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There is a chance that the proposal to change the name of “educational fees” to “tuition,” which the regents will vote on next week, could undermine the guaranteed fee remission that GSIs currently receive. (For graduate students, educational and registration fees total about $9,000/year.) To learn more about what the language change may mean for graduate student instructors as well as the status of ongoing contract negotiations (the existing contract extension expires on Monday, November 15), attend today’s union meeting. It begins at 4 pm in 88 Dwinelle.

It’s mid-November and time for our final giveaway of the semester, hopefully leaving the lucky winner enough time to use the prize before this school year ends. This week we’re giving away a $55 gift certificate to the RSF. This is enough for a 50-minute massage, but can also be put toward any other product or service the RSF provides.

For a chance to win, leave a comment below letting us know what issue or issues concern you as a member of the UC Berkeley campus community. The giveaway is open to all UC Berkeley students and staff. Only one entry per person. Good luck!

Update: Lucy is our winner. Congratulations! And thank you all for your thoughtful responses. In the future, the Berkeley Graduate will do its best to expand coverage of those issues.

Photo by ehoyer

With the semester at the half-way point, graduate students are sure to need a boost — to study for that midterm or get started on that final paper — so we’re returning to caffeine for this week’s giveaway. Leave a comment below for a chance to win a $15 gift certificate to Yali’s Cafe. In your comment please let us know something in the East Bay you wish you would have discovered sooner in your grad school tenure. Two things that spring to mind for me are Bakesale Betty in Temescal and Lake Merritt. A favorite spot in Berkeley is Cesar Chavez Park by the Berkeley Marina; I’ve been going there since my first year, but never get tired of it.

As usual, the giveaway is open to all UC Berkeley students and staff. A winner will be selected at random next Monday, October 18.

Update: Teo is our winner! Also, this feature will be taking a short hiatus. Please check back in November for the next giveaway.

Thanks for all the helpful comments about what you’d like to see on the blog. These excellent ideas seem to fall into four general categories.

1. There was a lot of support for providing information on things to do or places to go for rest and relaxation, preferably stuff that is close by and cheap.

2. You had many great suggestions about ways the blog could help graduate students get the most out of their time on campus, from learning how to maximize Berkeley’s many resources to finding fellowships and jobs to managing stress and navigating oral exams to hearing how others have felt at similar stages in their graduate career.

3. Keeping people up-to-date on and informed about the Graduate Assembly’s work.

4. Finally, getting to know graduate students — both on a personal level and in terms of their academic interests and accomplishments — in other fields or departments.

Comments are now closed on the post that generated all this feedback. The discussion doesn’t have to end there, however. Please leave any additional comments below or if you have a specific idea that you’d like to write about or see written about please email me at berkeleygraduate@ga.berkeley.edu. Thanks again!

This week’s giveaway is a $25 gift certificate for the campus bookstore. You can use it in any part of the store, so it’s good at the Scholar’s Workstation, for textbooks, for Cal gear, or for other supplies. Take your pick!

For a chance to win, please leave a comment below letting us know what you’d like to read about on the Berkeley Graduate. We’re looking for new ideas and want your input! All UC Berkeley students and staff are eligible to enter and one winner will be chosen at random next Monday, October 11.

Update: Josh Abramson is our winner. Thank you for all the great suggestions!

Photo by Mr. T in DC

Fall officially began last week only to be followed by a sweltering heat wave. In honor of these unusually warm temperatures, this week’s giveaway is a $15 gift certificate to Yogurtland, the frozen yogurt shop at the corner of Bancroft and Telegraph. Whether you’re already a yogurt devotee or curious what all the fuss is about, you’ll easily satisfy your craving for something sweet and cold here and with the self-serve yogurt and toppings only 30 cents an ounce you can treat your friends as well!

For a chance to win, please leave a comment below letting us know your favorite Bay Area place for frozen treats. (Ice-cream lovers, you should by no means feel limited to frozen yogurt.) This giveaway is open to all UC Berkeley students and staff. A winner will be chosen at random on Monday, October 4.

Update: Anna is our winner!

By Allan Ferguson

This week’s giveaway is a $25 gift certificate to Trader Joe’s. As of this June, there’s a store conveniently located within walking distance of campus. Because I end up there at least once a week now, I’ve had a chance to peruse the shelves more closely, which is how I discovered my new favorite snack: the dark chocolate almonds sprinkled with turbinado sugar and sea salt. If you have both a sweet tooth and a salt tooth, these are addicting.

For a chance to win, leave a comment (with a grocery shopping tip – e.g., your strategy for finding the fasting moving line – or favorite item) below. The giveaway is open to all UC Berkeley students and staff. A winner will be selected at random on Monday. Only one entry per person please.

Update: A is our winner. Congratulations! Visit us again on Wednesday to enter our next giveaway.

View Coffee shops in a larger map

Wow! After more than 6 years as a Berkeley student, I thought I knew the Berkeley coffee scene pretty well. Turns out I’m a novice. Fortunately, working my way through your favorite coffee shops will be a welcome task. If your favorite place is still missing from this list, please let me know in the comments.

Thanks to everyone who left comments. I used a random number generator to select a winner. Congratulations to Nick, commenter number 12! Don’t be discouraged if you didn’t win this time. I’ll be announcing a new giveaway on Wednesday – please stop by then and try your luck again.

Photo by dotpolka

The Berkeley Graduate has some good news to share: once a week for the next six weeks, we’ll be giving away a gift certificate to a business on or around campus!

First up, a $15 dollar gift certificate good at Caffe Strada and the Free Speech Movement Cafe. What graduate student couldn’t use a coffee or snack break? Both make a mean cup of coffee. And Strada is where I first learned that I enjoy danishes, while lately the brownies keep drawing me back to FSM.

To enter, please leave a comment on this post telling us your favorite local coffee shop. One entry per person please; duplicate entries will be deleted. The winner will be selected at random next week. The giveaway is open to all UC Berkeley students and staff. The winner will need to show a UC Berkeley ID when claiming his or her prize at the Graduate Assembly. Good luck!

Update: Nick is our winner! Thanks for playing.

Where did the summer go? Suddenly it’s the end of August, the fall semester has officially begun, new graduate student orientations will take place this Tuesday and Wednesday, and classes start on Thursday. Since there’s no easing back into school, you might consider diving into some of the workshops that will be offered over the next few weeks.

This Tuesday, August 24, from 5:00 – 6:30 pm Career Services is offering a workshop on “Nailing the Job Talk” in 166 Barrows Hall. Start preparing early for the on-campus interview you’ll hopefully land later this job cycle. Pre-registration is recommended.

For a more thorough introduction to the job search process consider attending Andrew Green’s “Academic Job Search in the Humanities and Social Sciences” series, beginning September 2. Over three sessions, Dr. Green will cover understanding the process and finding job announcements, preparing your application materials, and interviews, job talks, and negotiating the offer. This series takes place Thursday evenings (9/2, 9/9, and 9/16) from 5:00 – 6:30 pm in room 104 at the Career Center, which is located at 2111 Bancroft Way. Again, pre-registration is recommended.

On a lighter note, you can explore Berkeley and enjoy live music during the Downtown Berkeley MusicFest, which runs from August 20 – 29, with bands of all stripes playing at different venues around town. No matter what your musical taste, you’re sure to find something in the schedule that appeals.