Highlights for this issue

• NEW — SAVE the DATE! Thursday, May 1, SHIFT' Graduate Student Professional Skills Conference: This is a skill-sharpening event to provide Brock graduate students with an armload of practical skills for employment search and job creation. The conference opens at 12 noon and runs to 5:15 p.m., Plaza Building, and features a series of micro-training sessions such as resume clinics, mock interviews, professional coffee connects.
All conference attendees receive an invitation to the post-conference exclusive professional mixer for graduate students — meet some of the most influential thinkers from the University, Niagara and beyond.
Go online to find out more.

• NEW — Mapping the New Knowledges Graduate Student Research Conference: Brock showcases the research and scholarship of graduate students on Monday, April 7, 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., Plaza Building and Cairns Family Health and Bioscience Research Complex. The conference features oral and poster presentations, the finals of the Three Minute Thesis® contest and the presentation of the Graduate Mentorship Awards and Youth University Research Prizes.  Everyone is welcome. Program details to be posted soon on the conference website.

• NEXT ISSUE: Thursday, March 27, 2014

Scholarships/Awards/Grants

 • NEW — SSHRC 2014 Impact Awards: The competition includes the Talent Award ($50,000) to recognize outstanding achievement by an individual who, at the nomination deadline, holds a SSHRC doctoral or postdoctoral fellowship or scholarship (including, but not limited to, a Canada Graduate Scholarship, Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarship or Banting Postdoctoral Fellowship). Find out more about the SSHRC Impact Awards.
If you are interested in nominating someone or being nominated for one of these awards, please contact Carolyn Paterson, Office of Research Services, at cpaterson2@brocku.ca or ext. 4291.  

• 2014 Ontario Graduate Policy Research Challenge: This is a new and exciting opportunity for graduate students to share their research and innovative ideas in the areas of postsecondary education, employment and labour market with policy leaders in Ontario. The Challenge seeks to increase the profile of emerging policy scholars by providing a platform for students and recent graduates to communicate their work with the research community and the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities (MTCU). This competition is open to graduate students and recent graduates from master's, doctoral and post-graduate certificate programs at Ontario publicly assisted universities and colleges. Applicants are asked to formulate their research into a policy brief that demonstrates how their ideas can be applied to postsecondary education and labour market issues in Ontario. The top 25 applicants will receive awards worth $3,000, $2,000 or $1,000 and present their ideas at MTCU.
Deadline: Monday, March 24, 2014 - Applications and letters of support from faculty advisors should be submitted to GraduateChallenge@ontario.ca
See details online

• International Funding: Brock International has posted a list of international funding opportunities with upcoming deadlines.

• 2014 Sangster Award: The Canadian National Committee for CODATA (CNC/CODATA) is accepting applications for The Sangster Award. This award, valued at Can. $3000, will enable a graduate student enrolled in a Canadian University, or a graduate who has completed his or her graduate degree within three years of the application deadline, to attend and present their work at the 24th International CODATA Conference (jointly organized with World Data System), SCIDataCon 2014, "Data Challenges for Global Sustainability /Future Earth", November 2 to 5, 2014, in New Delhi, India.
Deadline for Applications: March 31, 2014
For application guidelines and award details
For Conference details: and follow the posted links***

• The Henry Mandelbaum Graduate Fellowship: Established in 2011 by the Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations to honour their retired Executive Director, the fellowship is awarded to a full-time graduate student at a publicly assisted Ontario University who has demonstrated academic excellence, shows exceptional academic promise, and has provided significant community service in his/her university career. Financial needs of students may be a selection factor. The successful candidate will be expected to produce and deliver a paper within one year of receiving the award to the OCUFA Board on a topic related to or resulting from his/her thesis or dissertation research.
Deadline: April 4, 2014
Guidelines and Nomination Form are available online

• 2014 Canadian Transportation Research Forum (CTRF) Student Paper Competition: The primary focus of the paper must be directly related to a specific transportation practice or policy. Papers must be original work written by the student applicant only. Prizes may be awarded in each of the following categories: Past President's Award $250 (undergraduate); A.M. Stevens Award $500 (master's); Jim Davey Award $1,000 (doctoral).
There may be more than one award in any category depending on the quality of the papers.
Deadline: Saturday, May 31
Details online

