International Student Mentor Committee

Mentors serve a vital role in graduate education and acclimation to a new culture in preparation for the next generation of intellectual leaders

Mission Statement

International students experience a set of unique challenges in their graduate programs.  The GES mentoring committee is charged with assisting international students, particularly with challenges related to:

  • Administrative complexities of moving to the US, for example: visa, housing, driver license etc.
  • Administrative complexities associated with settling in the US, for example: taxes, green card, travel, health insurance etc.
  • Cultural challenges associated with adjusting to the US. For example: US academic culture and nuance in hierarchy and communication difficulties. 

Method: 

The team will interact with students both actively, through periodic emails,  and passively, through the department website where the committee’s mission statement and contacts will be available. The team will often provide assistance through referencing to resources outside the department and will act to  preserve institutional memory about:

In addition, the committee members and interested students will meet once a year to discuss main experiences and learnings, as well as means to improve the team’s work.

Committee Members

gesmente@pitt.edu