Jillian’s work, written with former graduate student, Brian Mc-
Carthy, was published in the Journal of Chemical Education and
introduce a graduate-level course, now featured in the Caroli-
na Chemistry curriculum, focused on writing original research
proposals to address the uneven preparation in technical writ-
ing of new chemistry graduate students. The general course
structure features extensive group discussions, small-group
activities, and regular in-class small-group peer review.
Since the introduction of this course, it has been found by stu-
dent surveys, faculty feedback, and student success in winning
graduate fellowships, that the course is a valuable graduate
Graduate Fellows will be provided with structured mentoring,
professional development opportunities, and travel funds to at-
tend conferences to present their research and network.
“The attrition of women in chemistry pursuing academic ca-
reers is startling, and research has shown that lack of both
mentoring and female role models are major factors influenc-
ing women’s departure from the tenure track,” says Jillian. “At
UNC, we have done a great job recruiting women to our gradu-
ate program in chemistry a