Posts

Professional development (PD) is a great way to gain new skills. While many forms of PD are available (workshops, conferences, assessments, etc.), I have found that the most impactful PD experiences allow me to explore who I am as a person and then relate that to my work. For me, meaningful PD is not always focused on gaining new technical knowledge or research skills; it is focused on gaining a deeper understanding of who I am. This understanding allows me to work more efficiently, effectively, and most importantly, with more passion and purpose.

One option for this type of PD is career coaching. Working with a career coach allows you to reflect deeply on your work now and into the future. It helps you make decisions and solve problems. While coaches do not really give direct advice, they help you develop the tools you need to guide your own path. The career coach I have worked with help me during a really hard time in my professional career. She helped me regain my passion and feel more fulfilled in my work. She also helped me understand how organizational change impacts an individual even if is it not always obvious because despite change the work continues. If you do not know where to find a coach, ask your colleagues! Many people work with a coach but do not share it broadly. Also check with your university. Sometimes they have curated lists of coaches who can support you a variety of ways based on your career stage and personal needs. Coaches can be costly, but they are worth it!

Another form of PD is more workshop/training based but allows for individual exploration. Most recently, I have engaged in work to uncover my unique strengths and apply those to my job. For me, these types of sessions are best done with a colleague or two (meaning you both experience the same thing but that does not have to mean you do it at the same time together – you can each explore individually and come together after). This type of PD and approach gives common language to the group and allows you to better understand yourself and others. I think these types of PD have truly helped me build deeper connections with my colleagues which ultimately leads to a better work environment. It also allows you to understand yourself in relation to others. This team knowledge has helped me avoid arguments and misunderstandings because I have deeper understanding and appreciation for my colleagues and their approaches to our work. The cost for these types of training varies greatly, but often you can get a discount if you get more people involved.

While there are many forms of PD, I encourage you to invest in PD that focuses on you as a person. What you learn in those sessions is transferrable to many contexts, professional and personal. Knowing who you are is an investment we should all make. It leads to happier and more fulfilling experiences.

What a start to the new semester and academic year! It’s been very busy with new project and responsibilities, but already learned so much and am excited to see how the rest of the semester unfolds. This academic year is my first year being one of the Lead Graduate Teaching Associates (GTA) for our first-year program after many years of being a GTA here. I love getting to work with students, help them get hands-on with engineering skills and content, and helping them find what they enjoy. While I still get to do that with my students this semester, one thing I didn’t realize before taking on this new position was how much goes on behind the scenes to get everything in order before a new academic year begins! With my new position, I was a part of the team that helped to do this and saw first-hand how we get things ready for our students before they come to OSU. It was interesting to get this perspective since this marks 10 (!!) years since my first year at OSU as an undergraduate engineering student. 10 years ago, I never would have guessed I’d be working on my PhD and teaching engineering students at OSU and while I’m very happy with this decision, I find it fascinating to think about where we first think we’re going to go with our lives and where we actually end up based on who we become along the way.

Over the course of the next academic year, I’m excited to build new skills that help me to support my GTAs and all undergraduate teaching assistants (UTAs) in supporting their students’ growth. I still think back to the GTAs, UTAs, and instructors I had as a student in the first-year program and how my experience was shaped by the amazing role models I had during this time. I hope I’ve been able to do the same for my own students and will help prepare our teams now to do the same for their students!

With all the new things starting up this year, one thing will certainly hold steady – making progress on my dissertation. I began working on it over the summer and am looking forward to finalizing my interview protocol and getting some interview practice in this semester. One thing that I really like about pursuing a PhD that also differs from other degrees is that you have the opportunity to implement so much of what you learn from mentors and in classes. A lot of times in engineering technical coursework, you learn different concepts, theories, and equations, but depending on your job or career track, you may not put all of it into practice. With my PhD, I catered the classes I took and the knowledge I pursued so that it was something that would be implemented either in my dissertation or my future career working with engineering students. I think this is something that enhanced my motivation to not only pursue this degree, but also to complete it and I’m excited to see what new things and skills I learn from my dissertation along the way!

