The Graduate English Association (GEA) works closely with the administration of the English Department, as well as with other departmental organizations like Sigma Tau Delta and the planning committee of the annual New Voices Conference, to accomplish the following goals:
- Increase graduate English student participation in social, professional, administrative, and scholarly activities. The GEA organizes various events targeting graduate students’ professional and academic needs as well as events that utilize a social atmosphere to increase morale and a sense of belonging. Such activities include, but are not limited to:
- New Voices Conference — an annual conference run by graduate students from GSU’s English department, which brings together graduate students from local and far-away universities to participate in a professional conference on our own campus
- Academic Job Market Roundtable — a topic-specific event that features speakers who provide insight into different aspects of the academic job market based on each year’s selected topic. The most recent events have focused on the timeline of applying for academic jobs and the liberal arts job market
- Ex Post Facto — an end-of-year celebration that allows students and faculty to network and mingle in a relaxed environment after taking finals and submitting grades
- Trivia Nights, Spelling Bees, and other casual, after-hours events that bring students and faculty together for informal networking opportunities
- Welcome new graduate students to GSU by sponsoring orientation-type events in order to facilitate their transition into the graduate program. Such events include a coffee hour following the department-sponsored orientation and our annual Registration Night event, which brings together both new and seasoned graduate students as well as departmental faculty.
- Bridge the gap between faculty and graduate students; provide a graduate student voice in departmental affairs; and keep students apprised of ongoing events and issues within the department.
- Sponsor students’ travel to conferences by reimbursing student registration fees (up to $100) to as many of those accepted at professional conferences during the fiscal year as possible.
All students admitted to a graduate English program at GSU are considered members of the GEA and are encouraged to attend monthly meetings and to participate in as much of our programming as possible. Keep an eye out for new and upcoming events. Announcements are posted as flyers posted around the department, distributed by email through the GEA listserv, or on the GEA’s Facebook page. We look forward to seeing you at our next event!