Academic Resources
Tools to help you succeed in your academic career
On this page, you can explore files, policies, forms, and resources related to your academic career at the University.
A great starting point is the Graduate Studies Bulletin, which provides an in-depth overview of how the University is structured, programs, graduate policies, and more. We’ve highlighted some of the information in the bulletin across our website, but the full bulletin can be a great reference document for your academic career.
Explore the Graduate Studies Bulletin
Academic calendars by school
Links to each of the individual school’s academic calendars are below for your reference.
learn how to apply
Graduate Application Process
Explore our University Admissions page for additional information and helpful resources for our prospective students.
PhD calendars and resources
PhD students can reference a PhD academic calendar and schedule based on their dissertation dates. You can also review full guidance on the PhD completion process.
In addition, our PhD Student Resources page has more specific policies and details relevant to our PhD community.
Policies overview
Policies concerning graduate students
There are a variety of policies and regulations that will impact you during your time at Rochester. We’ve compiled documentation with full details catered for graduate students specifically.
get more details
Postdoctoral appointees
Explore our Postdoctoral Appointees page for additional information and helpful resources for our postdoc student community specifically.
Dissertation and PhD outcomes
All PhD programs require a Dissertation and oral defense. Other graduate programs may require Dissertation or final written projects as well.
resources and documentation
Students in non-PhD programs are encouraged to work with their specific school or department to understand their program requirements.
PhD students can reference our PhD Completion Process page and our Dissertation Manual page for help on formatting their dissertation and more information on thesis defense procedures.
Other students can also reference our Graduate Learning Outcomes Document for more helpful information.
Contests to present your research
We oversee several competitions where you can win prizes and get relevant experience showcasing your research.
- Three Minute Thesis competition: Present and describe your thesis—in just three minutes.
- PhD Public Policy Pitch competition: Communicate the public policy implications of your research.
On-campus resources
There are a variety of places and support resources on campus to help you achieve your academic goals. Links to a few popular resources are below.
- Libraries: Our research-focused libraries can get you the information you need. Learn more about each of our libraries on the University’s general Library page.
- Copy center: Learn more about printing services available on this page.
- Ombuds: While graduate and postdoctoral study are exciting and intellectually stimulating times in a trainee’s career, occasionally problems arise. There are many people to whom trainees can turn for advice when facing problems: faculty advisor(s), committee members, graduate program director, department chair, and Deans. However, sometimes trainees may feel unable to approach any of these people for help, and this is when a trainee should turn to the Ombudsperson. Visit the Ombuds website to learn more.
- Career enhancement: Our Professional Development page includes links to on-campus resources focused on enhancing your career.
- Graduate Writing Support: Our Graduate Writing Project (GWP) page supports graduate students from Arts, Sciences and Engineering at any stage in their program, working on any kind of academic writing and research, from abstracts and article submissions to theses and dissertations. Services include one-on-one tutoring, workshops, writing groups, and writing boot camps. Our Writing Support Services supports graduate students from Warner by offering individual and group consultations and workshops that are open to all members of the community and our Eastman Writing Center supports graduate students from Eastman.
- The Learning Center offers Academic Success Coaching to graduate students in Arts, Sciences & Engineering (AS&E), the School of Medicine and Dentistry, the Simon Business School, and the Warner School of Education.
- Health and wellness: Our Student Life page outlines these resources in more depth.
- Student organizations: Our Student Groups page includes a list of graduate student organization websites that you can get involved with.
working groups
Committees for graduate education
There are multiple committees directly tied to graduate education at Rochester. They provide important academic and co-curricular oversight, as well as connect faculty, staff, students, and administration.