The end of June marks the ASEE Annual Conference for the engineering education community. Academic conferences are more than just gatherings of scholars; they are hubs for knowledge exchange, networking opportunities, and professional growth. Whether you’re a seasoned attendee or a first-timer, strategically navigating these events can significantly enhance your academic journey. Here’s my advice on how to make the most out of your next conference experience:

Before the Conference

1. Research and Plan: Study the conference program in advance. Highlight sessions, workshops, and presentations relevant to your research interests. Build these into your calendar with the time/locations of the presentations to help you stay organized once you arrive. Planning ahead ensures you don’t miss key sessions and helps you manage your time effectively.
2. Set Goals: Define what you aim to achieve—whether it’s learning about a specific area of research, presenting your own work, or networking with peers and potential collaborators, clear goals give your conference experience direction. Reflecting on these goals can help you when making decisions between competing events.
3. Prepare Your Materials: Have business cards, presentation slides, and (if you are on the job market) copies of your updated CV ready to go. If you are presenting slides, make sure you are prepared to access and share your presentation in multiple ways (e.g., copy of materials on the cloud, on a flash drive, via HDMI, etc.) If you are presenting a poster, make a plan for when you will print the poster and how you are going to get it to the conference

During the Conference

1. Attend Strategically and Don’t Try to Do Everything: Be selective about the sessions/events you attend and build breaks into your daily schedule. Select sessions to attend with a purpose but don’t be afraid to go outside your comfort zone and explore diverse topics to broaden your knowledge. During sessions, engage actively and ask questions—it’s a great way to connect with presenters and other attendees. Make sure to have something to take notes with so you can bring all your great ideas/insights back with you!
2. Network Intentionally: Approach networking with a purpose. Initiate conversations with fellow researchers, introduce yourself confidently, and exchange contact information. Networking lunches, coffee breaks, and social events are ideal for forging meaningful connections.

After the Conference

1. Follow Up: Within a few days, send follow-up emails and/or LinkedIn messages to people you met. Thank them for insightful discussions and express interest in staying connected. This strengthens new connections and reinforces your presence in the academic community.
2. Reflect and Review: Take time to reflect on what you’ve learned and experienced. Review your notes and identify key takeaways. This helps solidify new knowledge and informs your future research directions. Consider how you will incorporate newfound knowledge into your work.

Attending an academic conference can feel overwhelming, but with thoughtful preparation, active engagement, and reflective evaluation of what you’ve learned, you can make the experience a highly rewarding one.

In about a month and a half, I will be officially moving into my second year as a PhD student in engineering education. The first year has been a blessing in many ways, thanks to my very supportive advisor, peers, and the wonderful researchers on the project I am working on as a GRA. As I wrap up my first year, a friend who will start her PhD in July asked me: what do I wish I had known before starting my PhD? Here are my answers.

1. Identify a Reference Organization Tool Early

Whether you’re starting or already deep into your PhD, you’ve had experience with reading papers and writing your own work, inevitably needing to cite your sources. Initially, I used the old-school method: downloading papers, reading them on my iPad, and jotting notes in the margins. This approach worked well during my Master’s, but it fell short when I started writing a literature review in my first year. Without tracking quotes or organizing my thoughts, I struggled to find the necessary information when writing.

Learn from my experience: identify a reference organization tool early on and stick with it. Pull quotes or useful information as you read and organize them for easy access later. This practice will prove invaluable for writing papers, preparing for preliminary exams, and crafting your dissertation. If you’re unsure which software to use, watch YouTube tutorials or ask experienced students. Tools like Zotero offer plugins for browsers and Word documents, simplifying the process of saving papers and adding citations.

