Student Perspectives

A QUERIES Student's Perspective by Maurice Samuels

My experience at the University of Illinois had been filled with support and encouragement. The University of Illinois has been second to none in providing programs to ensure the success of minorities at the graduate school level. Nothing more exemplifies this commitment than the Summer Pre-Doctoral Institute (SPI), which is sponsored by the graduate college. SPI is a unique program that offers underrepresented groups the opportunity to enroll at the university and experience campus life the summer before their first semester of graduate school. For me, SPI has helped me to form a support network with students of color and make the transition into graduate school socially and academically. Support and encouragement did not stop at SPI. It continued to come from my advisor, colleagues, and the faculty and staff of the Educational Psychology department.

Being a student in the Quantitative Evaluative & Research Methodologies (QUERIES) division of the Educational Psychology department has given me the benefit of receiving instruction and guidance from some of the premier authorities in the education, evaluation, and the measurement field. As an evaluator my interest includes the evaluation of school accountability systems at the state level and the use of high-stakes test performance as a means of assessment. I also want to research how variables such as learning styles and socio-economic status affect learning and standardized test scores of minority students. Overall, my experience at the University of Illinois has been one that has far exceeds my initial expectations. I look forward to continuing my education at the university and I hope to continue to see a commitment to the recruitment of minorities in the Educational Psychology department as well as the university itself.