The PROMISE Program is proud to support the academic and professional development of graduate students and postdoctoral fellows from all backgrounds and in all fields. Programs of PROMISE are led by the UMBC Graduate School, sponsored by the National Science Foundation, and include founding partners, the University of Maryland College Park, and the University of Maryland – the Founding Campus (formerly known as the University of Maryland Baltimore.) Broadly, graduate students can participate in PROMISE regardless of their status (full-time, part-time), ethnicity, citizenship, discipline, or source of funding. Narrowly, students who are underrepresented will be strongly supported as they utilize the services and resources of PROMISE; these students can be encouraged to consider PROMISE to be one of their major mechanisms of support.
Our primary goals are to increase the numbers and diversity of underrepresented Ph.D.s who will become professors and to increase contributions to the STEM enterprise through impactful mentoring, community building, and professional development.
PROMISE does not provide scholarships nor fellowships. Instead, we offer seminars, workshops, and programs that inspire thesis and dissertation completion, motivation to persist in the graduate program, and preparation for STEM careers.
Some of the programs that we co-sponsor include:
- Dissertation House (https://dissertationhouse.wordpress.com/)
- PROF-it: Professors-in-Training seminars
- Wednesday Success Seminars at UMBC (Topics include: Finances, Leadership, Research & the IRB, Writing & Publishing, Grantsmanship, and more.)
- Friday Ph.D. Completion Seminars at UM College Park (Topics include: Presenting at Professional Meetings, Responsible Conduct of Research)
- Reflections: A Health and Wellness Initiative at UM-The Founding Campus (Topics include Sleep Deprivation, Relaxation techniques (shiatsu, reiki))
- When Faculty Say “x”, They Really Mean “y” faculty/student dinner seminar
- Community Building Retreat (Rocky Gap)
Is PROMISE for you? Yes! You are invited!
PROMISE is part of the National Science Foundation’s Alliances for Graduate Education and the Professoriate (AGEP).
PROMISE: Maryland's AGEP 2003-2018 