Research at an r1 Status University:
Erin Fields: Alright, well hello and happy time zones to those listening, no matter where you may be!
Welcome to the Summit Ahead, a podcast for future graduate students, brought to you by the West Virginia University Office of Graduate Admissions.
I am your host, Erin Fields, and I invite you to join me over the course of this show’s season as I chat with higher education professionals at West Virginia University who will be giving their best tips, tricks, and insights on topics important to consider when applying for graduate school.
On today’s episode, I am bringing on Dr. Fred King, Vice President for Research at West Virginia University, who will be chatting about WVU’s R1 status and how that impacts you as a graduate student. So let’s get this one rolling! We’ve got tons of valuable information for you to learn about today.
So yo, welcome to the show, Dr. King! So hype to have you on and chatting with me about graduate education. How about we start with you telling us a little bit about yourself: your position at the university, your personal research interests maybe, or your career.
Dr. Fred King: Sure, thanks, Erin! I’m currently the Vice President for Research at West Virginia University. So my area of responsibility is really overseeing the full research enterprise. One of the reasons I’m excited about being here today is that it’s really the graduate students that drive that research enterprise at West Virginia University. They are the folks who do the front-line work, the scholarship, the research in the labs, the creative activity in our studios, and things of that nature.
By way of background, I am a chemist by training. I came to West Virginia University in 1990 as an assistant professor in the department of chemistry, and then in 1998 I transferred positions a bit and went to the office of the dean of the college of arts and sciences, where I served as an associate dean for research. And then in 2012, I moved into my current position as Vice President for Research at the university. When I was in the college of arts and sciences, graduate education was a real focus of mine, both through my time in the department of chemistry, where I was the director of graduate studies and then in the dean’s office, where part of being the associate dean for research, you’ve also got the graduate education piece.
From my perspective, the opportunities that are afforded to students in graduate school are unique. They are the kinds of things that change your trajectory in life and really shape your future. One of the most important decisions anyone makes is where you go to graduate school and who you go to work for. In terms of life decisions, that’s up there with who you marry in my book.
Erin Fields: That’s so funny that you put it like that, it’s very true, it’s as important as who you marry. In 2016, Carnegie released an initial assessment of higher education institutions, which I read in WVU Today. Initially, WVU secured placement as what is known as an R1 institution. Very recently, WVU was reclassified as an R1 institution, just about two months ago. Could you go into more detail about what exactly that means to be R1 and why that’s important?
Dr. Fred King: Sure. We’ll start with the Carnegie Foundation for Higher Education, going back in time, to the ‘70s. What they really look at is they look at national policy around higher education. So they ran into a challenge when they were thinking about policies around higher education, they realized that there is a range of types of higher education institutions. They set about trying to classify those institutions so that when they were trying to talk about their class they were on point. The reality is, that West Virginia University as a public, liberal arts land grant university, is vastly different from a four-year college. So Carnegie recognized that. And this R1 classification is about being a doctoral institution, in which you graduate twenty or more Ph.D.s in a given year, and it goes with your level of research engagement.
R1 is the highest level of research engagement. There are 146 R1 universities in the United States. Those are places you think of when you think of major universities, very large universities. Whether it’s West Virginia University, the University of Wisconsin, Cal Berkley, or things like that. What it really means though is that at the university, we’re highly engaged in graduate education. One of the primary metrics for the R1 designation is the number of grad students you have at the university, and also how those graduate students are dispersed across the different areas.
I mentioned earlier that WVU is a public land grant. Among public land grants with the R1 classification, there are really only about four other universities that are similar to us. It's places like Louisiana State University, like Mississippi State University. And it really goes to our mission. At the university, we really cover all of the academic areas, ranging from the fine arts, to the liberal arts, into engineering and agriculture, and all the way over into the health sciences and law. We cover everything from what I think of as Liberal Arts areas all the way over to the professional areas. And you can get graduate degrees in all of those areas. Sometimes it’s a Master’s degree, sometimes it’s a Ph.D. degree, and sometimes it’s a more specific type of graduate degree like an MBA in the school of business.
The whole point is that they really base it is on you as a student, the faculty you work with, and how you are engaged in scholarship at the cutting edge of your discipline. You're out there creating new knowledge. You’re looking at what has been discovered, and you’re making your own discoveries. Whether you’re trying to understand the human experience, you’re trying to understand how the galaxies form, things of that nature. This is really what graduate education is about. And it’s also training you to be a professional so that when you complete your graduate work, you’re going to go out and be a leading scholar in your area, and you will be at the forefront of the next generation of people who are discovering great new ideas and changing and shaping the world.
Erin Fields: That holds a whole lot of weight to it for sure! You said there are about 146 R1 institutions around the country, but there is only one in West Virginia, right?
Dr. Fred King: That is correct, we are West Virginia’s R1, public flagship land grant university.
Erin Fields: Are there any other major differences between an R1 and an R2 when you’re considering going to graduate school? Is it really that much of a big difference?
