In partnership with the Jimmy A. Payne Foundation, the Southern Miss Graduate School is thrilled to offer competitive Dissertation Completion Grants for the 2026-2027 academic year. These awards are intended to reduce the burden of dissertation-related expenses for students while helping to decrease students’ time to degree.

To be considered for a Dissertation Completion Grant, students must have achieved the status of “doctoral candidate,” which necessitates completing all required graduate coursework, obtaining a passing score on one’s doctoral comprehensive examinations, and successfully defending a doctoral project proposal or dissertation prospectus. Students must be enrolled full-time and be in good academic standing with the Southern Miss Graduate School. Students must also commit to completing their dissertations and all degree requirements by the summer 2027 term. Applicants may request up to $2,000 to be used within the final year of their doctoral program. This initiative is open to students in all doctoral programs at Southern Miss.

Each semester, USM Graduate students have the opportunity to apply for the Spring 2027 Graduate Competitive Travel Award. The funds may be used to support graduate student participation in a virtual or in-person professional conference, exhibition, or other appropriate venue for purposes of presenting research or other forms of creative work in conjunction with a student’s program of study. Applicants may request up to $500 to be used for virtual conference registration fees or domestic travel or up to $1000 for approved international travel.

The Proposal Project aims to strengthen grant-writing skills of graduate students through training and practice and increase the number of externally-funded fellowships and traineeships awarded to graduate students at Southern Miss. Grant-writing workshops will be held providing training to enable students to identify potential funding sources, to prepare competitive proposals, and to navigate the submission process.

The Southern Miss Graduate School, in partnership with the Center for Faculty Development, is offering a Graduate Faculty Mentor Training Program during the 2026–2027 academic year. This program, led by experienced faculty trained through CIMER, will provide practical guidance on effective mentoring, addressing disparities, and building strong mentor–mentee relationships. Faculty interested in enhancing their mentorship skills are encouraged to register.

The Graduate School facilitates four Coordinator Workshops throughout the academic year. The sessions are facilitated by current Southern Miss graduate faculty or Graduate School staff and concentrate on creating successful mentoring approaches, fostering strong connections, utilizing faculty and student resources, and equipping mentors with strategies to resolve conflicts.  Graduate coordinators and mentors can gain integral knowledge and abilities for developing an effective and meaningful mentoring program that benefits graduate students' academic and professional growth.

International Admissions
Wednesday, September 9, 2026 | 12:00pm to 1:00pm | JB George 142

Graduate School Updates and Q&A
Wednesday, October 28, 2026 | 12:00pm to 1:00pm | JB George 142

This is an in-person mentoring workshop designed to help new and continuing faculty sharpen their skills as effective and positive mentors in their work with graduate students. The workshop will be roundtable discussions of case studies of realistic interactions between graduate mentors and students. For new faculty, this workshop will also satisfy the mentorship training requirement to receive graduate faculty status. 

Hattiesburg Lunch and Learn Workshop
Wednesday, October 7, 2026 | 12:00pm to 2:00pm | Library Gallery 209A

The purpose of the Graduate Student Senate (GSS) is to provide the student perspective to the dean of the Graduate School who serves as its official adviser. It is a voice for all graduate students and an advocate for their concerns and ideas concerning graduate education and graduate students at The University of Southern Mississippi. The voting membership of the Graduate Student Senate is composed of one representative per school and one representative per college, nominated by the program or school director. Nominations for the upcoming academic year are solicited during the summer semester.

Graduate Student Senate

The Graduate School is accepting nominations for the Graduate Mentor of the Year Award! The Graduate Mentor of the Year Award recognizes an exemplary faculty member for outstanding graduate student mentorship that produces successful graduates who display competence, confidence, professionalism, and independence.

Mentorship characteristics that will be evaluated include:

• Being accessible and approachable to their students while modeling professionalism.
• Setting and communicating clear expectations and holding students to high standards of performance.
• Providing guidance on students' research/creative projects and monitoring their academic progress.
• Encouraging and helping students establish their own records of scholarship or performance by supporting travel to professional meetings and conferences; submitting articles or creative works for publication or exhibition; encouraging networking with professional colleagues.
• Supporting students' professional development broadly

Required Documents

1. Nomination Form completed by a current graduate student.
2. Letter from the nominator addressing the attributes listed above.
3. Two additional letters of recommendation, (a) one from a former or current student, and (b) one from the school director or faculty colleague.

The winner will receive a cash award and a commemorative plaque which will be presented at the Graduate Research Symposium awards luncheon on Thursday, April 15, 2027.

On Friday, August 14, 2026, new teaching assistants will attend the morning session of the New Faculty and Teaching Assistant Orientation from 8:00am to 12:00pm. Following the morning session, teaching assistants will have lunch and attend afternoon sessions from 12:00pm to 4:30pm.

Professionals in Preparation is a professional development program designed to help students improve their transferable skills (leadership, effective communication, problem solving, management, etc.) making them more marketable and effective in an increasingly competitive job market. The two-semester program consists of:

• Monthly seminars and workshops
• Mentorship training 
• Participation in communication competitions

Each fall and spring term, the Graduate School hosts a Doctoral Project, Thesis, and Dissertation Bootcamp. See the “Graduate Research and Writing” page for more information and registration. 

The Susan A. Siltanen Graduate Student Research Symposium will be held on Thursday, April 15, 2027 from 10:00am-11:30am in the Thad Cochran Center (2nd Floor). Winners will be announced during the Awards Luncheon in the Thad Cochran Ballroom from 12:00pm-1:00pm.

The symposium provides graduate students with an opportunity to present their research to faculty, staff and students in a friendly competitive environment through oral and poster presentations. The symposium aims to enhance the scholarly environment and highlight the creative and innovative research conducted by Southern Miss graduate students. 

The Graduate School's annual Three Minute Thesis Competition will be held at the Joe Paul Theater on November 11-12, 2026. The Three Minute Thesis (3MT®) is an academic research communication competition developed by the University of Queensland in Australia.

3MT participants are asked to describe their thesis or dissertation in a three-minute presentation, clearly conveying the complexities of their topic and research to a nonacademic audience. The competition provides an excellent opportunity for students to hone their 30-second elevator pitch and win monetary prizes while doing so. 3MT is open to all graduate students, and students enrolled in 100% online programs can participate virtually.