2. Balance Your Work and Life

As a new PhD student and novice researcher, you may often feel “behind” others in your program or field, leading you to work overtime to “catch up.” I often found myself thinking about papers while making dinner or taking notes on my phone while shopping. Luckily, my husband was there to remind me to enjoy life beyond my desk. Even if you live alone or with roommates, make time to relax and step away from your work.

One strategy is to maintain a to-do list, both weekly and daily, using a digital tool that syncs your lists. While too many items can feel overwhelming, scheduling time blocks can alleviate pressure and ensure you have breaks. Prioritize tasks by deadlines and stakes; tackle urgent, high-stakes items first. Remember, things may not always go as planned. Don’t stress over setbacks. My advisor’s reassurance that “life happens” and to seek help when needed has been invaluable.

3. Grace Yourself for Not Knowing Everything

As someone new to the field, I frequently found myself unaware of theories, philosophical paradigms, or how to write a coherent paper. Starting my GRA position with many expert researchers was daunting. I feared making mistakes or asking “dumb” questions, which hindered my contributions and learning. Instead of asking mentors, I spent extra hours figuring things out on my own, often with less-than-ideal results. This added stress and anxiety impacted my academic performance.

After my annual evaluation, I realized that a PhD is a time for training and growth, which takes time. It’s okay to make mistakes as long as you’re learning and progressing. Prioritize your mental health and seek help when needed. Remember, your PhD is just a few years out of many in your life, and you have a life to live beyond work.

Lastly, consider reading *Mastering Your PhD: Survival and Success in the Doctoral Years and Beyond* by Bart Noordam and Patricia Gosling. While your context may differ, this book can provide valuable insights and help set your expectations.

By keeping these points in mind, you can navigate the challenges of your PhD journey more effectively and enjoy the process of becoming a researcher.

I’m one year into the PhD program, and roughly six months into a voluntary research project. During the first semester of my PhD program, the incoming cohort decided to conduct a collaborative research project on our transition. In many ways, the experience challenged me to grow and experience research in ways that I haven’t before. In reflecting on the experience, there are three main takeaways that I’d like to share:

• Appreciate the real moments with your colleagues. Sure, the achievements and grandiose awards may be nice. While these may fuel the pursuit of tenure in the ivory tour, these experiences are not always what fuels enjoyment in our work or our lives. Live your work with your colleagues. Relish in the joys and support one another in difficulties. Build a genuine community that supports one another in their journey. Although the pomp and circumstance may be nice, it will never compare to the reassurance and growth that I have received from growing with another.
• Enter research with an open mind. You may have a premonition of what the data will tell you, and an ideal way of analyzing it. However, it’s important to acknowledge that you are experiencing the journey with your participants and co-researchers. We conduct lengthy procedures and methods to ensure quality data. At the same time, data collection and analysis unveil a story and should be appreciated as such. Keep your plan in mind, and let your participants speak for themselves.
• Microdose bravery in your research. Not every idea will work. Not every method will yield a resounding success. Sometimes, your conference abstracts will need to be pulled or rejected. When (not if) this happens, the pressure of perfection and the “publish or perish” culture within higher education may weigh on you. Don’t let it. Remember that you are not your accomplishments. Adventure into a new research topic. Collaborate with a new colleague. Research and implement a different method. Take solace in the fact that your bravery will benefit yourself, your colleagues, and your field. Take the risk – Be brave.

I came into this program being told that as a Ph.D. student, I would be learning to develop new knowledge. At this point, I’m not sure whether this encapsulates the entire picture. Research is about producing knowledge for the field. Yet, it’s also about constantly learning, growing, and serving others:

Research is introspective. Research is Collaborative.
Research is science. Research is art.
Research is public. Research is personal.
Whatever research means to you – as a researcher, you need to live it.

Writing the introduction and background of a research article can be daunting. Where do you start? What information should you include?