Dr. Fred King: It’s a really big difference because the R2s tend to be smaller, they may not have as many graduate programs, and their faculties may be smaller. Their level of engagement in research will not be the same. I mentioned that one of the metrics Carnegie uses is the number of Ph.Ds. that you’re graduating. The other important metric that Carnegie uses is your research expenditures. That reflects the institution’s ability to garner external support for its research.
For graduate students, that’s incredibly important, because most graduate students, in one way or another, are supported by those external funds. Sometimes that may be coming in the form of a tuition waiver or a scholarship, but in some areas, you might have a stipend that completely covers your whole time in graduate school. So basically, your tuition is covered, you get a stipend onto which to live so you can pay for your housing and food, things of that nature, and then you’re developing your skills as a professional. I know that when I looked at it, I thought, “Wow! They will pay me to go to graduate school, that’s a great deal, how can I turn that down!”. That kind of experience is one that you only really get at an R1 institution.
Erin Fields: Right. People tend to think of it just as “Okay, this is R1, so this is how it can benefit me academically.” But really outside of the classroom it also affects you, and how you are able to use those resources as well.
Dr. Fred King: Exactly. And it shapes your career because when people see that you got your graduate degree from West Virginia University, it’s like a Good Housekeeping seal of approval. They know that you came out of a high-quality institution, you have the skills, you have the background where you can take on projects and really be the master of your own destiny. You contribute greatly to whoever you’re working for.
Erin Fields: For sure. Due to that classification, it cannot be denied, that there is a whole lot of opportunity for students here at WVU to explore the research that specifically interests them and to really expand upon that as well. With that, would you say that WVU is more of a competitive environment when it comes to research, or is it more of a collaborative environment?
Dr. Fred King: I think it’s very much a collaborative environment. The most successful research programs are team efforts. At West Virginia University, when we think about graduate education, the thing I always push is that it’s collaborative. What that means is that you have faculty and you have graduate students, but they’re really just at different points in their career trajectory. And so we tend to view graduate students as our junior colleagues: people who are working with us and have as much right to contribute to the project as anyone.
I know from my personal experience, I learned as much from my graduate students as they learned from me. So for me, it’s a team sport. You don’t win if you're not playing as a team. And you don’t come to a great R1 institution if you’re not playing as a team.
Erin Fields: That’s right. When it’s a competitive environment I feel a lot of times that graduate students are seen as under the employees and so that’s great to hear that you personally love to think of graduate students as not necessarily on the same level, but you learn from each other, and I think that’s really important. I remember I talked to a graduate student who really loved that collaborative environment, and that was actually a huge reason about why he came here because he was pursuing a Ph.D. in neuroscience, but he was also able to carry out a lot of his research in partnership with the psychology department on campus.
Dr. Fred King: I think it really comes down to when you think about President Gee, and how much he loves to interact with people and how much he cares about students, I think you see that level of care and commitment all the way down through the faculty and staff of the university.
Erin Fields: For sure. How would you say that the community benefits from the research being done right here at WVU?
Dr. Fred King: At West Virginia University, we really try to focus on research that makes a difference and has an impact. Now as West Virginia’s land grant, we also have a mission where we need to serve the state. A lot of the projects we engage in, in one way or another, are trying to address challenges that the state faces, solve problems for the state, and also train the future workforce for the state of West Virginia.
Throughout the pandemic, I think the university has been at the forefront of helping the state as a whole deal with the pandemic. Whether we’re talking about healthcare that goes on at the WVU medicine system, whether we talk about some of the testings that go on in the labs, about how to identify different strains of COVID, or thinking about new treatment options in our school of medicine, things of that nature, and certainly our school of pharmacy, which has been heavily engaged in the whole vaccination project for the state.
But you find a lot of work too in other areas. We have a very interesting project around acid mining drainage, which is a significant problem in West Virginia. What our researchers have discovered is that we can take acid mined drainage and extract from that acid mined drainage rare earthed elements. And those elements are really the central components of a lot of technology we rely on today as a society. So because of that, these elements also are highly valuable. Right now, we’re looking at whether or not we can take acid-mined drainage, mine the elements, and then use the revenue generated from that to improve our treatment of the environment in the state.
We have a huge effort toward water quality and thinking about how we can address the needs of the state in that area, whether it’s thinking about sanitation systems, sewer systems, things like that, or how we provide fresh drinking water for the citizens of the state. We tend to think very much about our responsibility as researchers, and how the work that we do can help other people and improve their lives. And I think again, that's something that President Gee certainly makes clear from the top, that that’s an important part of our mission.
Erin Fields: I love that. And I love how engrained the university is with the Morgantown community and the state and I think that makes our colleges and our university very respected within the state. It’s just very awesome to be able to see our university directly impact people like that, for sure. What would you say are a few of your personal favorite research projects going on or that have gone on in the past, here at the university?
Dr. Fred King: I have a lot! Besides the water quality and the work that we’ve done with COVID, I think that we have a world-class group in the area of neurosciences at the Rockefeller Neurosciences institute. The kinds of things they're doing there, when you think about the lives of patients, whether they’re dealing with addiction, stroke, neurological diseases. The things that they’re doing there and in developing therapies, will transform the lives of those people, and help them have a much higher quality of life than they otherwise would.
