Dean Patrick Osmer is not a typical dean or faculty member. He spent 16 years outside the United States and learned how to speak—fluently—a second language as an adult. An authority on the evolution of distant quasars and their relation to their host galaxies, Osmer regularly extends his intellectual curiosity to other projects—such as providing the leadership for Ohio State’s joining the international Large Binocular Telescope project—and cultural interests, such as reading Mario Vargas Llosa.
Dean Osmer became the Vice Provost for Graduate Studies and Dean of the Graduate School in 2006, and he has led Ohio State’s focus on offering high quality graduate programs.
“When students earn graduate degrees from Ohio State, they soon learn how well-regarded Ohio State is around the world. This is a wonderful university, and Columbus is a welcoming, energetic community.
“Ohio State is one of the few universities in the world where a talented graduate student can pursue just about any imaginable degree program and to do so with internationally known faculty. This is a place where frontier-breaking research gets done every day, and graduate students are an integral part of that important work,” he said.
One month after finishing his dissertation in 1969, Osmer moved to Chile full-time and served on the scientific staff of the Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CTIO) in La Serena. He stayed for 16 years, met his wife, Anita, welcoming and raising their two daughters in the process. The entire family is bilingual.
“The primary attraction for me in going to Chile was the opportunity to be part of building the first large U.S. observatory in the southern hemisphere, but I soon found that I enjoyed the beautiful geography and charming people. That made it easy to stay,” said Osmer.
Osmer’s time in Chile coincided with a tumultuous time in Chilean national politics—the election of Salvador Allende as president in 1970 and the 1973 coup that established the military dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet that lasted another 15 years. The political climate was a part of Osmer’s incentive to become fluent in Spanish.
“I had a deep interest in what was going on. I read the newspapers daily. I worked very hard to learn Spanish and, of course, Anita helped a lot. She was essential in helping me understand the culture and how to work in Chile,” he said. “Being able to speak Spanish was a tremendous factor in being able to work successfully in Chile.”
Osmer served as director of the Observatory from 1981 through 1985. During that time, CTIO’s Blanco 4-m Telescope was the largest telescope in the southern hemisphere and enabled many important observations and discoveries of objects that cannot be observed from the north, where most of the world’s largest telescopes were then located.
In 1986, Osmer and his family moved to Tucson, Ariz., where he joined the National Optical Astronomy Observatory as a member of the scientific staff. In 1988, he was named Deputy Director.
Osmer came to Ohio State as Professor and Chair of the Department of Astronomy in 1993 after the department conducted a national search. During his 13 years as chair, Professor Osmer provided leadership for the building of the research and graduate programs of the Department of Astronomy to internationally recognized high levels.
“I came to Ohio State because building the astronomy program was a remarkable opportunity, and it gave me a chance to work with students. Now that I’m dean of the Graduate School, I see even more clearly how studying to get a Ph.D. is one of the great opportunities of a person’s lifetime. It’s an opportunity to create new knowledge and share that knowledge with the world, and I can’t think of a more exciting endeavor than that.”
A native of Jamestown, N.Y., Osmer earned his B.S. in astronomy with highest honors from the Case Institute of Technology in 1965 and a Ph.D. in astronomy from the California Institute of Technology in 1970.
“I had wonderful experiences as a student, and my work in the Graduate School is focused on making sure that Ohio State graduate students have equally stellar experiences here,” Dean Osmer said. “Speaking personally, my doctoral training has also made it possible for me to travel and live all around the world. My family and I have been enriched by these experiences, and I hope all of our students seize the opportunity to do the same.
Cyndi Freeman is the Director of Graduate Student Recruitment and Diversity Initiatives for the Graduate School. She received her Bachelor of Arts degree from Kent State University in Public Relations with minors in Business and Political Science. She received her Master of Arts degree from the Pennsylvania State University in American Studies.
Preparation for Graduate School begins with your first quarter as an undergraduate. You may already have a plan in mind for professional school (physician, lawyer or an MBA), or for a Ph.D., or you just may want to leave your options open.
The first step in preparing for graduate study is to answer the question, “Why do I want to go to graduate school?” There are several reasons people pursue graduate degrees. Perhaps it is intellectual curiosity – the discipline you are studying interests you greatly, and you want to learn more! For example, exposure in a classroom to Chicana literature might spark the passion to understand its origins, the authors, the era in which the literature was written, and its impact on society. Another reason for the pursuit of a graduate degree may be to advance professionally. In order to work in certain professional fields, you need a master’s degree in social work, a law degree, or a medical degree. Then again, it might be the achievement of research-oriented Master of Science or a Ph.D., in a field such as nursing, engineering, or education that motivates you to become a university faculty member or researcher.
Keeping your options open translates into keeping your grades high and taking the correct courses. Opting out of the math sequence necessary for science and engineering majors might close a door or make it more difficult should you decide as a junior to pursue that major. The same could be said of those intending to major in business. See an academic advisor; make educated choices in your course selections. You will never have to work harder academically than you do your first year.
You have to train yourself to excel at academics the same way an athlete trains. You must train and then practice to be successful academically. There are 168 hours in each week. Being an excellent student is a full time job, that is 40 hours per week dedicated to your academics. The rule is two hours outside class for every hour you are in class. You must go to class, do the assigned readings, complete the homework, and do the labs. Realistically, you must think of your education as a job. That leaves you with 128 hours to do with as you will. Many students find that a part-time job aids in their time management.
