Grad Students Vie for Spot in UC Grad Slam Finals
Ā鶹ĪŽĀė°ęās will host its competition on April 18 with graduate scholars presenting on topics ranging from Valley Fever immune responseĀ and antibiotic resistance to computer vision and mathematical methods for thermal collection. This yearās competition started in March with 30 graduate students in the qualifying round, from which the judges narrowed the field to the top 12.
The campusās 2019 Grad Slam semi-finalists are:
The showcases and awards the best three-minute research presentations by graduate students. This competition not only highlights the excellence, importance and relevance of graduate scholars and their research, but it is also designed to increase graduate students' communication skills and their capacity to effectively present their work with poise and confidence.
Communicating complex research topics to a broad audience in three minutes is no easy task. Fortunately, Grad Slam semi-finalists have Ā鶹ĪŽĀė°ę diplomat Jane Binger, Ed.D., to guide them.
For the third consecutive year, Binger is coaching the campusā semi-finalists and finalist to help them refine their slides and presentation content for the competition.
Binger and her husband, Robert Bernstein, M.D., a Ā鶹ĪŽĀė°ę Foundation trustee, made a generous donation to support Grad Slam because they know graduate students and their work are integral to the Ā鶹ĪŽĀė°ę mission. Their gift has increased the competitionās grand prize from $2,000 to $5,000 for five years.
Their support has also helped increase graduate student participation in Grad Slam and inspired others to fund the annual event, such as trustee Eileen Hamilton.
Hamilton will serve as one of the Grad Slam judges along with Ā鶹ĪŽĀė°ę Foundation trustees Kenni Friedman and John Loll, Ann Anderson, co-vice president of the University Friends Circle, and Kris Kulp, deputy division leader for the Biosciences and Biotechnology Division and the director of the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Institutional Postdoc Program.
I love helping people go further in their education and careers. Itās something I can give to the students and Ā鶹ĪŽĀė°ę and make a difference.
Binger said what she finds most gratifying is working one-on-one with the students to address their personal learning goals and help them develop their leadership skills.
āI love helping people go further in their education and careers,ā she said. āItās something I can give the students and Ā鶹ĪŽĀė°ę.ā
Binger passes along what she has learned from teaching leadership to physician researchers and allied health professionals, and what mentors and faculty members have taught her.
āI wouldnāt be where I am today without the people who coached me,ā she said.
While the honor and cash prizes are great incentives, Binger believes the real reward for the students is the opportunity to make research accessible while improving their skillset.
āItās not about who wins,ā she said. āThe goal is to help people share their research better with the public.ā
Everyone is invited to cheer on the campusās Grad Slam semi-finalists from 1-4 p.m. April 18 in the California Room. The winner will represent Ā鶹ĪŽĀė°ę in the UC-wide event in San Francisco on May 10.
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