Week helps grad students

When Joe Link first came to IU four years ago, he remembered feeling anxious, physically and financially overwhelmed and unconnected to the University. He was taking on multiple roles, acting as both student and instructor. \nLike many graduate students, Link, a doctoral candidate in history and the philosophy of education, was stressed. To address these issues, common to many graduate students, the Graduate Professional Student Organization will be offering a week of events starting Monday, titled "Graduate Survival Week." \nThe first-ever series of lectures and social functions begins with a presentation on debt management techniques, and will be followed by lectures on stress, relationships and diversity and a mixer held at the Jungle Room Bar & Grill.\n"Indiana is a great place for graduate education, but sometimes topics about surviving graduate school are not addressed in the normal course of education," said Eric Zeemering, a GPSO moderator and fifth-year doctoral political science candidate. "An important part of what we do is to provide programming for professional and graduate students on topics relevant to their lives that they may not receive through other sources through the University."\nDennis Crowe, assistant vice president of consumer lending for the IU Credit Union and a presenter at Monday's lecture on debt management, said he plans to offer tips on managing credit card debts and repaying student loans through the emphasis of fiscal responsibility. \n"I try to bring realistic, down to earth, 'this is life' situations," he said. "If you graduate (and) you start out making 60, 70, 80 thousand, that's fine and good, (but) don't overspend your earning capacity."\nOther events focus on the mental and psychological needs of graduate students. \nChris Meno, a psychologist and outreach coordinator with IU's Counseling and Psychological Services, said her presentation Tuesday will offer solutions to the commonly-discussed problems of anxiety and loneliness that plague graduate students.\n"I think many graduate students, in some point in their career, feel overwhelmed," she said. "It's very easy to let your academic load take over your life so that you no longer make time to exercise, to eat well, to spend time with friends. \n"I think the number one thing is to create a balance between their coursework and their life," she said. \nLink acknowledges the programs cannot eliminate hardships, but he says it can help unite graduate students. \n"Even if we can't solve problems," he said, "the message is there that other people are there and sympathetic"