STUDENT ORGANIZATIONS, JOURNAL CLUBS,
AND SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS

Graduate Student Senate

The Graduate Student Senate (GSS) is a unique campus organization that represents about 3,000 graduate and professional students, or 25% of the OSU student population. Since 1982, enrollment in the graduate school has increased 14.3%, while overall enrollment has decreased at OSU. No other campus organization directly serves this expanding student population. The functions of the GSS are:

  • 1. To provide information to graduate students about upcoming events, etc. via the GSS newsletter;

    2. To act as a liaison between graduate students and the Graduate School and administration via the GSS president;3. To act as a liaison between graduate students and ASOSU via the Graduate Student Senator;4. To provide a "pool" of interested graduate students to serve on such University committees as Child Care, Graduate Council, Commencement, and Dean Search Committees;5. To hold regular monthly meetings for graduate students to discuss common concerns and to plan activities and projects;6. To work to solve grievances aired by graduate students by effecting policy changes.
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    GSS meets twice a month in the Memorial Union and all graduate students are welcome. There are six representatives from the College of Science of which the Botany and Plant Pathology Department is included.

    Journal Clubs

    Students and faculty often organize to discuss current literature, research interests, and individual research projects. This department and other departments involved in the life sciences have clubs and groups that focus on such areas as genetics, ecology, systematics, plant pathology, and plant physiology. Students should contact the appropriate programs or consider initiating a journal club reflecting their own interests.

    Special Interest Groups

    Students and faculty interested in specialized areas have opportunities for participation in a variety of campus and academic activities. The following is a brief list of groups that may be of interest to graduate students. Information on other groups and activities can be found in the University catalog and from the MU Activities Office.

    Biology Research Symposium - Each spring a research symposium is held at Hatfield Marine Science Center, Newport, in which graduate students in science departments, including Botany and Plant Pathology, Zoology, Forestry, Entomology, and Biochemistry, present brief talks describing their work. All students are encouraged to participate.

    Sigma Xi - A national scientific honor society that sponsors lectures and symposia, publishes the journal, American Scientist, and provides limited travel and research funding for member graduate students. Membership is by invitation.

    American Women in Science (AWIS) - A national organization that sponsors lectures, discussions, and activities that foster a network of women scientists, a sharing of their activities, and an educational outreach to teenage girls in the community.

    Women in Development (WID) - A campus organization of female and male staff, faculty, and students that focuses on the issues of international development with respect to women and the family unit. Programs are designed as a forum for discussions that are led by native speakers or volunteers and professionals who have participated in third world development projects.

    Sustainable Agriculture Project (SAP) - A campus organization whose programs are designed as a forum for the discussion and the exchange of ideas on current agricultural issues. Topics include organic farming, integrated pest management, soil and water conservation, protection of genetic resources, and multiple cropping systems.

    International Student Organization (ISO) is composed of members from the foreign student community. ISO promotes international relations and goodwill in the University and in Corvallis through its educational and cultural activities.