The Graduate Student Council is focusing much-overdue attention on the advising and proper treatment of graduate students. In the wake of the tragic suicide of first-year graduate student Hailei Ge and apparent suicide of fifth-year student Jason Altom, it is clear that there are substantial imperfections in the graduate student experience.

See the information below for just some of what the Graduate Student Council is doing to address this most vital issue. Please feel free to contact the GSC at gsc@hcs.harvard.edu to share your experiences and to offer your suggestions for confronting this challenge.

Harvard students interesting working on and discussion this issue in a smaller forum are encouraged to join the Advising Task Force.

More Information

• Report of Faculty Committee on the Structure of PhD Dissertation Advising [15 February 1999]

• Strategies for Effective Advising in the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences [12 December 1998]

• Updated Draft Proposals: Graduate Student Life and Education [14 May 1998]

• GSC Excellence in Mentoring Awards

• Draft Statement of Graduate Student Rights [10 March 1998]

• Comments to Faculty of Arts and Sciences by graduate student Paul Callan [10 February 1998]

• Open Letter from Graduate Student Council to Harvard President Neil L. Rudenstine [4 December 1997]

• Quotes from current Harvard graduate students [4 December 1997]

• Editorial: Making Harvard a Truly Supportive Community [4 December 1997]

• December GSC Meeting Announcement on Discussion of Graduate Student Advising and Treatment [1 December 1997]

Proposal for Regular Review of Graduate Student Progress

• Cover Letter to the Committee on Graduate Education [26 March 1997]
• Proposal for Regular Review of Graduate Student Progress [March 1997]
• Proposed Review Report Form [March 1997]
• Report on Graduate Student Progress / G-10 Rule [February 1997]

Media Coverage

• A New and Impproved Chemistry Dept.: The Harvard Crimson [6 November 2001]
• Grad-student suicides spur big charges at Harvard chem labs: The Boston Globe [2 January 2001]
• Turn Off The Bunsen Burner: The Harvard Crimson [2 November 2000]
• Heavenly Labs: How to Find Them: HMS Beagle, The BioMedNet Magazine [17 September 1999]
• The Alchemy of Advising: The Harvard Crimson [26 May 1999]
• Committees aren't the answer [Letter to the Editor]: HMS Beagle, The BioMedNet Magazine [30 April 1999]
• In response to "A Student's Suicide: Questions and Lessons" [Letters to the Editor]: HMS Beagle, The BioMedNet Magazine [17 April 1999]
• Curb abuses in graduate school [Letter to the Editor]: Nature 398: 366 [1 April 1999]
• When hard work doesn't pay: U.S. News & World Report
• A Student's Suicide: Questions and Lessons: HMS Beagle: The BioMedNet Magazine [5 March 1999]
• Trials and tribulations of PhD students [Letters to the Editor]: Nature [25 February 1999]
• Who will mentor the mentors?: Nature 397: 291
• Loneliness of the Long-Distance Scholar: Harvard Magazine [Jan-Feb 1999]
• Colleges learn to ease pressure: USA Today [8 December 1998]
• Debt, isolation can break grad students: USA Today [9 December 1998]
• Graduate Students Push for Reforms: Chronicle of Higher Education [4 December 1998]
• AAUP Proposal Encourages Professoriate to Police Itself: Chronicle of Higher Education [4 December 1998]
• Lethal Chemistry at Harvard: The New York Times Magazine [29 November 1998]
• National Graduate-Student Group Supports Strike Prerogative in California: The Chronicle of Higher Education [23 November 1998]
• Making Harvard More Laid Back (Real Audio): Morning Edition, National Public Radio [18 November 1998]
• A Student's Suicide Prompts Suggestions for Reforms in Graduate Education (Letters to the Editor): The Chronicle of Higher Education [20 November 1998]
• Reflections on the death of a young scientist (Editorial): Nature [29 October 1998]
• Suicide highlights graduate student woes: Nature [29 October 1998]
• Graduate Students Aren't Robots; Too Many Suicides: The New York Times [27 October 1998]
• Grad student pressure cooker?: WB56
• Campus Suicides; After More Deaths, Harvard Address Stress on Students: Chicago Tribune [26 October 1998]
• U' studies student/faculty relationships: The Michigan Daily [23 October 1998]
• Harvard Faces the Aftermath of a Graduate Student's Suicide: The Chronicle of Higher Education [23 October 1998]
• Harvard Seeks to Improve Support for Stressed Students: The New York Times [21 October 1998]
• Suicides prompt Harvard to cut grad-student stress: The Seattle Times [21 October 1998]
• Harvard suicides prompt steps to cut stress: Milwaukee Journal Sentinal [21 October 1998]
• Suicides prompt Harvard to make changes: Fox News [20 October 1998]
• Suicides prompt Harvard to make changes: Associated Press [20 October 1998]
• After suicide, Harvard increases graduate-student supports: The Boston Globe [20 October 1998]
• Chem. Dept. Priorities Reflect Larger Harvard Problem (Letter to the Editor): The Harvard Crimson [18 September 1998]
• Chemistry Department Changes Ph.D. Advising System: The Harvard Crimson [17 September 1998]
• Suicide Spurs GSAS, Chem. Department To Review Advising: The Harvard Crimson [14 September 1998]
• Grad Students Not To Blame (Letter to the Editor): The Harvard Crimson [13 May 1998]
• Faculty, Graduate Students Explore Graduate Advising Activities: Harvard University Gazette [23 April 1998]
• GSAS Council Makes Plea for Better Adivising: The Harvard Crimson [12 March 1998]
• No Aid Overhaul, Knowles Says: The Harvard Crimson [2 March 1998]
• Open Letter from GSAS Dean Christoph Wolff to the Harvard Chinese Students and Scholars Association: GSAS Bulletin [March 1998]
• FAS Faculty Reviews Progress on Campaign, Budget Concerns: Harvard University Gazette [12 February 1998]
• Faculty Hears Grad Student: The Harvard Crimson [11 February 1998]
• Dear President Rudenstine: An open letter to improve graduate student support systems from Harvard Chinese Students and Scholars Association, Editorial: The Harvard Crimson [8 December 1997]
• Graduate Student Council Pushes For Better Advising System: The Harvard Crimson [4 December 1997]
• Let Suicide Be Wake-Up Call/Focus on Grad Student Stress, Letters to the Editor: The Harvard Crimson [20 November 1997]

Related Sites

• Adviser, Teacher, Role Model, Friend: On Being a Mentor to Students in Science and Engineering (National Academy of Sciences)
• Association of American Universities (AAU) Committee on Graduate Education Report and Recommendations [October 1998]
• Rights and Responsibility in Research (R3): Series of Workshops in the EECS Department of MIT
• Ethics Center for Engineering & Science, Case Western Reserve University
• Mentoring Relationships (from AAAS' Next Wave)
  • Mentoring in the Scientitic Community
  • Issues in Graduate Mentoring: Diverse Career Options and Accountability in the Mentor-Student Relationship
  • Resources
• National Association of Graduate-Professional Students (NAGPS)
  • Ad Hoc Committee on Faculty-Student Relations
• Phds.Org
• Preparing Future Faculty (PFF) Program
• Mentoring Project from the Association of Women in Science (AWIS)
• Graduate Mentoring: A Growing Partnership at Oklahoma State University