Linguistics Doctoral Student Elias Ponvert
In fall 2009 I mentored Emily Williams, a junior dual-major in French and Linguistics. Emily was interested in graduate school, but unsure about what that entailed and whether that was the right career path for her. The IE program gave me the opportunity to give a potential future grad student some of the feedback and advice I wish I'd gotten when I was an undergrad. This proved to be valuable for Emily and a rewarding experience for us both. Emily now has a much richer understanding of the graduate life, its challenges as well as its rewards, and the tools to get into and succeed in graduate school and beyond. Working with Emily, I gained experience mentoring, which will be helpful in when I am advising and managing in the future, as well as a useful perspective on the undergraduate experience.
The IE Pre-Grad mentor program is unique and of enormous value to UT's educational mission. There simply isn't a similar opportunity for undergraduates or graduate students to receive the experiences and insight this program affords.