A great place to start is creating an argument structure for why your research topic is relevant and important. This structure should clearly walk the reader through current, relevant literature and lead them to the gap in the literature that your topic fills. To do this I use the following 4-step argument creation structure.

1. Create argument funnel questions/statements
2. Harvest article quotes that explain/backup each of the argument funnel questions/statements
3. Organize article quotes to best support each section of the argument funnel
4. Write prose that utilizes the article quotes to progress your argument from most well known to your specific topic

1. Argument Funnel Creation

Create an argument funnel with statements that take the reader form the most well known and widely accepted knowledge connected to my topic down to your specific research topic.

Completed Argument Funnel Example

When creating your funnel statements think about what research exists related to your topic. Where are the gaps in the existing literature? How do you know those are the gaps? If you get stuck, think about the 50,000 ft view of your topic and how you would explain the necessity of your research to people not in your field.

2. Harvesting Article Quotes

Find research articles that pertain to each of your funnel statements to back them up with evidence. As you find the articles put them into a citation manager (e.g., Zotero) now to save yourself time later. While reading the articles, pull (copy and paste) article quotes/excerpts that MAY be relevant. Pull more than you think you need, especially duplicates of the same idea by different authors to strengthen your argument. Store your quotes/excerpts in a document organized by your funnel statements with in-text citations with the page number you pulled it from. The National Academy of Engineering reports can be valuable top of funnel resources.

3. Organizing Article Quotes

Once you have harvested many article quotes for each of your funnel statements, organized them in an order that walks your reader through the literature landscape in a logical way. As you do this assume the reader doesn’t know anything about your topic so start at the beginning. Chronological order is a good place to start but may not always fit your argument. Think about your quotes/excerpts as puzzle pieces, where do they logically fit together?

4. Writing Prose

Now that your article quotes are organized, summarize the quotes in your own voice with appropriate citations. This is the time to begin including transition/connecting words and phrases between summarized quotes to bring your reader through your argument. Don’t forget to include “so what?” sentences and phrases after summarized quotes. In other words don’t only report what other authors said or found, tell the reader why that is important to your argument.

In July, I started a new role at OSU as the Assistant Vice President for Talent and Team Development within the Office of Knowledge Enterprise (OKE) while continuing my engineering education work. OKE is part of ERIK which is essentially the research and innovation arm of the institution. In this role, I am charged with helping researchers and teams of researcher prepare for large-scale interdisciplinary research that could lead to federal funding. It has been an exciting new adventure that has allowed me to connect with amazing folks across the entire university. That said, balancing a faculty appointment and an administrative appointment can be challenging. Below are 3 tips if you are interested in starting to pursue something similar.

• Have a typical schedule but be ready for changes. I spend 2 days a week in my OKE office and 2 days a week in my engineering education office. I use Fridays as a split day to catch up on whatever is needed (ideally working from home that day but that has happened less than I would like). While this balanced schedule would be ideal, there are times when adjustments need to be made. With that, when planning things like meetings in advance, I keep everything to their assigned days. This allows unforeseen issues or tasks to be tackled as needed. There are times when I make exceptions, but these are far and few between or else I would be doing both jobs all the time.

• Communicate, communicate, and communicate again. When you have two major roles, you know you do, but others will forget because they are not balancing both day to day. There is no harm in reminding them about your schedule, availability, capacity, and expectations. This is about setting boundaries but also communicating them. I have found that people are typically extremely understanding when I remind them of my dual role and the restrictions it causes.

• Ask all the questions. I have been at OSU as a faculty member for 10 years now. I know how a lot of things work. I have seen the old ways of doing things and the new ones. One major thing I have learned in this new role is that every unit has their own way of doing things even if we are following the same university policies. This means you have to ask questions to learn how things are done across the system. There are certain things people will assume you know, but trust me, ask questions just to be sure you are aligned.

