Mark Todd is the Associate Dean for Graduate Programs at USC College. His goals are to recruit top graduate students, help them succeed at USC, provide professional development opportunities, and ensure they graduate in a timely manner to land great jobs. He outlines the typical 5-year trajectory for PhD students, starting with coursework and finding an advisor in years 1-2, research and qualifying exams in years 3-4, and dissertation writing, publishing, and defending in year 5.

1. Mark Todd
Associate Dean for Graduate Programs
USC College

2. “If Socrates was right that the unexamined life
is not worth living then to be devoted to such
a place as this is to have a love affair with life”
Dean Howard Gillman, USC College

3. From… To…

4. Recruit the best graduate students

 Help students thrive at USC
 Provide professionalization opportunities
 Expect students to become stewards of
their discipline
 Expect students to graduate in a timely
manner
 Position students to land a great job

5. Year 5
•Write
Year 4 dissertation
•Continue •Publish papers
research •Defend
Year 3 •Attend dissertation
conferences
•Pass Qualifying •Interview for
•Apply for
Examination job/postdoc
external funding
•Establish •Graduate
Year 2 Dissertation
Committee
•Take courses
•Formulate
•Look for an
research
advisor
•Begin research
•Establish
Year 1 Guidance
Committee
•Take
courses
•Pass
screening
exams

6. Based on my observations, the quot;successfulquot; students

have done the following: established a research topic
early; worked as a Research Assistant; cultivated
relationships outside the department
Talk to the other students in your class. The sooner a

new student does that the sooner you realize that it is
hard for everyone and you are not alone in this
Find an advisor that compliments your personality and

who you can get along with personally... just because
you're interested in the same things academically
doesn't mean you will be a good match

7. Stay on top of things but don't forget to give yourself

time off. Just because you're a grad student doesn't
mean you can't take the weekend or evening off
When in doubt, ask a senior student in your department

Be humbled by the infinity of knowledge out

there, understand that there will always be more to
read, research, and do than can be humanly
done, and appreciate the magic of the tiny piece you
got, Accept it: We're all idiots!
Read until your brain hurts, and then read some more


9. You’re doing your future…
Present at important

conferences
Publish in good journals

Apply for external funding

Enter scholarly competitions

Write a grant

Develop curricula as a

Teaching Assistant
Develop networks with non-

USC faculty

10. USC commencement ceremony, Alumni Park

11. …a good one!

12. Recent Faculty Positions Recent Postdoc Positions
 Yale  Harvard
 Harvard  Stanford
 Ohio State  MIT
 Kansas  Brown
 Georgia Tech  USC
 University of Missouri  Cambridge (UK)
 UC Irvine  UCLA
 UC Santa Cruz  Cornell

13. Faithful

Scholarly

Skillful

Courageous

Ambitious
