Loving the Libraries!

Gerry Martini

As a grad student, you will not only conduct research, but you will frantically search for your sources, whether those sources are books on 19th century Talmudic commentaries, articles on Puerto Rican feminist punk music, or photographs of Minoan wall paintings. The good news is that you can find everything in New York. The bad news is that you won’t necessarily find it as quickly as you want.

If you’ve already visited the Graduate Center, you probably noticed that Mina Rees Library seems pretty small for a university library. It is. However, through the Mina Rees Library you have access to all of the materials at all CUNY libraries and a large number of libraries across the United States. Through CLICS, you can request books from all other CUNY libraries and have them delivered to you at the GC. And if that isn’t enough, you can request articles, chapters, and books from other university libraries through the Interlibrary Loan program.

Another important research tool is the New York Public Library. The NYPL includes the Stephan A. Schwarzman research center (conveniently only eight blocks from the GC), the Science, Industry and Business Library (conveniently right behind the GC), and all of the local branches (convenience levels vary). To access the NYPL, you’ll need an NYPL card. If you live in New York, all you’ll need to do is present proof of residency (bank statement, photo identification, etc.). If you have the misfortune to live outside of New York, you’ll still be able to get a card through your affiliation with CUNY.

There are also lots of private libraries in New York, which thankfully have their collections linked to WorldCat. These include museums such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Morgan Library and Museum, as well as organizations such as the American Numismatic Society. Access varies, but your search might be well rewarded if you look off the beaten track.

Blogging with CUNY Commons

Marisa Panzani

We’d like to take the time to encourage you to join the CUNY Commons (the site that is hosting this blog.)  As soon as you have registered for classes in August, you will be assigned an @gc.cuny.edu email address which will allow you to join the Commons and either become a contributor to an existing blog or group or begin your own blog or student group.  Before then, you can read most pages and comment on some.

Interested in why you should blog?  Take a look at From Tweet to Blog Post to Peer-Reviewed Article: How to be a Scholar Now by GC’s own Jessie Daniels or take a look at The Virtues of Blogging as a Scholarly Activity at The Chronicle.

Some active blogs on the Commons (that you can read now even though you aren’t yet a Commons member) are:

GC Students of Anthropology – https://anthropology.commons.gc.cuny.edu/

GC English Students blog – https://gcenglish.commons.gc.cuny.edu/

Le Hub (French students’ blog) – https://french.commons.gc.cuny.edu/

GC Marxist Reading group – https://capital.commons.gc.cuny.edu/

Collaborative Seeing Studio – https://collaborativeseeingstudio.commons.gc.cuny.edu/

Zines at the Brooklyn College Library – https://brooklyncollegezines.commons.gc.cuny.edu/

Welcome new students!

Marisa Panzani

This blog is for newly admitted students to the Graduate Center, CUNY.

We would like to welcome and congratulate you! If you haven’t already accepted our offer of admission please do so by logging back into the online application. Registration materials will not be generated for you if you do not officially accept the offer.

Official Documents – Transcripts and Test Scores

All admitted students MUST send official academic transcripts.  The documents that were uploaded into the online system are not considered official.  Please have official documents be sent either through the postal mail in unopened envelopes sealed by the issuing institution OR electronically from Parchment and/or Clearinghouse.  Transcripts from degree granting institutions also need to also list proof of degree as having been issued.  These should be sent directly to the Office of Admissions prior to registration.  You can view the receipt of your official documents by logging back in to the online application system.  Questions regarding these documents or electronic documents should be emailed to admissions@gc.cuny.edu

Please have transcripts sent by mail to:

Office of Admissions, The Graduate Center

365 Fifth Avenue, Room 7201

New York, NY 10016

Official GRE/TOEFL/GMAT/IELTS scores need to be sent to The Graduate Center directly by the testing company.

The official school code for GRE and TOEFL is: 2113

The official school code for GMAT is: XWT-S7-47

Immunizations

All new students are required to submit up to date immunization information prior to registration.

NY State Residency (F1 and J1 visa holders will not be able to file for residency)

If you are a US citizen and have lived at your current NY state address for more than a year, you should automatically be identified to receive in-state tuition.

If you are a US citizen and a NY state resident, but have lived at your present NY State address for less than one calendar year, please fill out the NY State Residency Form and return it to the Office of Admissions by mail or email.  Guidelines for completing the residency form can be found here.

If you are a Permanent Resident or if you are on a visa other than B, C, D, F, H2, H3, H4, J, M, O, P, Q, or TN and live in NY State please fill out the NY State Residency Form and return it to the Office of Admissions by mail or email.  Guidelines for completing the residency form can be found here.

Registration

Registration instructions will be sent to you by email usually in the second week in August.  Please do not forget to keep us informed of any email address changes.  (You can send those updates to admissions@gc.cuny.edu)  Graduate Center emails will not be assigned until AFTER registration has been fully completed.

International Students

Applicants who will apply for Nonimmigrant F-1 or J-1 Entry Visas to the United States, and applicants already in the United States in F-1 or J-1 Student Status must complete the “Request for Certificate of Eligibility and Declaration & Certification of Finances for International Students.” More information can be found on this page. 

An applicant who would like to change Immigration status to F-1 Student Status should consult the Office of International Students for information on the correct procedure to follow.

Permanent Residents must document their status in the Office of Admissions.

All questions regarding Immigration Status should be directed to the Office of International Students at intstu@gc.cuny.edu

More New Student Information

We will update this blog regularly throughout the summer with topics that we hope you will find interesting and informative.  Please feel free to leave comments about what additional topics you might like us to cover.  Furthermore, we suggest take the time to explore the rest of the CUNY Commons.  It is a resource that will become fully available to you as a member and content creator once you have fully registered as a student and have a gradcenter.cuny.edu email address.

We look forward to you becoming a part of our intellectual community!