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Every Wednesday, from September 3 till November 19 during the Fall 2025 semester – we have exciting activities for you. 
Join us any time of the day! 

Student Innovation Center Room 4237 | 9:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.

Fall 2025 - Get ready for our Kick-Off on September 3, 2025. 

Sign up for notifications. Check out the general schedule of activities. Get ready to work on developing your power skills.

Build a thriving community for ISU graduate students! Socialize, support academic and professional needs, nurture inventions, network, grow, and celebrate success.

Location: Student Innovation Center, Room 4237

Fall 2025 Grad Mixer Schedule

Join us for our kickoff to another semester of Grad Mixer Wednesdays. Meet and greet your Graduate College partners in success and learn about free resources and exciting opportunities. Win swags and enjoy light refreshments. 

This is a come-and-go event, so stop by any time between 9:30 am and 4:00 pm!

9:30 a.m. Grab a cup of coffee and snack

10:30 a.m.  Associate Dean's Welcome Message (Dr. Elena Cotos, Associate Dean)

10:45 a.m. Chris Litten - 3MT Planning Committee Member

12:00 - 1:30 p.m. Lunch (Sponsored by Graduate College Student Success Team) with ISU Resource Jeopardy (Dr. Christine Cain and Erin Conlan)

2:00 p.m. Associate Dean's Welcome Message (Dr. Heather Greenlee, Associate Dean)

2:15 p.m. Chris Litten - 3MT Planning Committee Member

4:00 p.m. End

9:30 a.m. - 10:00 a.m.| Coffee Buzz: Curating your System(s) of Support (Dr. Christine Cain, Graduate Enrollment Program Manager and Erin Conlan, Graduate Student Success Specialist)

10:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m. | Career and Thesis/Dissertation Drop-Ins: Career coaches and thesis/dissertation consultants 

11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. | Academic Drop-Ins: Writing and oral Communication consultants

12:00 - 1:00 p.m. | Lunch & Mingle: Bring Your Own Lunch and Learn about CPT/OPT (Gene Manhattan and Marcus Thompson, International Student Advisors)

1:00 - 2:00 p.m. | Invited Panels: Strategies for Finding a Dream Job (Dr. Svitlana Zbarska, Graduate College Career Services Lead, Ambar Melendes Perez and Joe Ramstad, Graduate Career Coaches)

2:00 - 3:00 p.m. | Career Readiness: Beyond the Resume: What HR Really Looks For? (Panelists: HR representatives from companies)

3:00 - 4:30 p.m. | Workshops and Seminars: Career Stations: Resume, CV, LinkedIn, Elevator Pitches, and Career Values

Student Innovation Center, Room 4237

9:30 a.m. - 10:00 a.m.| Coffee Buzz

10:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m. | Career and Thesis/Dissertation Drop-Ins: Career coaches and thesis/dissertation consultants 

11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. | Academic Drop-Ins: Writing and oral Communication consultants

Student Innovation Center, Room 1118

12:00 p.m. - 1:00 p.m. | CCE Midday Connections 

1:00 p.m. - 2:00 p.m. | GPSS and CCE: Driving Engagement and Partnering for Success 

 2:00 p.m. - 2:30 p.m. | Treats & Chat with GPSS 

Student Innovation Center, Stepatorium

 2:30 p.m. - 3:30 p.m. | CCE Stewards’ Stories That Inspire: Start Here, Go Anywhere! 

9:30 a.m. - 10:00 a.m.| Coffee Buzz

10:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m. | Career and Thesis/Dissertation Drop-Ins: Career coaches and thesis/dissertation consultants 

11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. | Academic Drop-Ins: Writing and oral Communication consultants

12:00 - 1:00 p.m. | Lunch & Mingle: Bring your lunch and socialize with graduate and undergraduate students

1:00 - 2:00 p.m. | Invited Panels: Strategies to Elevate your Professional Identities (Dr. Mahdi Duris, Postdoctoral Scholar, Ambar Melendez Perez, Graduate Career Coach, and Zarina Wafula, GELC 2025)

2:00 - 3:00 p.m. | Career Readiness: Level Up! Grant Writing as Academic Professionalization (Michelle Thayer, Center for Communication Excellence Consultant)

3:00 - 4:30 p.m. | Workshops and Seminars: Professionalism as a Graduate Student (Dr. Christine Cain, Graduate Enrollment Program Manager and Erin Conlan, Graduate Student Success Specialist)

