- mcgillbgsa
BGSA Newsletter | April 8th, 2024
Artwork by Kate Sheridan
Good morning BGSA,
I hope you all can enjoy the full solar eclipse today.
Final chance! Register for the Biology Department Day until April 10. The art, photo, and logo contest submission form is now active. You can submit your work until April 19 at 5 pm. Logo contest winners artwork will be featured on next year’s merch, and all winner will receive prizes! The talk schedule will come out a few days after April 10 (as soon as I can pull it together). Full announcement below.
We have two PhD exit seminars this Wednesday from Anthony Smith and Hoai-Nam Bui.
GPS is conducting a survey (gradSERU) of doctoral student experiences in McGill. Please take ~15 minutes to complete the important survey. Doctoral students received personalized links for their surveys, so check your inboxes.
Please take a moment to share your thoughts about the principles and values of the BGSA.
Send anything you wish included in BGSA newsletters to caroline.dallstream@mail.mcgill.ca.
Best,
Caroline, Flavio, Alex, and Kate
Announcements and Special Events
BGSA Department Day 2024
Save the date! The 2024 Biology Department Day will be held on Tuesday, April 23 from 9:30 am to 5 pm, with social time from 5 to 7 pm, all in the Thomson House Ballroom. The registration form is live and will be available until April 10. Registration is free and includes three coffee breaks and lunch, as well as 2 drink tickets for the social time. Sign up to give a 3- or 6-minute research talk, a workshop, or simply enjoy and learn about all the cool research performed by our fellow grad students. The art, photo, and logo contest submission form is now active. You can submit your work until April 19 at 5 pm.
gradSERU Survey
gradSERU (Graduate Student Experience in the Research University) allows PhD students to give their honest, anonymous feedback on many aspects of their PhD experience, everything from funding and quality of supervision to mental health and career aspirations. McGill Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies has committed to using the survey results to guide future programming for doctoral students and to advocate for better graduate student funding and conditions. However, for gradSERU to have this important impact, a strong response rate is needed from PhD students from a variety of disciplines. The survey takes about 20 minutes to complete, and all those who take the survey are entered into a draw for 1 of 11 prizes, including a pair of Apple Airpods Pro. Take a moment to complete the survey if you haven’t done so already. Please check your inbox (including the “Other” tab) for your invitation. To learn more about the survey, please visit mcgill.ca/gradseru. If you have questions about the survey, you can also contact communications.gps@mcgill.ca.
PhD Exit Seminars
Hoai-Nam Bui: Evolution and development of the archosaurian axial column
Anthony Smith: Shape analysis of ecotoxicological effects
Wednesday April 17, 2024 from 12:00-2:00pm
Redpath Museum room 106
AGSEM Bargaining
You might have heard that your TA union, AGSEM, is bargaining currently for a new contract!! Our demands include higher wages, healthcare benefits, and the indexation of TA numbers to class sizes. Our bargaining sessions with McGill are open to all AGSEM members - come along to see how McGill responds to our demands and show our strength in numbers. You can sign up to attend a session here!
Volunteer: Open BGSA Positions
The positions below are currently unfilled. Email caroline.dallstream@mail.mcgill.ca if you are interested.
Biology GA graduate Rep (1)