• Brock Library Open Access Publishing Fund: Open to Brock faculty, graduate students and postdocs. The purpose of this grant is to assist researchers in disseminating their research broadly via an Open Access (OA) journal. A minimum of four awards will be granted, to a maximum of $2,500 each [Total funds = $10,000]. This Grant is intended to support researchers with limited or no funding. If an alternate funding source is available that permits payment of submission fees (e.g. a research grant), that source must be used before applying to the OA Publishing Fund.
For more information contact: Barbara McDonald, Ext. 3949

Other Opportunities

• NEW — Graduate Students' Association announces the following:

     2014-2015 GSA Executive Election Nominations – due March 14

     GSA Bursary and Conference Funding Deadline: The deadline for applications for the Winter 2014 GSA Bursary and Conference Funding Assistance Awards, is Monday, April 7, at 4 p.m.  You can
view the requirements and application forms .  If office is closed, you can put your application under the office door.

     GSA Curling Night, Friday, March 21, 8:15 to 10:30 p.m. , St. Catharines Curling Club: No experience is 
necessary and there is no cost. Only 32 spots available so be sure to sign-up in advance by seeing Barb at the GSA office (MC C302). More information online.

     GSA Spring Social: Come out to Isaac's Bar & Grill on Monday, April 7 from 5 to 7 p.m., following the Mapping the New Knowledges Graduate Conference.  Enjoy some free food (vegetarian too) and fun. All graduate students are welcome.

• Prometeo Project: The government of Ecuador is funding this new initiative that aims to
strengthen research and teaching capacities in Ecuador. It targets Ecuadorian and foreign professionals with a wide, well-known experience in their area of study. The opportunity allows researchers to conduct academic and scientific projects in several host institutions across Ecuador.
Details online.

• Call for nominations — Recognition Awards for Theses and Dissertations on Teacher Education Canadian Association for Teacher Education (CATE)
The Canadian Association for Teacher Education is pleased to inform the scientific community that, as part of its mandate to promote research on pre-service and in-service teacher education
as well as staff development, it will once again recognize dissertations and theses in the field of teacher education.
See details about CATE Dissertation Award and Master’s Thesis Award
To be considered for a CATE award your thesis/dissertation must be completed or defended between January 1, 2013 and May 31, 2014.
Deadline for submission: Monday, March 31, 2014
Contact: Dr. Lynn Thomas, Professor, Department of Pedagogy, Faculty of Education, University of
Sherbrooke, Lynn.Thomas@USherbrooke.ca

• Publishing Springer Science Review: The Springer Science Review invites submissions of thesis literature reviews from PhD students in the research area of biomedical sciences, earth sciences, geography, energy, environmental sciences and life sciences. More information is available on the Springer Review website

Academic and Professional Development

• NEW: Calling all talent to Research on Tap, Wednesday, March 26, 4:30 to 6:30 p.m., Alphie's: Every month, graduate students have an opportunity to speak to the passion, challenges
or quirky anecdotes and lessons behind their research journey. Would you like to present/perform at March's event? The theme for March is "The Winds of Change." Go online to find out more and to register.

• Promote your workshops to graduate students with us: If you are hosting a workshop or event related to graduate student professional development that may interest graduate students from within or outside of your faculty, please send us notice to have your event posted on our calendar OR submit the event directly by simply uploading the details into the online form.
The number of participants can be monitored and capped through our online registry. Specific learning outcomes and the competencies that align with your workshop or information session can also be tracked.

• REMINDER — Call for Visual art-works (of all kinds): Are you a graduate student and visual artist looking to express your creative talents? In your investigation of life, do you have images that capture your research interests? The Academic + Professional Development partners are looking for visual art works that convey the concepts of curiosity, intrigue and innovation or simply reflect the graduate student experience.