9:30 a.m. - 10:00 a.m.| Coffee Buzz

10:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m. | Career and Thesis/Dissertation Drop-Ins: Career coaches and thesis/dissertation consultants 

11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. | Academic Drop-Ins: Writing and oral Communication consultants

12:00 - 1:00 p.m. | Lunch & Mingle: Bring your lunch and socialize with graduate and undergraduate students

1:00 - 2:00 p.m. | Invited Panels: Resiliency (Dr. Christine Cain, Graduate Enrollment Program Manager and Erin Conlan, Graduate Student Success Specialist)

2:00 - 3:00 p.m. | Career Readiness: 3MT Finalist Discussion (Dr. Sarah Huffman, Center for Communication Assistant Director & Former 3MT Finalists)

3:00 - 4:30 p.m. | Workshops and Seminars: AI Ethics Fireside Chat: Sticky Situations and Burning Questions (Dr. Kristin Terrill, Senior Program Specialist for Graduate Scholarly Activities and Dr. Lily Compton, Center for Communication Assistant Director)

9:30 a.m. - 10:00 a.m.| Coffee Buzz

10:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m. | Career and Thesis/Dissertation Drop-Ins: Career coaches and thesis/dissertation consultants 

11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. | Academic Drop-Ins: Writing and oral Communication consultants

12:00 - 1:00 p.m. | Lunch & Mingle: Bring your lunch and socialize with graduate and undergraduate students

1:00 - 2:00 p.m. | Invited Panels: Crafting While Procrastinating: Graduate Voices from the Makerspaces (Bella Guyll, Courtney Barbour, Corinne Dengler, Shayegan Mortazavi - Makerspaces graduate students)

2:00 - 3:00 p.m. | Career Readiness: Sparks from the Workshop to Academia (Dr. Jo Mackiewicz, Professor in English)

3:00 - 4:30 p.m. | Workshops and Seminars: Beyond the Prompt: Exploring Creativity with AI (Dr. Abram Anders, Jonathan Wickert Professor of Innovation and SICTR Associate Director and team)

9:30 a.m. - 10:00 a.m.| Coffee Buzz

10:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m. | Career and Thesis/Dissertation Drop-Ins: Career coaches and thesis/dissertation consultants 

11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. | Academic Drop-Ins: Writing and oral Communication consultants

12:00 - 1:00 p.m. | Lunch & Mingle: Bring your lunch and socialize with graduate and undergraduate students

1:00 - 2:00 p.m. | Invited Panels: Foundations of Competitive Writings (Kelli Fitzpatrick, Coordinator of Nationally Competitive Awards, and Dr. Emily Dux Speltz, Assistant Professor, Applied Linguistics & Technology)

2:00 - 3:00 p.m. | Career Readiness: The Role of Data Representation in Professional Communication - (Dr.Ben-Tibbs, Research Data Specialist)

3:00 - 4:30 p.m. | Workshops and Seminars: Going Up? Elevator Pitches That Boost Your Impact (Caleigh Grote, GELC-2025)

9:30 a.m. - 10:00 a.m.| Coffee Buzz

10:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m. | Career and Thesis/Dissertation Drop-Ins: Career coaches and thesis/dissertation consultants 

11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. | Academic Drop-Ins: Writing and oral Communication consultants

12:00 - 1:00 p.m. | Lunch & Mingle: Bring your lunch and socialize with graduate and undergraduate students

1:00 - 2:00 p.m. | Invited Panels: 

2:00 - 3:00 p.m. | Career Readiness: 

3:00 - 4:30 p.m. | Workshops and Seminars: 

9:30 a.m. - 10:00 a.m.| Coffee Buzz

10:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m. | Career and Thesis/Dissertation Drop-Ins: Career coaches and thesis/dissertation consultants 

11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. | Academic Drop-Ins: Writing and oral Communication consultants

12:00 - 1:00 p.m. | Lunch & Mingle: Bring your lunch and socialize with graduate and undergraduate students

1:00 - 2:00 p.m. | Invited Panels: 

2:00 - 3:00 p.m. | Career Readiness: 

3:00 - 4:30 p.m. | Workshops and Seminars: 

9:30 a.m. - 10:00 a.m.| Coffee Buzz

10:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m. | Career and Thesis/Dissertation Drop-Ins: Career coaches and thesis/dissertation consultants 

11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. | Academic Drop-Ins: Writing and oral Communication consultants

