• Why should the staff of my laboratory spend time with undergraduates who may not even be majoring in the sciences or engineering?
• Won’t participating in these workshops slow down the primary work of my laboratory?

• What do SERTS workshops add to my course?
• How do I begin to incorporate workshops into my class?
• Do I have to modify my lectures or conform to a particular pedagogical style?
• How do I let students know I am offering a SERTS class?
• How do I go about finding workshop leaders for my class?
• How do I select good workshop leaders?
• How are the workshop leaders trained?
• Will my colleagues be upset when a bunch of students shows up unannounced in their laboratory?
• How are workshops scheduled?

We have tried a variety of methods and have discovered one fundamental principle-No matter how hard you try there will be a few students who do not understand the concept and will complicate the process. The key to successful and relatively painless scheduling is to be hard nosed enough to try to steer students into the main path, but flexible enough to accommodate students who really cannot meet the requirement.

All scheduling is done post hoc, after the quarter starts. We use a “Menu” method. We first ask the workshop leaders to provide a schedule that works well for them (how to set this up is discussed in the information and initial training sessions). During the first or second week of classes you hand out a “Menu” listing the workshop leaders, their schedules, and a brief description of their project. The students are then asked to select three workshops based on matching the proposed schedule with their class, work, and activity schedule. The students hand these selections in and you and/or your TA or “super workshop leader” assigns students to workshops based on their preference and availability of workshops. Again, SERTS staff can work with you to help explain the details.