• CALENDAR OF EVENTS — Please continue to visit our website for updates on academic and 
professional skills training workshops and events. 
Contact: Karin Perry 
Program Coordinator 
Academic + Professional Development X 6129, or gradplus@brocku.ca

Conferences

• NEW — Call for Papers and Artistic Work, Fifth International Conference on the Image, Oct. 29 and 30, 2014, Freie University, Berlin, Germany: Artistic submissions to the conference exhibition and proposals for paper presentations, poster sessions, workshops, roundtables, or colloquia are invited. Submissions from a variety of disciplines and perspectives are welcome and faculty and students are encouraged to jointly submit proposals, discussing The Image through one of the following themes: The Form of the Image, Image Work, The Image in Society and, The Representation of Possibility: Understanding Change and Continuity through the Image.
Go online for more information.
Deadline: April 3, 2014

• Call for Papers, 2nd Annual International Interdisciplinary Conference, AIIC 2014, July 8 to 12, 2014, Azores Islands, Portugal: The conference will be a kind of academic bridge between different cultures, scientific attitudes, academic stages and is aimed at gathering researchers from all around the world, thus contributing for a global flow of the newest scientific thoughts and promotion of the interdisciplinary concept.
Full paper submission deadline: June 10
Email: contact@aiiconference.net
More Information available online

• Call for Papers to the International Educational Technology Conference (IETC 2014), CHICAGO, September 3 to 5, 2014: IETC 2014 seeks a diverse and comprehensive program covering all areas of educational technology. The program includes a wide range of activities designed to facilitate the exchange of expertise, experience, and resources with colleagues. These include keynote and invited talks, full and brief paper presentations, panels and round table discussion sessions.
Abstract Deadline: Saturday, July 5
Full Article Deadline: Sunday, July 20
Registration Fee Deadline: Tuesday, August 5
More information available online

• Fifth International Conference On New Horizons in Education INTE 2014, Paris, France, June 25 to 27, 2014: The conference provides a multinational platform where the latest trends in education can be presented and discussed in a friendly environment with the aim to learn from each other. Prospective presenters are encouraged to submit proposals for papers and posters/demonstrations that offer new research or theoretical contributions.
Abstract Deadline: June 13, 2014
Full Article Deadline: June 16, 2014
Registration Fee Deadline: June 16, 2014
More Information available online

Upcoming Thesis Defences

All are welcome to attend but seating is limited.

• NEW — Courtney Keogh, MA student in Applied Health Sciences, will defend her thesis on Friday, March 28, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., in South Block 361. Title: "Greener Golf Operations: A comparative case study of Ontario golf courses engaged in environmental sustainability initiatives"

• Joyce Penner, MA student Social Justice and Equity Studies, will defend her thesis on Wednesday, April 9, 10 a.m. to 12 p.m., WH147.
Title: " Anachronistic Me: An autoethnographic account of recovery through volunteerism"

Please check department program websites to confirm dates, times and locations in the event of changes to the information.

News & Events

• NEW — Brock grad student relishes new role as VP International

• NEW — Goodman School of Business earns prestigious CPA accreditation for MBA program

• NEW — Brock grad student wins provincial video contest

• NEW — Statement of intent for new MA program in Applied Kinesiology

• NEW — Meet the next generation of social-media-savvy graduate students (published in University Affairs Feb. 26, 2014)

• NEW — Brock sustainability group hosting two community science cafés this month

• NEW — Goodman School of Business wants to create new graduate diploma program

• NEW — Blueprint finalists set to make their pitch

• NEW — Research Celebration: The second annual Research Celebration, held in Guernsey Market on Feb. 25, showcased a sample of the wide range of research at Brock University. The work of more than 65 researchers was displayed on posters and a ceremony was held to recognize some recent award winners. Photos from the event are available on Brock's Flickr site. In addition, Cogeco produced a report about the Research Celebration which aired in the Cogeco newsmagazine program called The Source. The story is on Cogeco's Website and Facebook Page.

• We Welcome the World Reception, Monday, March 17, 3:30 p.m., Pond Inlet: Brock International recognizes the term's newest visiting international professors, scholars and university mentorship participants from Brazil, China, Czech Republic, Pakistan, Russia, Spain and Sweden. RSVP to lpark@brocku.ca

The Faculty of Graduate Studies e-Bulletin is distributed every two to four weeks. Past issues are posted online.