Resources

There are numerous resources on campus designed to support graduate students. Below is a list of common offices and services that many of our students refer to at some point during their graduate career. In addition, you may also use the right-hand navigation to find resources and initiatives related to diversity, inclusion, and mental health.

Academic Resources

Center for Teaching Innovation (CTI): CTI strives to strengthen teaching across campus in a multitude of ways, from disseminating research-based best-teaching practices to ensuring that graduate student instructors have the support and resources needed to help their students learn better. 

Engaged Cornell: Engaged Cornell advances the university’s mission through community-engaged discovery and learning. In community-engaged work, community partners are equal players, and projects are created, developed, and carried out collaboratively with students from the start.

English Language Support Office (ELSO): This office’s mission is to offer comprehensive writing and speaking support for Cornell’s international graduate and professional students, including courses, tutoring, workshops, and a conversation program.

Libraries: Cornell is home to more than 20 libraries, many of which specialize in specific fields.

Office of Engagement Initiatives: This office offers students guidance, resources, and training so that you can become more actively involved in community engaged learning and research.

Office of Research Integrity and Assurance (ORIA): ORIA coordinates compliance measures on campus and acts as a resource for the university community’s concerns regarding compliance requirements.

Student Essentials: Cornell’s academic portal.

Student Center: Cornell’s registration and enrollment portal.

Thesis and Dissertation Services and Guidelines: Information about what steps you need to take to complete your degree and what support is available to you along the way.

Accessibility Resources

Student Disability Services (SDS): SDS is the designated office at Cornell that obtains and files disability-related documents, certifies eligibility for services, determines reasonable accommodations, and develops plans for student accommodation provisions.

Map of All Gender Inclusive Restrooms on Campus: In keeping with the university’s policy of nondiscrimination and the commitment to inclusion, the University allows students, staff, faculty, and visitors to use the restroom or facility that corresponds to their gender identity.

Career and Professional Development 

Pathways to Success is the Graduate School's suite of academic, career, professional, and personal development programs for all phases of the student journey from learning how to navigate graduate school to identifying and applying for jobs. Please see the Graduate School's website for various opportunities.

Mental Health Resources 

Mission statement: The health and mental wellbeing of our students is a top priority of the BBS program. We recognize that stresses unique to the responsibilities of performing PhD-level research contribute to creating mental health challenges that are new or overwhelming. In the BBS community, we seek to dismantle the stigma associated with these commonly-encountered experiences. Our goal is to provide resources to encourage students to reach out and access a variety of available mental health support systems, without fear that it will be negatively viewed or impede their progress. The PhD journey is a marathon, and we believe that actively caring for students’ mental well-being is vital to ensure that they flourish as scientists.

CVM Mental Wellbeing Resource website

BBS Faculty Ears program: Graduate students in BBS can speak to any member of a rotating group of EARS faculty about difficulties they are facing in graduate school.  The intent is to create a safe and confidential listening space where students can discuss their concerns.  All EARS faculty were nominated by students, and have gone through basic training with the Cornell EARS program.  

Students wishing to talk to a BBS faculty EARS member have two options.  They can contact any of the faculty listed and meet with them at their convenience.  Alternatively, they can attend a virtual ‘drop-in’ hour, hosted by one of the faculty members.  

Cornell Mental Health resources: BBS graduate students have access to a variety of professional mental health resources through Cornell Health. These include group counseling, individual counseling appointments, drop-in consultations, and skills-based workshops. The links below provide more details on each of these options: 

Let’s Talk - Drop-in consultations with a CAPS counselor https://health.cornell.edu/services/mental-health-care/lets-talk

Individual Counseling - individualized mental health support https://health.cornell.edu/services/mental-health-care/individual-counseling

Group Counseling - Addressing issues common among students https://health.cornell.edu/services/mental-health-care/individual-counseling

Talk/Text someone confidentially now! 

Diversity & Inclusion Resources

Office of Inclusion and Student Engagement
The Office of Inclusion and Student Engagement (OISE) supports an inclusive and welcoming environment for all graduate and postdoctoral scholars. OISE promotes a climate of diversity, inclusion, engagement, and achievement, which are integral components of graduate and postdoctoral education.

Below is information copied from the OISE website

Signature Initiatives

OISE provides specific mentoring, professional, and academic development programs to help students achieve success at Cornell and in their future.

Recruitment

The Graduate School’s Recruitment Office is committed to promoting graduate study at Cornell. Our staff serves as the liaison to all prospective students, especially those from diverse backgrounds and populations traditionally underrepresented in graduate education. Please use the links below to learn more about what the Recruitment Office and our personnel have to offer you.

Bouchet Graduate Honor Society

Founded by Yale and Howard Universities in 2005, the Edward A. Bouchet Graduate Honor Society recognizes outstanding scholarly achievement and seeks to develop a network of preeminent scholars who exemplify academic and personal excellence, foster environments of support, and serve as examples of CLASS: Character, Leadership, Advocacy, Scholarship, and Service.

Funding and Resources

Cornell University provides access to a wide range of internal and external resources to help students reach their academic, professional, and personal goals.

Student Organizations

There are numerous student organizations represented on the Graduate and Professional Student Diversity Council that work collaboratively with the Graduate School and other campus partners on initiatives to advance a sense of community, professional excellence, and a climate of inclusion for all graduate and professional students, but especially for those from marginalized communities and backgrounds historically underrepresented in the academy.

Cornell is home to a number of graduate and professional student organizations that promote diversity and inclusion. The following student organizations represented on the Graduate & Professional Student Diversity Council (GPS DC), work collaboratively with the Graduate School and other campus partners on initiatives to advance a sense of community, professional excellence, and a climate of inclusion for all graduate and professional students, but especially for those from marginalized communities and backgrounds historically underrepresented in the academy.

Signature Events:

Belonging at Cornell

Cornell’s transformative diversity and inclusion framework, Belonging at Cornell, provides a broad institutional structure for asserting the centrality of diversity and inclusion to the university’s values and excellence. Cornell’s diversity and inclusion framework is based on the recognition that education, research, knowledge production, and operational and academic pursuits are enhanced through full and reciprocal engagement among diverse perspectives, life experiences, and modes of knowledge creation and interpretation.

Reporting Bias

Reporting, understanding, and preventing unacceptable behaviors such as bias, sexual misconduct, and hazing are essential to maintaining our caring community. Cornell offers various avenues for reporting these incidents as well as receiving confidential care and support if you need it.

To report bias incidents or related concerns, complete this form or send an email to report_bias@cornell.edu. Know that confidential care and support for individuals affected by bias is available. More information about Cornell’s bias reporting system is also available on the HR website. Cornell is committed to maintaining a bias-free climate based on civility, decency, and respect.

More resources on reporting can be found here https://gradschool.cornell.edu/diversity-inclusion/reporting-bias/