12:00 - 1:00 p.m. | Lunch & Mingle: Bring your lunch and socialize with graduate and undergraduate students

1:00 - 2:00 p.m. | Invited Panels: 

2:00 - 3:00 p.m. | Career Readiness: 

3:00 - 4:30 p.m. | Workshops and Seminars: 

9:30 a.m. - 10:00 a.m.| Coffee Buzz

10:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m. | Career and Thesis/Dissertation Drop-Ins: Career coaches and thesis/dissertation consultants 

11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. | Academic Drop-Ins: Writing and oral Communication consultants

12:00 - 1:00 p.m. | Lunch & Mingle: Bring your lunch and socialize with graduate and undergraduate students

1:00 - 2:00 p.m. | Invited Panels: 

2:00 - 3:00 p.m. | Career Readiness: 

3:00 - 4:30 p.m. | Workshops and Seminars: 

General Schedule for Grad Mixer Wednesdays

Coffee Buzz

 

9:30 - 10:00 am

Start the day with free coffee and snacks! Network and learn about the resources for graduate students.

Career and Thesis/Dissertation Drop-Ins

 

10-11 am

Stop by for individual assistance from graduate career coaches and thesis/dissertation consultants.

Academic Drop-Ins

 

11 am-12 pm 

Stop by for individual assistance from written and oral communication consultants to work on your research writing, interpersonal communication, English writing and speaking skills, and more.

Lunch & Mingle

 

12-1 pm

 Don’t want to eat alone? Bring your lunch and socialize with graduate and undergraduate students.

Invited Panels

 

1- 2 pm

Join us for weekly panel talks on topics of interest to graduate students.
 

Career Readiness

 

2 - 3 pm

Get a front-row seat to success! Don't miss out on our weekly topics for career-minded graduate students.

Workshops & Seminars

 

3-4:30 pm

Step up your game! Dive into various topics to enhance your academic and professional skills.

View Past Grad Mixer Events

Join us for our kickoff to another semester of Grad Mixer Wednesdays. Meet and greet your Graduate College partners in success and learn about free resources and exciting opportunities. Win swags and enjoy light refreshments. 

This is a come-and-go event, so stop by any time between 9:30 am and 4:00 pm!

9:30 a.m. Come and mingle

10: 00 a.m.  Opening Remarks (Dr. Elena Cotos, Associate Dean)

10:30 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. Meet and Greet the Graduate College Dean, Associate Deans, and staff from different units

1:00 p.m. Opening Remarks (Dr. Heather Greenlee, Associate Dean)

1:30 - 4:00 p.m. Meet and Greet the Graduate College Dean, Associate Deans, and staff from different units

9:30 a.m. - 10:00 a.m.| Coffee Buzz

10:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m. | Career and Thesis/Dissertation Drop-Ins: Career coaches and thesis/dissertation consultants 

11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. | Academic Drop-Ins: Writing and oral Communication consultants

12:00 - 1:00 p.m. | Lunch & Mingle: Bring your lunch and socialize with graduate and undergraduate students

1:00 - 2:00 p.m. | Invited Panels: Taking Stock: Identifying and Promoting Your Greatest Strengths (Dr. Kristin Terrill and Karen Menzel)

2:00 - 3:00 p.m. | Career Readiness: Bringing Accountability to your Writing Process (Dr. Sarah Huffman)

3:00 - 4:30 p.m. | Workshops and Seminars: Writing the Literature Review (Dr. Sarah Huffman)

9:30 a.m. - 10:00 a.m.| Coffee Buzz

10:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m. | Career and Thesis/Dissertation Drop-Ins: Career coaches and thesis/dissertation consultants 

11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. | Academic Drop-Ins: Writing and oral Communication consultants

12:00 - 1:00 p.m. | Lunch & Mingle: Bring your lunch and socialize with graduate and undergraduate students

1:00 - 2:00 p.m. | Invited Panels: Preparing Elevator Pitches (Dr. Denise Vrchota, Dr. Lily Compton, and Dr. Agata Guskaroska)

2:00 - 3:00 p.m. | Career Readiness: Networking at Conferences (Michelle Thayer)

3:00 - 4:30 p.m. | Workshops and Seminars: Managing your Audience; Managing Yourself (Dr. Denise Vrchota)

9:30 a.m. - 10:00 a.m.| Coffee Buzz

10:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m. | Career and Thesis/Dissertation Drop-Ins: Career coaches and thesis/dissertation consultants 

11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. | Academic Drop-Ins: Writing and oral Communication consultants

