DTEI Graduate Scholars

Applications for the 2025 DTEI Summer Graduate Scholars Program are open from February 26th through April 4th.

Since its establishment in 2020, UCI’s DTEI Summer Graduate Scholars Program has become a leading force for campus-wide pedagogical change. The goal of this program is to facilitate summer-long collaborations between graduate student Scholars and faculty Mentors to enhance the equity, accessibility, and inclusivity of courses while further developing graduate students’ skills and knowledge.

Themes for 2025

Generative AI in Education

Integrating effective and ethical use of AI in teaching and learning, emphasizing academic integrity, professional development, and equitable course policies.

Evolving Instructional Teams

Strengthening and reimagining collaborative teaching models at course and department levels.

Pedagogical Wellness

Prioritizing the wellbeing of instructors and students by fostering supportive learning environments, centering students in academic culture, and preparing instructional teams to lead difficult conversations in our current social and political climate.

Accessible & Inclusive Learning

Enhancing course and material accessibility to foster equitable education.

DTEI Graduate Scholars will receive a $5,000 award, a Partnership in Inclusive Design Certificate, and complete advanced pedagogical training led by Senior Graduate Scholars and DTEI staff. Graduate Scholars will engage with this program for approximately 200 hours throughout the summer: Beginning with an in-person workshop series during the week of July 7th followed by collaborations with faculty on course preparation and learning community meetings. Grad Scholars are expected to participate in UCI Teach Day, which will be held on-campus in mid-September.

Faculty Mentors will receive a Partnership in Inclusive Design Certificate and direct collaborative assistance from at least one Grad Scholar to enhance their courses. Faculty who are accepted into the program are expected to mentor their Grad Scholar(s) by supporting their professional development and helping them prepare for potential future teaching opportunities.

There are two program tracks:

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Individual Application (Track 1):

DTEI Graduate Scholars partner with up to two Faculty Mentors to enhance these faculty members’ courses for the upcoming academic year.

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Departmental Application (Track 2):

Departments/Schools assemble a team of DTEI Graduate Scholars and Faculty Mentors to collaborate on curricular or program goals that may involve a series of courses.

If you’d like to learn more about the history of our program, this year’s themes, and tips for developing a competitive application, please review our Information Session Zoom recording and slides.

How to Apply

We encourage graduate students and faculty to apply to the program – graduate students, to support course development and learning, and faculty, to receive assistance in developing one of their courses and serve as a mentor for a Graduate Scholar. For priority selection, graduate students and faculty should coordinate with each other before applying. Even if a pair has coordinated, both the graduate student and faculty need to submit an “individual application” and indicate their preferred partner. Graduate students and faculty may also apply individually without prior coordination. In addition, a team of faculty and graduate students can submit a single departmental application to collaborate on curricular or program goals that may involve a series of courses.

Eligibility:

All full-time faculty and lecturers are eligible to apply.

Graduate student applicants:

Must be a continuing graduate student (Master’s or Ph.D.) who will have completed at least three quarters of successful graduate coursework at UCI by the end of Spring Quarter 2025.
Must have teaching experience, either as a TA or instructor.
Are preferred to have experience collaborating with faculty on courses or teaching-related projects, pedagogical training through DTEI and/or discipline-specific teaching programs, and expertise with Canvas.
Must receive approval from their Faculty Advisor/Chair.

Graduate student applicants:

Graduate students submitting an individual application need to upload (as part of their application) this supporting letter with a signature from their faculty advisor/thesis chair.

Part of the application will ask the graduate student applicant whether they have coordinated with a faculty member that they would like to work with, and if they have, to list that faculty member or members. All interested faculty mentors need to complete an application as well (see information below). Priority will be given to graduate student/faculty applications coordinated prior to applying, although prior coordination is not required to apply individually. Some graduate students may be selected to work directly with DTEI to support interdisciplinary instructors.

Faculty applicants:

Faculty will be asked to submit a short questionnaire outlining their goals for the summer, whether they have coordinated with any graduate students that they would like to work with, and if they have, to list those graduate students. Due to limited funding, faculty-identified graduate students are not guaranteed acceptance into the program. All interested graduate students need to complete an application as well (see information above). Priority will be given to graduate student/faculty applications coordinated prior to applying, although prior coordination is not required to apply individually.

Departments nominate a team of both graduate students and faculty. Prior to submitting a departmental application form, departments need to do the following:

(1) Identify the department’s instructional/program goals that need DTEI Graduate Scholar support.

(2) Identify one or more faculty members that will help the department meet these goals.

(3) Identify 3–5 prospective Graduate Scholars to work with the faculty team. Note: departments may modify existing summer funding if a graduate student is selected for this program. If this is the case, departments should notify intended graduate student nominees prior to submitting a departmental application.

Only one member of the nominated graduate students/faculty needs to submit a departmental application. Departmental applications must include a supporting letter from the department’s Associate Dean, Department Chair, or Graduate Program Director, detailing the following:

(Required) Supporting letters must confirm that all nominated graduate students are continuing Master’s or Ph.D. students (i.e., not a student entering a graduate program in Summer/Fall of 2025)
(Required) Supporting letters must confirm that all nominated graduate students have support from their faculty advisors/thesis chairs.
(Required) Supporting letters must provide a specific plan for change in courses using assistance from Grad Scholars, including assessment of change.
(Preferred) Supporting letters describe a project which will transition GE courses and/or large-enrollment lower-division major requirements into a hybrid format.
(Preferred) Supporting letters describe how this change is based on COMPASS data or program learning outcomes/program assessment.

Have questions? Please review our Frequently Asked Questions or contact DTEI’s Program Coordinator, Thao Nguyen (thaomn1@uci.edu).