Enhance the graduate experience

Graduate education is vital for the health and productivity of any academic program, helping to stimulate discussion and discovery while training the next generation of scholars, intellectuals, and scientists.

Our strategies

Define the future of the doctoral degree.

The changing nature of the PhD demands new ways to illustrate the broad social value of the degree. It requires more robust information about the variety of careers pursued by our PhD alumni and refined training to prepare students for an array of careers that may yet to be imagined. We stand ready to articulate the full potential of doctoral education by re-investigating in non-curricular activities, the nature of the dissertation, and how these relate to career outcomes. Following work already begun in the natural sciences and encouraged by national funding agencies, all Krieger School programs will engage with PHutures and professionalize activities provided there. Additionally, the Krieger School has introduced a transformative initiative—the Society of Fellows in the Humanities—which selectively gathers top graduates of our PhD programs to experiment with a range of careers even as it honors the versatility of their training and expertise.

Improve support for graduate students. 

It is essential that our graduate students receive the resources and training needed to excel, not only during their time with us, but also into their future careers. On-going negotiations with the recently formed graduate student union will address some of these concerns, but our commitments extend beyond labor issues. We must restructure support packages to remain competitive with our peer institutions. We will expand and update the mentoring of our candidates, improving the crucial advisor-advisee relationship. We will also orient our graduate students as diverse, equitable, and inclusive educators and provide valuable teaching professional development opportunities through programs like the Teaching Academy. 

Foster cohorts for graduate students.

Building community requires innovative thinking about both space and collaboration. As we shift space allocation on campus, we will designate more shared space for graduate students, especially for those in the humanities and social sciences. In addition, we will use dissertation fellowships, research awards, and other incentives to strengthen the programs that already invite graduate students into shared projects and prioritize student-initiated collaborations.

Diversify graduate student base. 

The Krieger School aims to recruit more graduate students from diverse backgrounds, including students from underrepresented and limited-income groups.  We will develop a clear understanding of our recruitment needs and implement a comprehensive recruitment strategy intended to create a pluralistic academic community. We will strengthen the roles of faculty diversity champions and student diversity ambassadors to support and enhance the success of our students. We will also help to build pathways to the doctorate for diverse students through efforts such as the SNF Agora Institute Predoctoral Fellowship Program, the Krieger School Collaboratory PhD Pathway Program, and the History of Science, Medicine, and Technology MA Pathway to PhD in STEM-adjacent Humanities and Social Sciences.

Our accomplishments

Defining the future of the doctorate

The Krieger School drafted a white paper on the KSAS Graduate Experience and Career Outcomes that assembles data from surveys and an extensive tracking of doctoral students who have graduated since 2008. The information collected allows the school and each program to evaluate what students prize about their education and where they struggle or meet disappointment. The white paper makes the case for the strong and broad social value of the PhD, both within and outside the walls of academia. Over the upcoming academic year, this information will be shared with KSAS community members and should inform the work of the larger university’s Commission on PhD Education.   

Collective bargaining with students

In spring 2024, the university entered a three-year Collective Bargaining Agreement for PhD student workers at JHU. This contract includes 29 articles that address a broad range of important topics and offers enhanced pay and benefits that raise the minimum stipend to $47,000 per year beginning July 2024, alongside paid health benefits for eligible children and spouses, parental leave benefits, increased vacation and sick time, and a one-time $1,000 signing bonus for all bargaining unit members. These efforts allow us to continue to attract the best graduate students into our programs.

Improving advising structures

After extensive conversation throughout the academic year, KSAS proposed a revision to its PhD advising structures. The goal is to build relationships between students and faculty over several years that will strengthen professional development, letters of reference, and students’ sense of belonging. The possibility of including faculty from other fields on the mentoring team encourages students to broaden their thinking beyond their disciplinary home and confer with those in related fields about their research. The KSAS Shared Governance Council endorsed the proposed revisions in their April 2024 meeting and now individual programs will discuss these guidelines and how they can improve the advising structure. 

Fostering cohorts

• KSAS implemented the Graduate Diversity Ambassador Program, an initiative supported by the Office of the Vice Provost for Graduate and Professional Education, the Office of Diversity and Inclusion, and the KSAS Dean’s Office.  Ambassadors extended the capacity of the KSAS Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Office to recruit and retain diverse graduate students in KSAS. Their roles included participating in campus visits, local graduate school fairs, the fall preview program, and monthly socials. Ambassadors also engaged in programming that enhanced professional growth for graduate students.
• The Writing Center initiated Write on Site, a dissertation bootcamp for KSAS students, providing writing support and community for those at the dissertation stage. Write on Site offered two-day, pre-semester workshops (August, January, and May) and monthly workshops on topics ranging from managing a long project to revision strategies. In the spring, weekly writing groups were added to the monthly workshops. These well-attended sessions were successful and had a waiting list.