ASPIRE Illinois offers an opportunity for students with diverse experiences and goals, and who come from many educational, socio-cultural, geographic, and familial backgrounds to explore and consider graduate school at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Toward this aim, we provide preapplication supports and host a campus visit.
Preapplication Supports
We offer a series of webinars that guide students through the process of selecting a graduate program and submitting competitive applications. In addition, the program supports ASPIRE applicants by facilitating direct contact with Directors of Graduate Studies and faculty as well as through a campus visit. We have found that these preapplication actions -- early application guidance, program-specific connections, and campus visits -- empower students throughout the submission process and ease the transition to graduate school for successful applicants who ultimately decide to attend graduate school at Illinois. In addition, many ASPIRE candidates could be eligible for one of our prestigious Graduate College fellowships. We believe that this synergy between the Graduate College, graduate programs, and ASPIRE applicants enhances the quality of the candidate pool and facilitates the diversification of graduate education at Illinois.
Webinar Series
The ASPIRE Illinois Summer Webinar Series will be held weekly at 7:00 p.m. CST from June 27 to August 8, 2024. You can sign up for the webinars here.
The great part is that there is no fee or cost to participate in the webinars; you can join in from anywhere. After completing the webinar signup, you will need to complete a short Zoom registration. Once registered, you will receive a confirmation email with all the information to join the webinar session.
June 27
Webinar I: So You’re Interested in Graduate School at Illinois? Let’s Navigate the ASPIRE Application!
Danté Studamire, Assistant Director for Graduate Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
July 2
Webinar II: Applying to Graduate School
Meg Siebenhar, Senior Associate Director, Admissions, Registration & Enrollment Services
July 3
Webinar III: Writing Personal Statements & Getting Recommendations that Work!
Antonio Hamilton, Assistant Director of the Writers Workshop
July 11
Webinar IV: Personal Branding & Social Media
John Moist, Digital Media Specialist
July 18
Webinar V: Funding Graduate School
Ken Vickery, Assistant Dean, Fellowships
July 25
Webinar V: Values-Based Career Decision Making
Derek Attig, Assistant Dean, Career & Professional Development
August 1
Webinar VI: Can I Really Do This? Combatting Imposter Syndrome
Lisa R. Abston, Assistant Dean for Graduate Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
August 8
Webinar VII: We All Have a Story and You Can Do It! – The Recap
Lisa R. Abston, Assistant Dean for Graduate Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
Danté Studamire, Assistant Director for Graduate Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
Campus Visit
The 2024 ASPIRE Illinois campus visit program offers an opportunity for students with a wide range of experiences and goals to consider graduate school at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Participants will meet with faculty in their research area of interest, interact with current graduate students, tour campus facilities, and learn about the resources offered through the Graduate College.
There is no registration fee or cost to participate in the campus visit. Applicants must be at least a rising senior or have already graduated from a bachelor’s program and must be either United States citizens, permanent residents, or undocumented students.
This year, the campus visit will take place on September 29-30, 2024, at the I Hotel & Illinois Conference Center.
The ASPIRE Illinois Application is now open and will close on Friday, August 9, 2024.
If you have questions about the ASPIRE Illinois program, please contact us at graddiversity@illinois.edu.