As I continue in this role, I know I will have more to share, but I wanted to post my initial insights having been in this role for about 6 months. Each and every day, I learn something new about the role, the unit, the university, and myself. It has been a great experience in doing something fresh and continuing to learn.

The past few months of my PhD journey have been an absolute whirlwind! Aside from my typical class and GTA responsiblities, I was juggling my dissertation proposal, an ASEE conference paper, and preparing for the KEEN (Kern Entrepreneurial Engineering Network) National Conference! It was a lot of work at times and a little daunting, but whenever I took a step back from it all, I realized how cool all the work is that I’m doing and how amazing it is to be doing it as a PhD student. Along the way, I learned several important lessons that will inform how move through Engineering Education moving forward.

A long term goal of mine was to finish my dissertation proposal, send it to my committee, and formally start my candidacy exam on February 1st which happened! I blocked of time weekly to work on my proposal and flesh out my research design since the Summer of 2023, and seeing the kind of progress and growth I was making was incredible. For some time, I had learned about all the different elements of research design, what kinds of things I need to consider, and what decisions need to be justified, and finally putting all this knowledge into practice helped to make all this conceptual knowledge more tangible. This process also showed me the power of setting aside dedicated work time for specific projects. With each passing week, I could see the progress I was making and always ended each week a few steps ahead than where I started.

While finishing up my proposal and sending that to my committee, I was able to work on an ASEE paper with fellow RIME members, Amanda Singer and Carter Huber, along with Drs. Kajfez and Kecskemety! This paper focused on the application of some indirect assessments our KEEN Research & Assessment Team developed in the honors track of our first-year program. We had some interesting findings in our data analysis and it’s exciting to put this out into the world for other practitioners to reference as they help their students develop an entrepreneurial mindset. It was also very cool to begin collaborating with my peers on research! I think we all brought something valuable to our work and that helped to make our findings shine.

The submission of both my proposal and this ASEE paper culminated with a trip to the KEEN National Conference (KNC) which was held in Austin, Texas this year! It was refreshing to be with a group of educators who are also invested in how we teach students and making sure it’s done in a way that benefits their growth. The conferenced largely focused on different kinds of workshops and helping educators see how they could bring new ideas and practices into their classrooms to enhance student learning. But, the best parts of the conference were attending with Dr. Kajfez and meeting up with fellow RIME member, Meg West, and RIME alumn, Abby Clark (see photo below).

Looking forward, I will soon begin working on the written portion of my candidacy exam. While it can be a little intimidating, it will encourage me to think deeply about different pieces and parts of my study design and make sure I’m ready to think through any curveballs that come my way post-candidacy. I’m excited to begin this part of my PhD journey and see what my study design will look like by the end of the spring semester!

Returning to the first-year engineering (FYE) classroom after a two-year hiatus felt like stepping into a familiar yet somewhat distant realm. Prior to starting my degree at OSU, I worked as a teaching assistant for the FYE program at my previous institution for 5 years. During that time, I served in a variety of capacities including as an undergraduate teaching assistant, lead teaching assistant, and, eventually as a co-instructor of the required TA training course. I loved being in the classroom, working with students, and helping other TAs build the skillsets needed to excel in their own classrooms. Although I was excited to dive into research and graduate courses upon arriving at OSU, I quickly discovered a yearning to get back in the classroom and engage with first-year engineering students. I was very excited when I learned that I would be a graduate teaching associate for two sections of the Fundamentals of Engineering Honors (FEH) course at OSU earlier this summer.

While I looked forward to getting back into the classroom, I was also curious (and somewhat nervous) to see how the FYE program and classroom experience at OSU would differ from my prior institution. Previously, I was responsible for course grading, attending class each day, hosting office hours, and planning and facilitating my own 50-minute active learning session once a week. At my previous institution, I had a small section of students (~20) and was given a lot of autonomy in terms of grading, developing content, and facilitating sessions. At OSU, however, I found that, although I would be facilitating a lab session each week on my own, the content and structure of the sessions were rigid and set. While this new structure saved me a lot of time outside of class, I struggled to make the sessions interactive and feel like my own during the first few weeks. Additionally, I was now teaching a larger number of students (~72 across two sections) and was struggling with learning how to manage and engage a group this large in a new environment.