And then I go to the other end of the spectrum, to our folks in astrophysics. They are internationally recognized for their work around pulsars and for using pulsars as a technique to look for gravitational waves. What they’re really working on is understanding the most fundamental processes that lead to the creation of the universe. And they make use of the Green Bank telescope, which is located in Green Bank, West Virginia in scenic Pocahontas county, and it’s really cool to think about how when people worked in that area of astrophysics, they could be around the world but they know that at West Virginia University, we have some of the world’s leaders in that particular area.
We've always been strong when it comes to research around energy. We’re right now pivoting, our focus has always been on fossil energy, but we’re pivoting and looking towards the future, and we’re looking at green and sustainable forms of energy. So we have researchers who know the energy world very well, from science to engineering to police and legal issues, and they’re working collectively to think about, “What does the future of energy look like, and how does West Virginia be a part of that future?”. Particularly when we think about green technology and things like that. And that ties back somewhat into the rare earth elements question as well.
Erin Fields: Right. So there are a lot of different avenues that students can take. I would even go as far as to say that they can really take their interests and cut their own path, here at WVU.
Dr. Fred King: They can. And the scientist in me goes straight to the technical examples, but that’s not fair because we have tremendous work going on over in the agriculture school in thinking about how we can help small, rural farmers remain competitive, and things like that. We have folks over in creative arts who are exploring digital approaches to creating art. And in the areas of sustainability, we have folks working on how to solve the problem of food deserts, which is a real problem in rural areas. We have some folks in the department of English and their area is around economic, and environmental literature, so thinking about the impacts that society has had and how you improve that, of course, their approach and their lens for that is literary. So that’s cool I think.
Erin Fields: I just love how many different projects are going on here all of the time and how talented and driven our students are, it amazes me.
Dr. Fred King: I could spend days going through them all. But for me, the faculty gets the students started, but what’s really accomplished at the end of the day is what the students accomplish. And I go back to the graduate students who really make the research enterprise hum at the university.
Erin Fields: What advice would you have for a student interested in pursuing a research-intensive program here at WVU?
Dr. Fred King: One of the things I tell people about graduate education is that, unlike undergraduate education, it’s much more about the department you’re in and the faculty you choose to work with. You need to explore and look at who’s on the faculty here that you could see yourself working with. Do they have interests that match your interests around research and scholarship? Have graduates of that program gone out and taken jobs that would mirror what you would see yourself doing once you complete your graduate program? So from my perspective, there are plenty of choices, but you really want to think that through, and at the end of the day it’s really about what you feel comfortable doing and what you want to achieve as you go forward, and then fiding the faculty member here that’s a match.
Erin Fields: So in finding that faculty member, a question I get a lot with working in graduate admissions is when do you think a student should start connecting with or contacting that faculty member, or even start looking at who they want to work with?
Dr. Fred King: It’s challenging because in many ways graduate education is not something that most folks know about or have thought about. I know when I was an undergraduate it was a mystery to me and I just happened upon it. One of the things that I did do was I knew what area I wanted to study. So then I started looking for faculty who were working in that area. Then you want to reach out to them no later than the Fall of your senior year and start making that connection, getting to know them, and figuring out what they do in their research day-to-day.
One of the things you'll find out is maybe what’s published on the website was published last year. You want to find out what’s happening this year and what’s going to happen for the next four years as you go to graduate school. So reach out and see if you can set a time and talk with a faculty member. Share what you’re interests are, and see what their interests are. I think through that process you get a sense of who you would feel comfortable working with for the next four years and having as your advisor and mentor.
Erin Fields: On the last episode, I was actually talking about fellowships with someone in the provost’s office, and how you need to be nominated for those, and how that carries the stigma of “You can’t reach out to faculty members and tell them that you’re interested in this”, and just how important it really is to build those connections with faculty members.
Dr. Fred King: Absolutely. Because everyone is different. Every faculty member is different in the way that they think of fellowships, and their philosophies are different. There’s no right or wrong, it’s just a question of the match. I go back to my earlier point about who you’re going to marry. In a way, it’s like that when you choose your faculty member. You want to make sure that this is the right relationship, that this is the right match for you and your personality and interests.
Erin Fields: Right, well it’s a big time commitment and not only time but also emotionally, mentally. It’s a big commitment overall.
Dr. Fred King: It is, and I think you go through a huge transformation in graduate school, where you’re really moving from being the student to being the professional. And then you’re ready to go out and make your mark in the world.
Erin Fields: For sure. Well, thank you so much, Dr. King, for sharing your insights and knowledge with us on the show, discussing the importance of being an R1 institution, and all that.
Today’s episode was brought to you by the West Virginia University office of graduate admissions. For more information about graduate education at West Virginia University, please visit our website at www.graduateadmissions.wvu.edu. If you’ve enjoyed or found value in anything you heard today, we recommend you leave a review on your favorite listening platform, follow us on social media, and subscribe to be notified of our new episodes coming out once a month.
Thanks for listening, and until next time, let’s go Mountaineers!
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