Do not allow your undergraduate GPA to drop below 3.0. The higher your GPA, the better. Good grades in your first and then second year will sustain you as you enter the more challenging curriculum in your major area. These good study habits, plus the foundations in the academic discipline you have selected, will serve your well as you complete your major coursework.
Get all you can from your undergraduate experience. You should become involved in undergraduate research no later than your second year. You can volunteer, get a wage payroll job in your department or in a lab, or even do it for independent study. During your first year, you should begin to explore the resources available at Ohio State. Use the Office of Undergraduate Research (http://ugresearch.adm.ohio-state.edu) to seek research opportunities such as Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REUs) and Summer Research Opportunities Programs. With the SROP program, you can conduct faculty mentored research at any of the Big Ten universities. Other REU programs exist across the nation at colleges, universities, and national laboratories.
Seek opportunities to gain valuable experience and contacts while you are in school. Get involved with the student clubs, organizations, and pre-professional societies in your field or intended major. Attend scholarly events on campus — speakers in your areas of interest, research presentations, and forums.
Take time to visit your faculty and instructors during their office hours, even if you don’t have a problem. They want to talk with interested students. Ask questions. Learn how they got to where they are at this point in their career. This insight and contact can assist you in clarifying your future goals as well as increasing your understanding of the material.
At Ohio State, you will be presented with more opportunities, resources and choices than at any other time in your life. As an undergraduate student here, it is all about you. A wealth of resources and services have been put into place for you; the Multicultural Center, the services of the Office of Minority Affairs, the Younkin Success Center, the Math and Statistics Center, Center for the Study and Teaching of Writing as well as your academic home, your college or school. Take advantage of all that is available to achieve your goals. Your future has begun!
Graduate school can be overwhelming, exciting and daunting as you begin your program. Here is a short list of advice for those of you beginning graduate school that has helped to get me through now that I am here.
1. When you first arrive on campus, start looking for an advisor. You want someone whose research interests match your own. The relationship you have with your advisor is the most important relationship you may have during the five-plus years you are here. As scary as it sounds, this relationship can and often does trump the relationship you have with your friends, family, partner, etc.
2. Funding, funding, and funding – ask “How much?” “How long?” and “What kind?” Learn about the different positions in your department — Graduate Research Assistant (GRA), Graduate Teaching Assistant (GTA), and Graduate Administrative Assistant (GAA) — and what is required of each. Some GRA positions last for many years, while a GAA position may last for only one quarter. A 50 percent appointment means that you will be working 20 hours a week (50 percent of a full time job). A 75 percent appointment requires you put in 30 hours a week.
3. Find a colleague in your department to be your supporter (a graduate student in your cohort would be perfect). Very few people outside of school will understand what you are going through, so you will need someone to work with and talk to who actually understands how you feel. You will also need someone to talk you off the edge when you think you want to drop out! Hopefully you both will not want to quit at the same time, but just in case, you may want to befriend more than one person!
4. Be very aware of your time (or time lost). Often, hours can magically disappear (see #5 below). The key here is time management (yes, we’ve all heard this one before, but it’s true!). Shifting from having a job or coming from an undergraduate program to graduate school can be an enormous change. At first, you may be overwhelmed by all of the course work, and then you’ll have to write a master’s thesis or take a master’s exam, and once that is done, you’ll start studying for candidacy exams. Unlike any other job or school situation, however, your day is often unstructured (especially once you are done with coursework), and unless you create a schedule, time can quickly disappear.
5. Learn how to say no. Of course you want to be a team player, but at the same time you also need to set aside uninterrupted time for your work. Be selective about what you participate in. I recommend a couple of very visible activities that do not require too much time if possible.
6. Read Ph.D. comics (http://www.phdcomics.com) religiously. After all, you need a little break while you are doing all that research. Beware – do not let this lead to other internet searches or soon your entire day will be gone!
Susan Ortiz is currently a Ph.D. candidate in Sociology at The Ohio State University. She received her Bachelor of Arts in Education from New Mexico State University and her Master in Sociology at The Ohio State University. Her life experiences have included being a teacher, community relations manager, research assistant, graduate teaching assistant, and adjunct professor. She has lived in New Mexico, Colorado, Pennsylvania and Ohio.
This quarter Ohio State will be present in many recruitment forums at the national level. As part of a long-standing recruitment strategy, Ohio State representatives will be introducing and promoting Ohio State programs to Hispanic and non-Hispanic students nationwide.
From mid-September to mid-November, Ohio State recruiters will be traveling around the United States and Puerto Rico.
Among many others events, Ohio State will be present at the Models of Institutional Excellence (San Juan, Puerto Rico) (Sep 12-13); Delaware McNair Conference & Graduate School Fair (Oct. 3); Atlanta University Center Graduate Fair (Oct. 15); Northern California Forum for Diversity in Graduate Education (Nov. 8); and the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers National Conference (Nov. 16). Not surprisingly, ¿Qué Pasa, OSU? is one of the many tools used to communicate and portray the sense of community existent within our campus.
For the complete list of events, please visit http://quepasa.osu.edu.