12:00 - 1:00 p.m. | Lunch & Mingle: Dinner interviews and social etiquette (Dr. Erik Goodale)

1:00 - 2:00 p.m. | Invited Panels: How to secure an internship as a graduate student? (Arslan Ahmad, Wren Bouwman, Vishal Muralidharan, Mahdi Ishtiaque)

2:00 - 3:00 p.m. | Career Readiness: Round-table discussion: Your values for a job market (Dr. Svitlana Zbarska, Ambar Melendez Perez, Joe Ramstad)

3:00 - 4:30 p.m. | Workshops and Seminars: The most recent updates about OPT and CPT applications (Elliot Uhl)

9:30 a.m. - 10:00 a.m.| Coffee Buzz

10:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m. | Career and Thesis/Dissertation Drop-Ins: Career coaches and thesis/dissertation consultants 

11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. | Academic Drop-Ins: Writing and oral Communication consultants

12:00 - 1:00 p.m. | Lunch & Mingle: Bring your lunch and socialize with graduate and undergraduate students

1:00 - 2:00 p.m. | Invited Panels: From Coursework to Publication (Dr. Kristin Terrill & Becca Yowler)

2:00 - 3:00 p.m. | Career Readiness: Writing Productivity (Dr. Kristin Terrill )

3:00 - 4:30 p.m. | Workshops and Seminars: Thesis Dissertation Informational Session (Dr. Kristin Terrill )

9:30 a.m. - 10:00 a.m.| Coffee Buzz

10:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m. | Career and Thesis/Dissertation Drop-Ins: Career coaches and thesis/dissertation consultants (by appointment only)

11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. | Academic Drop-Ins: Writing and oral Communication consultants (by appointment only)

12:00 - 1:00 p.m. | Lunch & Mingle: Bring your lunch and socialize with graduate and undergraduate students (canceled)

1:00 - 2:00 p.m. | Invited Panels: Building Your Brand (Jamie Sass, Director of Ivy Writing and Speaking Center) (Click to join.)

2:00 - 3:00 p.m. | Career Readiness: Student Perspectives on Academic vs. Industry Job Seeking (Kaushik Gala, PhD Candidate in Management and Entrepreneurship, Amanda Thomas, MBA student, Reindl Weaver, Concurrent MBA and Industrial Engineering Undergraduate student), Hui Zhang, PhD Candidate in Marketing) (Click to join.)

3:00 - 3:30 p.m. | Student Networking Break (Click to join.)

3:00 - 4:30 p.m. | Workshops and Seminars: Effective Negotiation Skills (Dr. Ryan Bhattacharyya, Professor of Practice in the Ivy College of Business Department of Management and Entrepreneurship ) (Click to join.)

9:30 a.m. - 10:00 a.m.| Coffee Buzz

10:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m. | Career and Thesis/Dissertation Drop-Ins: Career coaches and thesis/dissertation consultants 

11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. | Academic Drop-Ins: Writing and oral Communication consultants

12:00 - 1:00 p.m. | Lunch & Mingle: Bring your lunch and socialize with graduate and undergraduate students

1:00 - 2:00 p.m. | Invited Panels: Recent changes, advancements, or findings in the College of Engineering (Dr. Amy Kaleita, Dr. Sri Sritharan, and Dr. Jennifer Heinen)

2:00 - 3:00 p.m. | Career Readiness: Identifying what is wanted from engineers vs other majors (Amanda Pearson, Engineering Career Services)

3:00 - 4:30 p.m. | Workshops and Seminars: AI impact on engineering and future skills needed (Dr. Young Woong Park and Dr. Eric Weber)

9:30 a.m. - 10:00 a.m.| Coffee Buzz

10:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m. | Career and Thesis/Dissertation Drop-Ins: Career coaches and thesis/dissertation consultants 

11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. | Academic Drop-Ins: Writing and oral Communication consultants

12:00 - 1:00 p.m. | Lunch & Mingle: Bring your lunch and socialize with graduate and undergraduate students

1:00 - 2:00 p.m. | Invited Panels: Teaching Research & Extension at ISU (Dr. Denise Crawford, Dr. Sarah Smith, and Dr. Sarah Francis)

2:00 - 3:00 p.m. | Career Readiness: Preparing Future Faculty (Karen Menzel)

3:00 - 4:30 p.m. | Workshops and Seminars: Grant/Funding (Dr. Jennifer Margrett)

