Introductions to Year 2 B. Ed Students and Invitation to Graduate Funding Workshop

 ~Message forwarded on behalf of Graduate Studies in Education Chair, Dr. Meridith Lovell-Johnston~

Hello Year 2 B. Ed Students,

Some of you I know, but many of you I haven't had a chance to meet yet. My name is Dr. Meridith Lovell-Johnston and I am the Chair of Graduate Studies and Research in the Faculty of Education. I have been hearing from some of you who are thinking ahead to doing a Masters Degree and there will be a few times throughout the year that we invite you to graduate events or information sessions that are relevant to you. I know that your schedule is busy, but if you can attend any of the events, please consider coming! The main events will be: Graduate Funding Workshop (September) and Graduate Information Sessions for B. Ed students (November prior to placement and January). 

If you have any questions about graduate programs, please reach out to Dr. Walton (Thunder Bay students) at gwalton@lakeheadu.ca, Dr. Beatty (Orillia Students) at rbeatty@lakeheadu.ca, or to me (gradchair.educ@lakeheadu.ca). If you are on the Orillia campus, you can also drop by to see me (1001L across from the library circulation desk) or drop into the Graduate Office in the Bora Laskin Building to speak to Bonnie McDonald if you are in Thunder Bay. I will say, don't worry *yet* about the process of applying to the M. Ed Program, that will be covered in the November/January meetings.  

Sept 22: Graduate Funding Workshop (1-2:30 pm)

Zoom: https://lakeheadu.zoom.us/j/93622432690?pwd=YkE4dWxTaHNUWWYvbTREdFVRekRmQT09

Who Should Attend: This session is strongly encouraged for Year 2 B. Ed students (either campus). Many of you will be receiving an invitation to apply to the M. Ed programs in December/January which allows you to fast-track your application to the program based on your B. Ed. With that, those of you who are able to attend campus will receive invitations to work as graduate assistants (GAs) for pay. However, you are also eligible to apply for both of these scholarships (applications are due in November/December but funding is for September 2023), even as incoming students, and the funding would be applied in addition to GA funding. The OGS is $15,000 and the SSHRC is $17,500. 

Details: Dr. Gerald Walton will be hosting a workshop about how to apply for the Ontario Graduate Scholarship (OGS) and Tri-Council Funding (i.e., SSHRC Canada Graduate Scholarship - Masters and PhD levels). Deadlines for these competitions are coming up in the fall and early winter, and it is important to get started early because the process is very competitive and you will want to present your most polished application. Also note that international students are eligible to apply for the Ontario Graduate Scholarship (but not the SSHRC). 

The session will be video-recorded and I will circulate links to the videos, but if you are able, at all, to attend, please plan to be there. I know from experience that the session is very comprehensive and gives a lot of really important tips for developing successful applications. As with everything in graduate studies, the timelines might seem weird (applying in November for the next September when you haven't yet applied or been accepted to a program), but the funding is intended to support top scholars to remove some of the financial burden. Lakehead has a quota for the number of applications to each competition, but it never hurts to put the effort into applying (and reapplying the next year if you are not successful).