Student Engagement

Teaching Traditional Classes

In any given semester, it is typical for a few CSST faculty members to be the primary instructors of UMBC courses. Reflective of the breadth of expertise in CSST, this has included serving as the instructor of courses in the Department of Physics; the Department of Computer Science and Electrical Engineering; and the Department of Geography and Environmental Systems. Faculty members interested in teaching should coordinate with the CSST center director with as much lead time as possible. Teaching typically covers 25% of the instructor’s effort during the semester when the teaching is taking place.

In addition to full responsibility for courses, CSST faculty members have also regularly given guest lectures, supervised independent studies and projects (for pass/fail course credit).

Working with Graduate Students

Membership on the UMBC Graduate Faculty

Members of the CSST faculty can apply to become members of the graduate faculty. There are two types of members: associate and regular. Members of the CSST faculty are well-positioned to be initially accepted as associate members; please contact the Director of CSST if you’d like to pursue this. Being a member (associate or regular) is a prerequisite for teaching graduate level courses, advising graduate students, and serving on thesis or dissertation committees. Each degree-granting department has its own additional policies regarding how people participate in the various roles within their graduate programs.  After developing a record of being involved with graduate students, associate members may apply to become regular members of the graduate faculty.

Student- and Degree-specific Considerations

CSST faculty members often work with graduate students, especially UMBC graduate students. This is not a job expectation, but is one of many options to help fulfill the more general job expectations of being an active member of the scientific community, which includes mentoring or supervising people (in some form) at earlier stages in their career.

UMBC has a variety of graduate programs, and each provides a distinct mix of opportunities and constraints. For example, in some degree programs, a CSST faculty member might serve as the sole advisor for a graduate student, likely contingent on obtaining an “affiliate” appointment with the department which manages that student’s degree program. In other degree programs, students are required to have an advisor or co-advisor whose primary appointment is in that degree program’s home unit. In such cases, co-advising may still be an option.

While collaborations with graduate students could be informal, various formalizations sometimes include:

• course credit (independent study, master’s thesis course credit, dissertation course credit)
• service as a student’s advisor or co-advisor
• service as a non-advisor member of a student’s thesis or dissertation committee
• student compensation (hourly or stipend-based)
• covering costs such as conference travel, equipment, etc.

Accordingly, it is often useful to have funds available (from grants or tasks) to support a student, and/or to establish an individual relationship (e.g., affiliate appointment) with departments which grant relevant graduate degrees.

Working with Undergraduate Students

Finding Funding for Undergraduate Researchers

Within UMBC, there are several funding programs available for CSST faculty members to seek support for hiring undergraduate research assistants. These programs exist in part because UMBC’s graduate students are typically funded by grants, and UMBC seeks to incentivize the additional inclusion of undergraduates in research. These programs include:

• Undergraduate Research Award (URA) – students apply, with a named faculty mentor
• Supplement for Undergraduate Research Experiences (SURE) – faculty members apply and receive funding to support undergraduates who are in their first four semesters at UMBC (including transfer students). This is meant to support students who aren’t yet positioned to apply for URA awards.
• Federal Work Study (FWS) – FWS is a national program based on financial need which allows the university to create university jobs for FWS-eligible students.

Providing Course Credit for Undergraduate Researchers

Undergraduates need 120 credits total to graduate, which must include 45 credits at the upper level (300 or higher). An independent study or research credit course is typically three credits, but this can vary. Such courses are generally pass/fail and can students get to the required 120- and 45-credit minimums, but some students will be at or above these minimums without worrying about 120 specifically, because they are doing a double-major, a major and a minor, etc. Therefore, the utility of these credits for the purposes of generic minimum credit totals varies by student.

Each UMBC unit and degree program has its own way of handling courses of this sort, both in terms of who can serve as the “instructor” and whether the credits can fulfill any program-specific requirements. For example, CMSC 499 is intended for computer science work, but does not fulfill any program-specific requirements. In contrast to this, “physics majors must take PHYS 499H or contribute to the Department’s teaching as a learning assistant.”

For courses like CMSC 499 and PHYS 499H, the relevant degree-granting department is involved in establishing who can serve as as the instructor of record for the course – for example, they might restrict this role to the own department’s tenure-track faculty, or they might require an affiliate appointment, etc. Such restrictions, when they exist, may or may not preclude a research advisor working with a student on a project where someone else (perhaps a co-mentor) serves as the instructor of record.

In contrast, “The Practicum” is a course offered through the Career Center which can recognize any internship, co-op, or research experience as PRAC 95/98/99. The Practicum is worth zero credits, but does show up on a student’s transcript and provide additional structure and accountability.