Resources for Graduate Students

Graduate Officer: Paul O'Gorman

Graduate Program Handbook
Regulations for the graduate program and useful Department information.

MIT-WHOI Joint Program Handbooks
For MIT-WHOI students the regulations in the JP handbooks supersede the EAPS Handbook.

General Examination Forms

• General Exam Topic Approval for G3, Geophysics, and Planetary Science Students. Link to the form for scheduling the General Exam.

• PAOC General Exam Application.docx

Thesis and Defense Information

• At the beginning of the semester in which you intend to finish, you must apply to receive your degree by putting your name on the degree list. You can find the link by going to student.mit.edu.The application deadline for each semester is included on the academic calendar. A late application incurs a fine.
• Thesis Proposal Submission or Change Membership of Thesis Committee
• Submit a schedule for the thesis defense at least 2 weeks before the defense date. You are responsible for making a room reservation. This is best done as soon as a defense date is agreed upon.
  • Schedule a defense of a Doctoral Thesis - Complete and provide a signed copy to the Education Office. Also email a Word file with the information.
  • Schedule a defense of a Master's Thesis - Complete and provide a signed copy to the Education Office. 
• Guidelines for Remote Defenses due to COVID-19
• EAPS Thesis Preparation and Submission Guidelines

Research and Writing Resources

• Writing and Communication Center: You can get free individual, professional consultations about any writing or oral presentation issue. They can help you discover and fulfill your particular field’s communication expectations
• Writing a Technical Paper by Menzel, Jones, and Boyd 
  (Copyrighted Material, certificate required)
• The Cognitive Style of PowerPoint: Pitching Out Corrupts Within by Edward R. Tufte 
  (Copyrighted Material, certificate required)
• EAPS Virtual Library - links to selected resources relevant to EAPS disciplines
• Academic Integrity at MIT: a handbook for students
• AGU Scientific Integrity and Professional Ethics: the value of research to the scientific community lies in the integrity of the research and its communication. An example of a comprehensive code of professional ethics for any scientist has been been developed by the American Geophysical Union.

Student Life

• EAPS Student Advisory Council [E-SAC]
• Graduate Student Council
• Student Financial Services: Links to all areas
• iGrad Financial Literacy platform (offered in collaboration with the MIT Federal Credit Union). Customized for MIT with videos, articles, games,  job board, searchable scholarship database, and interactive modules on a wide range of topics, including emergency-funding, credit card management, identity protection, spending-smarts, etc. it is a great financial literacy tool for students and the MIT community in general.
• Tax information for graduate students, including tax treaties
• Graduate Financial Aid
• Housing
• MIT Medical
• Resources for Graduate Student Families
• Nonresident Student Vehicle Information

Leadership/Career Development Opportunities

• Career Bridge at the Global Education and Career Development Office
• New Service  -  Interview Stream
  You can practice your interview skills before doing the real thing. Practice ANYTIME and ANYWHERE. Currently set up for interviewsAccess this site via the GCES Resources page or Career Bridge under Premium Resources
  • General: general behavioral interview, interview practice, career fair prep
  • Industry
  • Interview by MIT Course: includes specialized interview for EAPS

• MIT Learning Center
  Free web based training tools with a variety of fundamental leadership online courses. Go to atlas.mit.edu and select "Learning Center" or go directly to  edX  and Lynda.com
  The content has video courses on almost anything you could think of. If you are looking for specific advice for a course, you can send a message to training@mit.edu, and a member of the Learning Services Team will find someone on the training team to work with them to find some options that will meet your needs.

Counseling and Dispute Resolution

• Let's Chat - easy access to informal, free, confidential consultations with counselors from MIT Medical’s Mental Health & Counseling Service (MH&C).
• iREFS - graduate student peer-to-peer mentors from across the institute trained to provide confidential support
• Sexual Misconduct/Title IX - What you need to know when a friend comes to you for help or advice.
• Student Support Services
• Conflict Management @ MIT
• Ombuds Office
• EAPS Diversity Advocates: Michael Richard (mjr@mit.edu) and Roberta Allard (allard@mit.edu)