New Group Supports First-Generation and Low-Income Students

As a former first-generation undergraduate, doctoral student Taylor Brown was happy to see an undergraduate organization, First Generation Student Union, existed at Cornell.

She quickly realized, however, that graduate students needed a similar organization.

“As a new graduate student, I recognized that entirely new challenges awaited me,” said Taylor, who earned her bachelor’s from The Ohio State University and is working on her Ph.D. in the field of natural resources.

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An Escape into Fiction

By Jeff Clark, Doctoral Candidate at Imperial College London

I arrived home from work, my mind racing. I was scheduled to perform an experiment using a pricey piece of equipment—one that I’d be unlikely to gain much access to again during my Ph.D.—and I needed it to go flawlessly. “Will the x-rays transmit correctly?” I wondered. “What’s my backup plan if things go wrong?” I had spent the whole day fretting about the experiment, and I wanted to shut off my anxious thoughts. So after dinner, I made a cup of hot chocolate, curled up on my sofa, and cracked open a novel I’d been reading. Almost immediately, my mind left behind the details of experimental design and parachuted into a land of dæmons, magic dust, and armored bears. It was exactly what I needed.

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Student Spotlight: Rachel King

Rachel King is a doctoral student in psychology from Rockford, Illinois. After earning her undergraduate degrees from Rock Valley Community College and the University of Wisconsin-Madison, she chose to attend Cornell for the intellectual freedom provided by its interdisciplinary nature.

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Interested in what other graduate students are doing both on and off campus?

Check out our student spotlights, Q&As with current students about their research, hobbies, and experiences at Cornell.