. Unlike undergraduate courses, the emphasis is less on rote memorization but rather application and interpretation. Be prepared to read and write extensively. See the Graduate Handbook for a complete listing of courses in our department.
• Are there any things that I need to do prior to entering the lab?
  1. If you do not currently have a UTEP ID, you will need to obtain both a microchip-containing ID (which is different than the normal IDs) for the Biosciences building and a Biology pass. These can be obtained in the ID office at the Academic Affairs Building. In order to get proxy card-access to the Biology or Biosciences buildings, your faculty mentor must initiate a request for access from Enrique (747-6881) in the Biosciences office.
  2. Speak with your mentor regarding the safety classes which you must attend for certification in your laboratory. Training must be renewed annually. Courses are offered in the conference room at the El Paso Natural Gas Center (across the street from the library). You also may need to attend Core Facility Training in one of the core facilities in the Bioscience building, if access is needed in the core facilities. Speak with your mentor regarding the necessity of this training, as well.
• Do you have any advice regarding mentors?
  1. Choose your mentor wisely. PhD students will perform, on average, two rotations. Masters students begin immediately with their project as soon as they enter. Most students enter the field with a desire to work on a particular project, but of equal, possibly greater importance in the decision process should be the compatibility of the mentor/mentee's working relationship. Your mentor can be your biggest advocate or quite the opposite; therefore choose wisely. Do your homework on this one. Talk to current graduate students to see how they came to their decisions.
     *By the way, your mentor is the person to whom you should direct questions regarding laboratory access, safety classes, etc.
• What can you tell me about orientations?
  1. Orientations are scheduled around the first and second weeks of school. The graduate student orientation has very beneficial information regarding many of the processes summarized here, but it is still important to attend to get to know your classmates across the graduate program and to know who to talk to for what problem. Additionally, there is a biology student orientation that is designed to give you EXTREMELY important information that pertains to your stay and well-being in this department.
• Are there any other mandatory classes other than those in which we enroll?
  1. Doctoral students are required to attend and participate in a bi-weekly student seminar series. Generally you will not be assigned to give a presentation your first semester. You must present a brief talk concerning research progress once per year.