5. Graduate Student Research
Materials research is an integral component of the MSE graduate programs. As a part of their academic plans, students engage in various forms of experimental, computational, and theoretical research, utilizing various forms of university resources. While access to facilities, specific procedures, and usage/training requirements for any particular student is established by the major professor and/or research supervisor, some general information related to MSE policies are outlined below.
5.1 MSE Laboratory Safety Program
The MSE Department is heavily engaged in a wide variety of laboratory research, and the students, staff and faculty collectively share in the responsibility of maintaining the safest and most efficient environment in which to perform the research of the highest quality. We take this responsibility very seriously and every graduate student is required to participate fully in the MSE Safety Program and maintain appropriate safety training credentials.
This involves various programs, courses, and seminars along with formal university, department, and group level training. Every student performing research will have a personal safety plan, supervised by the major professor. Students should complete the basic safety training required by ISU before they begin working in MSE laboratories. Students and major professors are required to maintain safety training documentation consistent with the personalized plan and to review the plan and training documentation together every semester.
Information about safety training can be found on the MSE department website: https://www.mse.iastate.edu/
Personalized Safety plans and important safety documentation include components such as Laboratory Check-In forms, Hazard Inventory forms https://hazard-inventory.ehs.iastate.edu/, Hazard assessments, general and specific safety training, equipment training records, process and equipment Standard Operating Procedures (SOP’s).
MSE department lab staff assist in facilitating the training and documentation for those who work in the MSE
department and serve as contacts to assist with safety concerns. ISU Environmental Health and Safety (EH&S https://www.ehs.iastate.edu/ ) are important partners to help everyone maintain a safe working environment.
5.2 Laboratory Access and Usage
The professional and scientific development of our students is a high priority and requires that students have hands-on access to state-of-the-art research facilities. To maintain safe working conditions and integrity of our research facilities and data, access to research equipment is generally limited to work that is directly related to thesis-based research or other contract research. Access to any laboratory space or use of any laboratory equipment must be expressly authorized by the student’s major professor and the specific lab or equipment supervisor. Records of training on equipment should be maintained.
Access request to lab spaces can be found on the MSE dept website: https://www.mse.iastate.edu/
Many items of equipment are maintained by the MSE department through a system known as Fee for Service (FFS). Access to any of the FFS equipment is limited to users who have completed all required training and all users are charged the set rate of usage to access this equipment. Please use the MSE department website for the procedure to obtain training and access to Fee for Service equipment in the MSE department as well as lists and descriptions of equipment available.
It is prohibited to give access to equipment or facilities to unauthorized personnel or to leave doors unlocked or propped open. In addition, any known or suspected unauthorized entry to laboratory spaces or inappropriate use of equipment must be reported immediately to the MSE Graduate Program Coordinator, Safety Officer, or Director of Graduate Education.
5.3 Curricular Research (MSE 6990)
Except for special circumstances approved by the DOGE (typically involving an off-campus assignment), students in thesis-based programs are required to enroll in at least one credit of MSE 6990 during each semester, including summer. Curricular research assignments will be made at the start of each semester. Results will be evaluated and graded by the major professor at the end of each semester. Generally, an effort of approximately 3 hours per week is expected during the semester for each semester-credit-hour awarded. This effort should be considered separate from other coursework and assistantship-related research.
5.4 Graduate Research Assistantships (GRAs)
Any MSE graduate student supported on a GRA will have a formal letter of intent (LOI) which are signed by the student, the major professor, and the Department Chair or delegate. The LOI will describe the terms of the assistantship, including the start/end dates, the effort level (typically 1/4-time or 1/2-time), the semester stipend, the name of the major professor, and other details or conditions of employment related to the specific research project and expected outcomes. It is critical that the student reads and understands the LOI document prior to signing.
Graduate students are eligible for various types of internal and external scholarships and fellowships, and they are encouraged to seek nomination for these, as appropriate, by their major professor. In most cases, the funding provided by scholarship and fellowship awards will serve to offset MSE stipend and tuition costs and will not be awarded as an addition to the GRA stipend. There are a few exceptions, where awarded funds are intended to supplement the regular GRA stipend. Students are advised to read and understand the terms of scholarship and fellowship programs to avoid confusion.
Graduate research assistantships are generally supported by specific research grants, contracts, or scholarships, administered by the student’s major professor, who must be a full member of the MSE Graduate Faculty. Most often, students are admitted into a degree program as a member of a specific research group, and agreements for GRA support are made at the time of admission. In some cases, graduate students are admitted prior to any such agreement, and it is expected that the admitted student will search for a GRA position within the department by arranging interviews with potential major professors. In many cases major professor GRA support can be arranged prior to the start of the first semester. In other cases, depending on position availability, these arrangements cannot be made by the start of the student’s first semester. Typically, GRA appointments are made for 1-year terms and are renewable annually, contingent upon available funding and appropriate academic progress.
