Graduate School
Professionals in Preparation
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PIP Workshops
2026-2027 Workshops
Graduate school often means juggling multiple roles鈥攖eacher, researcher, and student鈥攚hile also navigating feelings of impostor syndrome. This workshop provides practical strategies for managing your time, setting priorities, and maintaining balance across your academic responsibilities. You鈥檒l learn how to build a sustainable routine, reduce stress, and stay focused, while also developing tools to recognize and overcome self-doubt as you progress in your academic journey.
Discover how AI tools like ChatGPT can enhance your graduate experience. This interactive session introduces practical and ethical ways to use ChatGPT to support research, academic writing, brainstorming, and organization. Designed for graduate students at all levels of AI experience, this workshop will provide strategies to help you use ChatGPT effectively and responsibly throughout your graduate studies.
This PIP workshop will be a longer session, scheduled from 12:00 to 2:00pm.
Professional interviews and networking opportunities often take place over a meal, and your table manners can leave just as much of an impression as your conversation. In this interactive workshop, students will learn essential dining etiquette, practical strategies for navigating formal meals, and tips for presenting themselves confidently in professional settings. Whether you are preparing for a business lunch, conference meal, or campus interview dinner, this session will help you feel more polished and prepared.
Professionals in Preparation (PIP) is a two-semester professional development program consisting of:
Workshops and seminars which will be held approximately twice monthly from 1:00-2:00p.m. on Wednesdays in the J.B. George Building, room 142.
Sessions will include:
- Interviewing tips
- Effective communication
- Publishing and peer review
- Etiquette and presence
- Interviewing skills
- Ethics and integrity in scholarship
Mentorship workshops including case study discussions with faculty experts will provide training on managing real life situations that may occur between faculty and their graduate students.
Three Minute Thesis: To be held November 13-14, 2025. Participants will compete in the annual 3MT competition which requires them to present the importance of their research to a general audience in less than three minutes. Participants will compete for the title Grand Champion and significant prize money.
Susan A. Siltanen Graduate Student Research Symposium: To be held Thursday, April 3, 2025. Participants will submit an abstract and present their research during the annual symposium. Students will compete with other graduate students for monetary prizes for best presentations in specific categories.
- Students will work independently to complete an IDP and submit electronically no later than Friday, April 11, 2025. The submission will be scored as based on thoughtfulness, completeness, and organization using a standard rubric (provided by Dean Coats).
- All students must address the requirements of the rubric and develop the IDP using a template appropriate to their discipline. Examples include: ; .
- Please do not simply fill out one of the templates, as there should be a synthesis of the information. All IDPs must be reviewed with your advisor/major professor before submission.
Professionals in Preparation Digital Badge
Upon successful completion of the program, participants will have the option to receive a digital badge that can be affixed to digital CV鈥檚 or r茅sum茅s, LinkedIn, and other social media accounts. The badge links to a description of the skills learned as a part of the program and provides a digital credential that can be viewed by prospective employers, hiring committees, and others who will be interested in your preparedness for the workforce. For students choosing the digital badge option, the cost of the program is $50.
- Attend a minimum of 5 regular workshops/seminars EACH semester
- Participate in the Three-Minute Thesis AND Graduate Student Research Symposium
- Submit Individual Development Plan
- Submit PIP digital badge application and $50 fee
1. Can students not on the Hattiesburg campus participate in the Professionals in Preparation program?
Yes, we will record each workshop and post the video on the Graduate School website. Students who are unable to attend a workshop in person can view the recording and submit a post-workshop survey to receive credit for attendance.
2. What if I am working on a research project or assignment? Will presenting on this work meet the communication competition requirement?
Yes, presenting on a project rather than a thesis will not be a problem. You will still be required to present your research at both the Three-Minute Thesis and the Graduate Student Research Symposium.
3. What is a digital badge?
A digital badge links to a permanent description of the skills learned in the program and provides a credential that can be viewed by prospective employers. It can be added to your curriculum vita, r茅sum茅, LinkedIn account, or other social media accounts.
4. Is there a cost associated with the digital badge?
For students choosing to earn the digital badge, the cost of the program is $50. A link to the badge program will be provided upon request.
For more information or to request a link to the digital badge application, contact Shaadi Shoubaki (Shaadi.ShoubakiFREEMississippi).