The GAC consists of dean-appointed faculty and administrative voting representatives to advocate and promote graduate and post-baccalaureate education at Rowan and serve as an advisory body to the Dean of the School of Graduate Studies. Meetings are chaired by Dr. Tabbetha Dobbins, Dean of the School of Graduate Studies. 

2023-2024 GAC Appointed Representatives

Primary members are voting members. Alternate members have voting rights when serving as primary representative. 

Additional, non-voting attendees include:

Gokhan Alkanat, International Center
Thomas Greene, International Center
Laurie Baker, OASIS
Molly Fisher, College of Education
Roberta Harvey, Academic Affairs/Provost's Office
Rory McElwee, University College
Penny McPherson, Student Access & Pathway Programs
Naima Hall, College of Medicine & Life Sciences
Jill Perry, Faculty Center
Jason Salvatore, College of Business
Omar Tliba, School of Veterinary Medicine
Drew Tinnin, Student Life
Susanne Ferrin, College of Engineering
Kim Johnson, College of Engineering
Diane Worrad, STBES
Krystal Murtha, STBES
Linda Drexel, Registrar
Joanie Lodge, Admissions
Stephanie Lezotte, Division of University Research

This guide was compiled from the work of the 2023–24 Professional Learning Community (PLC) on Excellence in Graduate Student Mentorship to address the needs of both faculty mentors and other Rowan community members who may seek guidance and clarity on their role in contributing to the development of our graduate students and the advancement of graduate education at Rowan University.

The aim of this guide is to support graduate faculty mentors and all Rowan community members (i.e. faculty, librarians, advisors) who wish to contribute to excellence in graduate student mentoring. Research and teaching mentorship is an essential element of the graduate student experience. However, very little time and resources have been dedicated to helping Rowan community members to develop skills for excellence in mentorship.

Graduate Student Employment Handbook

SGS has developed a graduate student handbook that provides best practices for graduate student job descriptions, advertising, hiring, and professional expectations. Please reference the handbook while creating and posting your job description, which can be found at the Funding Opportunities page on the left menu.

Advertising Graduate Employment Opportunities

PROFS JOBS is Rowan’s system for advertising internal and external positions available to students.  Advertising open opportunities in a central location is critical for ensuring all students have an equal opportunity to employment opportunities. PROFS JOBS also provides hiring managers the flexibility to determine what documents they require from applicants depending on job type.

SGS expects hiring managers to advertise their graduate student employment position in PROFS JOBS. SGS also understands that there are scenarios in which a hiring manager would not want to advertise, for example:

1. Graduate students hired at on-campus job fairs that are open to all students;
2. Graduate students hired during emergency hire periods;
3. Graduate students whose program admission includes employment as part of their financial aid package (e.g. Graduate Assistantship, Research Fellow, Teaching Fellow, Teaching Experience Program, Graduate Coordinator);
4. Scenarios in which hiring an incumbent student employee is critical for the continuance of research projects, scholarly activity, or program maintenance;
5. Graduate students written into or named in grant applications (to comply with funding agency requirements);
6. Other case-by-case scenarios.

Excluding such scenarios, all other positions should be posted in PROFS JOBS. Departments should post positions at least two weeks prior to making hiring decisions and review all qualified candidates’ applications prior to making hiring decisions. Advertising on PROFS JOBS does not replace the hiring process. Hiring managers or their delegates must continue to fill out required hiring documents.

To post your position, visit www.rowan.edu/profsjobs and from the Employer menu, select Sign-up and Post Job. You will receive a notice via email once the listing is approved for students to view. Hiring managers with PROFS JOBS technical questions should email duffya@rowan.edu. 

SGS provides the following quick tips for jobs posted on PROFS JOBS:

Limiting Job Advertisements to Certain Majors, Schools, or Colleges

If your position has restrictions on who may apply, this should be noted in your PROFS JOBS record under “Desired Majors.” Please select the closest major to your preferred graduate field of study or choose a school/college.

Creating the Job Description

All terms of work should be listed in the job description and agreed upon by the student and supervisor prior to hire including, but not limited to:

• Wages and other compensation (a compensation matrix is included in the Graduate Student Employment Handbook)
• Regular works hours and location(s)*
• Whether, and how often, weekend and evening hours are required
• Whether, and how often, travel is required
  1. If travel is required as part of field work or conference attendance, the supervisor should indicate whether mileage costs will be reimbursed through submission of a Travel Expense Form
• Whether, and how often, the student must use their personal vehicle for work purposes
• Workplace dress expectations

*Graduate students may work no more than 20 hours per week (full-time) while classes are in session and up to 25 hours per week during breaks, including summer break, per the official University academic calendar. A part-time student employee working 10 hours per week may hold an additional on-campus positions not to exceed 20 full-time hours per week combined.

Choosing Your Preferred Application Submission Method

The hiring manager can select how they want students to apply to their position advertisement. We recommend choosing the “Other” submission method for the following reasons:

Potential Students. Students who do not yet have a Rowan login cannot access PROFS JOBS, but will be able to view open positions on the School of Graduate Studies’ website. Because potential students often base their enrollment on available financial packages, it is important they are able to apply for eligible positions. Providing submission instructions via “Other” allows all students to email application materials directly. "Other" means that students do not apply via PROFS JOBS.

Letters of Recommendation. If you require Letter of Recommendation(s) as part of the application, we recommend selecting the “Other” submission method. External letter writers cannot submit letters to PROFS JOBS, so you should provide the e-mail address to which these letters should be sent. 

Requiring Other Documents. If using ProfsJobs to collect student application materials, a resume and cover letter are mandatory and one additional document may be uploaded. If you require students to submit multiple optional documents, consider using the "Other" submission method so students can email multiple files. If collecting applications via PROFS JOBS, students will have to create one PDF of all optional documents.

Examples of other documents you may consider requiring include:

• statement of interest;
• writing sample;
• transcript;

The Office of Graduate Research Services coordinates the final format review process and is responsible for ensuring that all theses/dissertations adhere to the format and style as prescribed in the Thesis & Dissertation Manual prior to final approval with the Registrar for graduation purposes.

Students should enroll in the Pre-Submittal Workshop via Rowan Online Marketplace as soon as they begin to work on their thesis. A $75 fee is required before students can turn in the mandatory Committee Appointment Forms and Thesis/Dissertation Approval forms.

Thesis/dissertation formatting approval is only one of the requirements for graduation. Students must also meet all requirements of the department or college in which they are enrolled as a student for graduation approval. Students should verify exit requirements as established by the department or college in which enrolled as a student. 

If you are a faculty member who would like to host an abridged version of this workshop for your class, or if you have any questions, please email Jenn Tharp, Graduate Research Services Specialist, at tharp@rowan.edu.

Students in thesis and dissertation programs must have their document formatted and approved prior to being eligible to graduate. Formatting approval must be completed prior to the university’s graduation deadlines:

• Fall graduation: January 30
• Winter graduation: February 31
• Spring graduation: June 30
• Summer graduation: September 30

Please ensure your students have ample time after completing their thesis or defending their dissertation to be able to complete formatting requirements prior to these deadlines.

For more information, contact Jenn Tharp, Graduate Research Services Specialist.

Copyright protects both the student's own work and makes sure that the student's work does not violate a copyright held by another party. With assistance from Rowan University Library Services, The School of Graduate Studies put together a resource document to help faculty understand copyright issues related to their students' thesis and dissertation documents.