Determined to bridge the gap between the highly structured, traditional lecture-format and my own approach to teaching, I took deliberate steps to inject active and peer learning into the introductory lecture for each lab session I facilitated. I introduced short introductory activities (i.e., jigsaws), built in group discussions, and leveraged technology to enhance interactivity and to check for student understanding of the pre-lab material. Additionally, I tried to build in opportunities for student choice and autonomy to foster a more inclusive classroom. Over time, I found a balance between leveraging the set curriculum and infusing elements of my own teaching style. This experience not only challenged me to innovate within constraints but also enriched my pedagogical repertoire for the future.

Looking ahead, I am excited to continue as a GTA for FEH this coming spring semester. Specifically, I am eager to work with students as they learn solid modelling and complete their Nanotechnology semester projects. While I am learning that the OSU FYE program is quite different from my previous experience, I am eager to see what else I can learn and reflect on how it can be used to advance my own teaching philosophy.

I am an international Ph.D. student in the Department of Engineering Education at The Ohio State University. I have already completed my bachelor’s and master’s degrees in the US, so I am familiar with the education system and culture here. However, starting my PhD has been a new and challenging experience.

One of the biggest challenges I have faced is the transition from being a master’s student in a technical engineering discipline to a doctoral student in the education realm. In an engineering master’s program, you are typically required to take a set of courses and complete a research project. In a doctoral program, you are expected to be more independent and to develop your own research agenda. You are also expected to read more, whether they are related to your courses or your research interest. This has been a challenging transition for me, but I have learned a lot from the process.

Another challenge I have faced is the language barrier. English is not my first language, so I can sometimes have difficulty understanding classes and assigned readings. I have also had to learn new technical terms and concepts in the education realm. However, my professors and classmates have been very supportive, especially my advisor and members of my research group, and they have helped me to overcome these challenges.

Despite the challenges, I have also had many rewards as an international PhD student in engineering education. I have had the opportunity to work on cutting-edge research projects with world-class professors. I have also had the opportunity to collaborate with talented students from diverse backgrounds. I have learned a lot, both academically and personally, from my experience.

Here, I would like to share some tips for incoming international Ph.D. students in engineering education:

• Get involved in the engineering education community. There are many engineering education conferences and events held throughout the year. It can be challenging at the beginning for many reasons. I suggest you start with faculty members in your department. Attending seminars and events held in your department to familiarize yourself with professors and lecturers is a great way to start.
• Find a mentor. A mentor can provide you with guidance and support throughout your PhD program. Your mentor can help you to develop your research agenda, to write papers, and to prepare for your job search. You typically spend lots of time with your advisor, but talking to your cohort and other Ph.D. students in their second or third year is also a great way to learn.
• Take advantage of your university’s resources. Most universities offer a variety of resources for PhD students, such as writing centers, statistical consulting, and career counseling. Take advantage of these resources to help you succeed in your program.
• Don’t be afraid to ask for help. If you are struggling with anything, don’t be afraid to ask for help from your professors, classmates, mentors, or other campus resources. There are many people who are willing to help you succeed.

Engineering education is a challenging but rewarding field of study. As an international Ph.D. student, you may face some additional challenges, but you also have the opportunity to learn from a diverse range of people and gain valuable skills and knowledge. I encourage you to embrace the challenges and to make the most of your experience as an international Ph.D. student in engineering education.

In addition to the tips above, I would also recommend that international Ph.D. students in engineering education reflect on their journey and share their experiences with others. This can help to raise awareness of the challenges and rewards of being an international PhD student, and it can also provide support to other students who are going through the same experience.