Harless is president of the Graduate Students Association.
By Charles Harless
“California’s future strength depends on investing
now in graduate education.”
Recently, the University of California Commission on the Growth
and Support of Graduate Education made this statement in the
Innovation and Prosperity at Risk report. The regents will be
discussing the UC budget at their meeting this week (Jan. 16 and
17) and must consider the importance of graduate education when
analyzing it.
Graduate education at the UC has been declining in recent years
due to various factors. For example, the UC is losing excellent
students to other institutions because they are being offered
better support packages. In November 1999, the California Council
on Science and Technology stated, “California is falling
behind competing high-tech states in terms of the quantity of
inputs in the academic scientific process.”
These inputs are what the UC has largely contributed to, and
what California has benefited from in the past. They included key
players in electronics, communications, community leadership and
biotechnology ““ all of which have had a large impact on the
economy of the state of California.
The economy is currently in a recession and state budgets are
potentially being cut. It is at times like this that we must invest
in our future, including graduate education. Professional jobs have
increased over 60 percent in the past 15 years and this increase is
not slowing down. Not only do graduate students fill these niches,
they also provide new faculty which California will need ““
40,000 by 2010, specifically.
At UCLA, the Graduate Students Association has been following
the budget process as well as the future of graduate education in
the UC. The recent report of the Commission on the Growth and
Support of Graduate Education suggests various means of increasing
graduate student support as well as improving graduate
education.
Not all of these proposals impact the UC budget, but several
require lobbying for increased federal and state grants, the
creation of industry internships, and the creation of endowments to
increase funding.
The UC budget should address this report by providing funding
for pursuing these activities as well as providing its own graduate
student support packages.
Other means of improving graduate education should be considered
while looking at the UC budget. However, increasing student fees
and non-resident tuition should not be an option.
Non-residents, including international students, play a vital
role in the UC, graduate education and California’s future.
Many choose to stay in California and contribute to the state
economy. California’s future involves international concerns.
By educating people here, they then become the future leaders who
in turn help support the future direction of California.
Another aspect of graduate education that should be considered
at budget time includes internal prioritization of graduate
education. The UC should consider graduate education in all its
allocations. By simply asking how graduate students can benefit
from this, the UC will improve graduate education.
The last consideration for the regents should be how to make the
UC campuses the best environment for graduate students. This can be
accomplished by resisting budget cuts to graduate divisions and
encouraging all departments and student services to make graduate
students a priority population.
When considering budget changes, the regents carry a lot of
power and responsibility ““ and they must consider that,
although graduate students make up a small proportion of the entire
UC population, they have a significant role at many different
levels at the UC and in the state of California.
All budget allocations must consider that the future of the UC
and the state lies in the hands of its graduate students, they
should receive the attention they need.