9:30 a.m. - 10:00 a.m.| Coffee Buzz

10:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m. | Career and Thesis/Dissertation Drop-Ins: Career coaches and thesis/dissertation consultants 

11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. | Academic Drop-Ins: Writing and oral Communication consultants

12:00 - 1:00 p.m. | Lunch & Mingle: Bring your lunch and socialize with graduate and undergraduate students

1:00 - 2:00 p.m. | Invited Panels: Navigating Interdisciplinary Collaborations (Dr. E. J. Bahng, Dr. Clark Coffman, and Dr. Sinem Sonsaat-Hegelheimer)

2:00 - 3:00 p.m. | Career Readiness: From Graduate Student to Founder: Launching Your Own Venture (Dr. Kimberly Becker)

3:00 - 4:30 p.m. | Workshops and Seminars: Grantsmanship Skill Development (Dr. Corey Welch, Dr. Gustavo Macintosh)

9:30 a.m. - 10:00 a.m.| Coffee Buzz

10:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m. | Career and Thesis/Dissertation Drop-Ins: Career coaches and thesis/dissertation consultants 

11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. | Academic Drop-Ins: Writing and oral Communication consultants

12:00 - 1:00 p.m. | Lunch & Mingle: Bring your lunch and socialize with graduate and undergraduate students

1:00 - 2:00 p.m. | Invited Panels: Balancing Research, Life, and Sanity (Dr. Lee Burras, Dr. Derek Franklin, and Dr. Brenda Allen)

2:00 - 3:00 p.m. | Career Readiness: Navigating Career Paths in Ag & Life Science (Dr. Jay D. Harmon, Dr. Katie Dentzman, and Clayton Mooney)

3:00 - 4:30 p.m. | Workshops and Seminars: How to Explain Science to Non-Scientists (Dr. Sara Merritt)

9:30 a.m. - 10:00 a.m.| Coffee Buzz

10:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m. | Career and Thesis/Dissertation Drop-Ins: Career coaches and thesis/dissertation consultants 

11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. | Academic Drop-Ins: Writing and oral Communication consultants

12:00 - 1:00 p.m. | Lunch & Mingle: Bring your lunch and socialize with graduate and undergraduate students

1:00 - 2:00 p.m. | Invited Panels: Crafting a Portfolio with Purpose (Prof. Rob Whitehead and Tiffany Atilano)

2:00 - 3:00 p.m. | Career Readiness: Career Prep at Every Stage: Hands-On Job Application Material Workshop (Ambar Melendez and Tiffany Atilano)

3:00 - 4:30 p.m. | Workshops and Seminars: Vision, Voice, and Process: Conversations on MFA Thesis Work (Prof. Alex Braidwood and Dr. Kristin Terrill)

9:30 a.m. - 10:00 a.m.| Coffee Buzz

10:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m. | Career and Thesis/Dissertation Drop-Ins: Career coaches and thesis/dissertation consultants 

11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. | Academic Drop-Ins: Writing and oral Communication consultants

12:00 - 1:00 p.m. | Career Poster Presentations

1:00 - 2:00 p.m. | Career Poster Presentations and Graduate Research Posters

2:00 - 3:00 p.m. | Graduate Research Posters

3:00 - 3:30 p.m. | Graduate Engagement Leadership Committee Recognition

3:30 - 4:30 p.m. | De-stress and Unwind with Fun Activities: VR Simulation, Cupcake Decoration, Swag, and More!

9:30 a.m. - 10:00 a.m.| Coffee Buzz

10:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m. | Career and Thesis/Dissertation Online Drop-Ins: Career coaches and thesis/dissertation consultants 

11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. | Academic Online Drop-Ins: Writing and oral Communication consultants

12:00 - 1:00 p.m. | Lunch & Mingle: Bring your lunch and socialize with graduate and undergraduate students

1:00 - 2:00 p.m. | Invited Panels: Successful transition from grad school to the job market (academia and industry) (Dr. Joseph Thomas, Dr. Edison Magalhaes, Dr. Zoe Lambert, Dr. Nicolle Barbieri, and Dr. Bruna Petry)

2:00 - 3:00 p.m. | Career Readiness: Strategic LinkedIn Use for Career Growth (Dr. Svitlana Zbarska)

3:00 - 4:30 p.m. | Workshops and Seminars: Managing your audience and yourself (Dr. Erik Goodale)

Calendar of Events

Check out all the offerings and don't miss valuable professional development opportunities.