Proposal writing is an essential requirement for making progress in academics. Learning this skill necessitates support from a mentor to cultivate effective habits. It entails effective strategies from graduate students, such as literature reading and using online tools. Additionally, they must develop an understanding of resource accountability,…

Increasing demand for chemicals worldwide, depleting resources, consumer pressure, stricter legislation, and the rising cost of waste disposal are placing increasing pressure on chemical and related industries. For any organization to survive in the current arena of growing climate change laws and regulations, and increasing public influence, the…

This article presents the Psycho-Ecological Systems Model (PESM)--an integrative conceptual model rooted in General Systems Theory (GST). PESM was developed to inform and guide the development, implementation, and evaluation of transdisciplinary (and multilevel) community-engaged scholarship (e.g., a participatory community action research project…

For the last seven years, an interdisciplinary course known as "Greener Solutions", offered by the University of California, Berkeley Center for Green Chemistry, has brought together graduate students in chemistry, environmental health, and engineering to understand each other's disciplines, and to work together to develop safer…

As a newcomer, the philosophical basis of systems biology seems intuitive and appealing, the underlying philosophy being that the whole of a living system cannot be completely understood by the study of its individual parts. Yet answers to the questions "What is systems biology?" and "What constitutes a systems biology approach in…

The article takes up the notion of process and artmaking as an event to be understood neither as a singular moment of forces (e.g., artist, artwork, viewer, and/or site) coming together, nor as the "end" of a productive process that is then superseded by another event. Rather, the authors suggest that the artmaking process can be understood as an…

As technological advances continue to influence the methods by which we communicate, manage information, and entertain ourselves, educators must keep pace with these changes by integrating technology when it supports content delivery and enhances student learning. There is considerable potential for technology use across all content areas, but it…

An undergraduate student breaks into a professor's office and steals the answers to an exam; the university initiates only process available--discipline pursuant to regulations governing student behavior through judicial affairs. An undergraduate student fabricates lab data and is flunked for the course; the student initiates only process…

This article describes a departmental initiative designed to integrate the teaching of graduate and undergraduate sociology through research methodology and the completion of actual research projects. The goal was to develop a multilevel team approach within which faculty, graduate students, and undergraduates would view their work as part of a…

Informatics is a branch of computer science that concerns itself, in actuality, with the use of information systems. The objective of this paper is to focus on the business curriculum for graduate students and their gaining proficiency in informatics so that they can understand the concept of information, the access of information, the use of…

Describes graduate students' personal genograms as an exercise to facilitate training in systems thinking. Discussion covers the objectives, the assignment, evaluation of the students' work, and evaluation of the exercise. (Author/MKA)

Revisioning graduate professional-development programs is critical to enhancing graduate education. Both graduate students and employers have expressed a desire for an educational experience that better prepares students for their professional roles. This article describes the revisioning of a graduate professional-development program using a…

Describes a program evaluation model that was developed over three semesters of teaching an introductory graduate-level course in program evaluation. The framework uses a systems approach that emphasizes its sequenced methodology and the significant of monitoring work through feedback loops in an ongoing revision process. (Author/SLD)

Describes basic concepts in the field of general systems theory (GST) and explains the relationship between instructional systems design (ISD) and GST. Benefits of integrating GST into the curriculum of ISD graduate programs are discussed, and a short bibliography on GST is included. (LRW)

School counselors often lack training in family systems theory, because training programs tend to use individual counseling models. The Collaborative Drawing Technique (CDT) introduces counselors-in-training to family systems concepts. A case illustration is presented to explain shifts in trainees' case conceptualizations with use of the CDT model…