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Byrne Seminar: Launching Your Successful STEM Career
Fall 2018

The Byrne Seminar program is sponsored by the Rutgers Office of Undergraduate Academic Affairs.

Instructors Prof. Andrew Baker Serin W309 Phone: 848-445-8887 Email: ajbaker[at]physics.rutgers.edu Office hours: Monday 1:40-3:00pm Prof. Chuck Keeton Serin W305 Phone: 848-445-8876 Email: keeton[at]physics.rutgers.edu Office hours: Monday 1:30-2:30pm Thursday 10:30-11:30am Venue Wednesday (1:40-3:00pm) in Serin W401

Overview
Here's the official course catalog listing:
"Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) fields offer exciting opportunities for careers of discovery, innovation, and helping others. But how does one prepare for and achieve such a career? In this seminar, students will learn about the critical role played by research in STEM fields, the skills and qualities that are valuable in research (e.g., programming, teamwork, communication, and persistence in the face of obstacles), and the practical steps they can take at Rutgers to foster success in STEM majors and careers. Students will interact with guest researchers from multiple STEM fields, explore the life stories of STEM professionals like 2015 Presidential Medal of Freedom winner Katherine Johnson and 2016 Rutgers honorary degree recipient Jocelyn Bell Burnell, and receive training in basic programming in the Python language. As a final project, students will work in teams to reproduce some of the calculations made by Johnson and others to help launch NASA rockets as part of the Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo programs."

Schedule

CLASS	DATE	THEME	READING	GUEST(S)
1	Sep 5	Dealing with professors	none	none
2	Sep 12	Scientific discovery	J. Bell-Burnell	Prof. Saurabh Jha
3	Sep 19	Persistence	S. Ramanujan	Prof. Juliane Gross
4	Sep 26	Teamwork	K. Johnson	Prof. Sevil Salur
5	Oct 3	Asking questions	C.J. Finlay	Prof. Nina Shapley
6	Oct 10	Communication	L. Margulis	Prof. Kimberly Cook-Chennault
7	Oct 17	Ethics	A. Sakharov	Dr. Patricia Morton
8	Oct 24	Python hack session # 1	none	none
	Oct 31	no class	no class	no class
9	Nov 7	Python hack session # 2	none	none
10	Nov 14	Final project presentation	none	none

Grading
Your course grade will be based on a combination of four elements:

• active participation in discussions of assigned reading (25%)
• active participation in other in-class activities (25%)
• programming project and presentation (25%)
• documented meeting with a departmental undergraduate adviser (25%)

• demonstrating knowledge of assigned reading through contributions to discussions
• asking questions during discussions and laboratory visits
• working cooperatively with classmates during group exercises

Other items

• Absences
  If you need to miss a class, you should report your absence at this website. More than two unexcused absences will result in a "NC" grade for this course.
• Students with disabilities
  Rutgers University welcomes students with disabilities into all of the university's educational programs. In order to receive consideration for reasonable accommodations, a student with a disability must contact the appropriate disability services office on the campus where (s)he is officially enrolled, participate in an intake interview, and provide documentation. If the documentation supports your request for reasonable accommodations, your campus's disability services office will provide you with a Letter of Accommodations. Please share this letter with your instructors and discuss the accommodations with them as early in your courses as possible. To begin this process, please complete the registration form on the Office of Disability Services (ODS) web site.
• Student wellness services
  The School of Arts and Sciences and the Rutgers University Student Assembly have requested that all course syllabi include the following information on resources to support student wellness:
  • The Just In Case Web App provides access to helpful mental health information and resources for yourself or a friend in a mental health crisis on your smartphone or tablet, and easily contacts CAPS or RUPD.
  • Rutgers Counseling, Alcohol & Other Drug Assistance Program, and Psychiatric Services (CAPS) (848-932-7884; 17 Senior Street in New Brunswick) is a University mental health support service that includes counseling, alcohol and other drug assistance, and psychiatric services staffed by a team of professionals within Rutgers Health Services to support students' efforts to succeed at Rutgers University. CAPS offers a variety of services that include individual therapy, group therapy and workshops, crisis intervention, referral to specialists in the community and consultation, and collaboration with campus partners.
  • The Office for Violence Prevention & Victim Assistance (VPVA) (848-932-1181; 3 Bartlett Street in New Brunswick) provides confidential crisis intervention, counseling, and advocacy for victims of sexual and relationship violence and stalking to students, staff, and faculty.N Staff can be reached by phone during office hours when the university; advocates can be reached by phone after hours.
  • The Office of Disability Services (848-445-6800; Lucy Stone Hall, Suite A145, Livingston Campus, 54 Joyce Kilmer Avenue in Piscataway) works with students with documented disabilities to determine eligibility for reasonable accommodations, facilitates and coordinates those accommodations when applicable, and lastly engages with the Rutgers community at large to provide and connect students to appropriate resources.
  • Scarlet Listeners (732-247-5555) is a free and confidential peer counseling and referral hotline, providing a comforting and supportive safe space.