Gradventure campus visits

The Graduate School has a campus-wide program called Gradventure which partners with graduate programs to invite competitive prospective candidates for multi-day, on-campus recruitment events. This program has been shown to be effective in enhancing the quality and diversity of the applicant pool.

Proposals must be submitted by the program director and must include:

  1. Outline of your program’s travel and housing arrangements
  2. A survey of your program’s current marketing efforts
  3. The proposed number of applicants to be brought to campus
  4. A statement that discusses the importance of the recruitment event for enhancing the quality and diversity of the graduate program’s student population
  5. A statement regarding whether or not matching funds will be available from your College or department to contribute to your program's Gradventure
  6. A statement regarding whether or not you plan to coordinate your Gradventure program with other graduate programs
  7. A proposed itinerary for the on-campus event
  8. An estimated budget for the recruitment visit, delineating costs and including the amount, source and email contact for any matching funds
  9. The names and contact information for two faculty coordinators and one graduate student coordinator for your program’s Gradventure

The deadline for submissions for fall 2023 has passed. Please check back for fall 2024 deadlines in summer 2024.

Selection criteria

Criteria for evaluating proposals will include:

  1. Strength and completeness of the recruitment plan
  2. Importance of the recruitment event for enhancing the quality and diversity of the graduate program’s student population
  3. Contribution of the recruitment activity to the Strategic Plan goals of the University
  4. Availability of matching funds from the college, school or department

Matching funds are not obligatory but will increase the competitiveness of the proposal. The maximum award per program will be $5,000. Actual awards will vary depending on program needs and proposal ranking. Awarded funds can be used for travel, lodging and hosting. 

Gradventure