Promising graduate students to visit campus

Meet at least 10 new people.

That will be the charge to almost 650 undergraduate students attending the 2005 Summer Research Opportunity (SROP) Conference, presented by the Committee on Institutional Cooperation (CIC) and hosted this year by the Graduate School at UW–Madison.

This summer the conference theme will be “Networking for Scholarly Achievement.” Since its inception in 1986, the annual event has attracted high-achievers from across the country who traditionally have been underrepresented in graduate schools. They will be able to present their research in roundtable forums and present proposals in a poster session.

SROP alumni, faculty and staff will discuss the rewards and challenges of pursuing an academic career, and information about preparing for graduate school in general and for a specific field of study in particular also will be available. In addition, there will be workshops on navigating admissions, finding and working with a mentor, conducting ethical research, funding a graduate education and more.

UW–Madison has hosted the conference twice, the last time in 1995, according to Martin Cadwallader, dean of the UW–Madison Graduate School.

“We are very excited to be hosting this conference again this year,” he says. “It will be a fantastic opportunity to exchange ideas while giving students a taste of what graduate study will be like. And, in keeping with the theme of the conference, there will be numerous opportunities for UW–Madison faculty and staff to network with these outstanding scholars. We are sure that they will leave Madison with many lasting connections with students and faculty alike.”