Domestic and international graduate students have access to a safe, welcoming, and confidential space to discuss matters related to their studies with the Graduate Academic and International Specialist.

Support Areas

Below are some common areas that our specialist can support students with:

• Graduate academic policies and procedures
• Circumstances impacting the graduate student experience
• Barriers to timely completion
• Procedures for status changes (i.e., leave of absence, inactive term or extension requests)
• Graduate student responsibilities
• International student concerns
• Supervisor responsibilities and supervisor conflict
• Withdrawal from course(s) or program (voluntary or required)
• Referrals and connections to relevant services

Please note this list is not exhaustive, and your specialist is always a great place to start if you are unsure of where to go or who to talk to on campus.

Meet Your Graduate Academic and International Specialist

Katie (she/her) holds an MSc in Sociology with a focus in gender studies from the University of Amsterdam and a BA in Sociology from Brock University. Alongside her work as your Graduate Academic and International Student Specialist, she is completing her MEd at Brock and is currently working on her thesis research.

Katie has worked for the past several years in the field of student support in both Canada and internationally. Coupled with her lived experience as both a graduate and international student, she provides key insights into enhancing the graduate student experience. She is here to help graduate students navigate and manage any complex academic situations that may arise during their studies and understands, based on her own experiences, that sometimes things don’t always go as planned during graduate studies.

Katie Pickles