Sub ‐ Group Meetings - patrick-shamberger/PHATE_Lab_Handbook GitHub Wiki

Sub-group meetings are an important part of maintaining clear communication with your PI as well as tracking progess and setting goals on your research.

Establishing the sub-group meeting:

  • Sub-group meetings are biweekly and scheduled at the beginning of each term (Spring, Summer, Fall).
  • Sub-group meetings include all participants in your project, gradute and undergradute (if available) students.
  • Plan for meetings to be in-person unless otherwise specified.
  • Sub-group meetings with one to three members will take place in Dr. Shamberger's office (RDMC 227).
  • Sub-group meetings with more than three members will need to reserve a conference room. On floor 2 of RDMC there are four conference rooms, RDMC 201F, 208 (large room), 229, & 241.

Meeting Preparation:

  • Review your previous meeting notes, if applicable.
  • Collect and organize data and results as well as supplemental materials if needed, such as research papers being used for reference.
  • Prepare a presentation to share data and images with Dr. Shamberger. Include previous presentations to give updates, if applicable, the current state of your project, and where you are headed next in your research plan. Also, include any questions you may have come across.
  • Prepare a rough agenda of topics you want to focus on in the meeting.

Meeting:

  • Start with the agenda for the meeting. Share with Dr. Shamberger the main topics you would like to speak on for that meeting.
  • Share updates made since the last sub-group meeting. Include a recap of goals assigned and your progress and/or completion of them.
  • Present findings, including data and images!
  • Keep notes of comments and questions said or asked by group members and by Dr. Shamberger.
  • Leave the meeting with goals for the next. What are the next steps forward? Are there items you need to go back and take a more in-depth look at? Does the current method need to be scraped and a new one implemented?

Additional Notes:

  • If a meeting gets cancelled or rescheduled, but you have an urgent question/issue, utilize the group's Slack!
  • Not all topics will get their time in the lime light at your sub-group meeting. Make sure that you start with the most important and if any are not brought up, include them on the agenda for the next meeting.
  • Questions are good! As a graduate student, questions are expected and encouraged to help you grow as a researcher. That being said, questions that you bring to your PI should be researched before hand by you. Share your idea for the answer so your PI can encourage you down that path or redirect you if needed. Do not come empty handed, expecting your PI to drop the book of all knowledge in your lap. You have Google for that...
  • Sub-group meetings are not just for reporting research progress. They also serve as opportunities for learning, growth, and building a stronger working relationship with your fellow group members and your PI!