Graduate School Fair Student Guide

Event Schedule

The Graduate School Fair is April 14, 2022 from 12:00 PM - 5:30 PM ET. Attendees are welcome to come and go as they wish throughout the event.

Here’s the preliminary schedule (all times US Eastern):

• 12:00 PM: Welcome and Panel Discussion: Is Graduate School Right For You?
• 1:00 PM: Panel Discussion: Student Voices (Zoom)
• 2:00:  Exhibit Hall - Meet with representatives from anthropology MA and PhD programs! (Gather)
• 3:30: Panel Discussion: Applying to Professional Schools as an Anthropology Major (Zoom)
• 4:30: Undergraduate and Graduate Student Mixer (Gather)

Panel Information

Is Grad School Right for You? Department chairs and directors of graduate study will tell you what you need to know as a prospective student, from choosing which school to attend to thinking strategically about your applications to deciding whether this is the right time for you to apply. 

Student Voices: Current graduate students in anthropology will talk about their experience as an applicant and as a student and will answer questions about what to expect. 

Professional Degrees for Anthropology Majors: Many anthropology majors go on to graduate study in fields other than anthropology, including professional degrees such as a master’s in public health, social work, or business. This panel will discuss ways anthropology majors can showcase the value of anthropology to make themselves competitive applicants in these fields. 

Schools

Here is a list of schools currently registered to attend the department tabling session from 2:00-3:30. This list will be updated as departments register for the event. 

• Binghamton University
• Boise State University
• California State University, Los Angeles
• Case Western Reserve University
• Emory University
• Indiana University of Pennsylvania
• Northern Arizona University
• Northern Illinois University
• San Jose State University
• SOAS, University of London
• University at Albany, State University of New York
• University of Alberta
• University of Central Florida
• University of North Carolina, Charlotte
• University of North Texas
• University of Southern Mississippi
• University of Wisconsin-Madison
• Western Kentucky University (Folk Studies)

What is Gather?

Gather is a virtual space designed with pixels that allows participants to move their character icons around a space built similarly to physical buildings. When moving around the space with your character, your video and microphone phase out as walking way, just like in a physical space, and multiple videos can be present at the same time over the pixel environment.

When you enter the Gather, you will need to enter a password first, but then will be invited to create an avatar. Please feel welcome to use any of the options Gather provides when designing your avatar. Creating an avatar does not require the creation of an account with Gather.

The Exhibit Hall and student networking events will both be hosted through the AAA virtual conference center in Gather.

For the AAA Graduate School Fair there four rooms that will be used: 

1. The Foyer/Help Desk
   • This is where attendees will enter the AAA conference. In this space you will find information about the conference, the accessibility / help desk, portals to quickly move to the networking lounge and tabling rooms, and AAA staff available to assist you. 
2. The Courtyard
   • The courtyard is a central location for the AAA conference space that connects all of the rooms. There are no designated activities in this space. You are welcome to use this space to converse with other attendees or if you need to step away from busier sections of the graduate school fair. 
3. The Networking Lounge
   • The 4:30 PM student networking event will take place in this networking lounge. This is located to the right of the Courtyard. In this space you will find group games and activities, as well as a series of private spaces that can be used to facilitate small discussions. 
4. The Department Tabling Room
   • The 2:00 PM Exhibit Hall will take place in this room. This is where representatives from MA and PhD programs will have tables available to meet with event attendees. 

Accessibility and Gather

Use the arrow keys on your keyboard to move your icon around. AAA uses Gather to mimic conference spaces. For the 2022 AAA Virtual Grad Fair, there are four rooms:

1. The Foyer/Help Desk
   1. Custom Spawn Link to Access Desk:
2. The Courtyard
   1. Custom Spawn Link to Sit by Tree:
3. The Networking Lounge
   1. Custom Spawn Link to Sit in Lounge:
4. The Department Tabling Room
   1. Custom Spawn Link to Appear in Tabling Room:

The spawn links provided above will allow any participant to appear in a specific location within the Gather space. If you are blind or low-vision and plan to utilize an access guide during the event to guide you around the virtual space, please use the Access Desk Spawn Link. A AAA staff member will then help you follow your guide, who will talk you through the space and follow your instructions for where to go. All access guides will have a walking person icon following their name: 🚶

Alternatively, you are welcome to identify a person present in the Gather space and “Request to Lead”. Either “Follow” or “Request to Lead” will allow you to follow another person through the Gather space.

Auditory Access in Gather

CART Captioning 

Gather does not provide captioning directly within the platform. If you know you will need captions, please email AAA at accessibility@americananthro.org. A staff member will request a CART captioner for you, who will follow you in the Gather space. You will have a separate StreamText link to access the captions on a separate window or device. Your CART captioner will have a keyboard icon following their name: ⌨️ 

ASL Interpreting 

If you know you will need an ASL interpreter, please email AAA at accessibility@americananthro.org. A staff member will request an ASL interpreter for you, who will follow you in the Gather space. Your ASL interpreter will have a waving hand icon following their name: 👋 

Gather Tutorial Videos

How to navigate the Gather space: 

How to interact with objects and other attendees in Gather:

Icons in Gather:

Additional Resources

How to prepare for a virtual graduate fair

Questions to ask department representatives

Notetaking worksheet

AAA provides a form-fillable PDF that can be used to write down questions ahead of time for departments you are interested in speaking with or for taking notes during your conversations with them.