Grad Orgs and Outreach

We believe in the importance of building community both on and off campus.


Here are a few student organizations and outreach opportunities at UCSD that our students participate in! 

You can also find additional info at the Center for Student Involvement.

Colors of the Brain is a UC San Diego student organization that was founded in 2016 to diversify STEM graduate education by providing undergraduate students from historically underrepresented backgrounds with invested graduate student mentors who have gone through the transition into Ph.D. or M.D./Ph.D research programs.

Contact: 

Mentorship Coordinators

Sana Ali [s5ali@ucsd.edu]

Eena Kosik [ekosik@ucsd.edu]

Logistics Coordinator: 

Quirine van Engen [quvaneng@ucsd.edu]

Graduate Mentor:

Akshay Nagarajan [anagaraj@ucsd.edu]

Gradwic is dedicated to fostering diversity and inclusion in the Computer Science and general STEM fields at UCSD. Our goal is to ensure our colleagues have a strong support system and appropriate resources to pursue their endeavors. We are also committed to creating a comfortable environment and fun social group for our members. Work hard, play hard!

Contact: Srishti Palani [srpalani@ucsd.edu]

Women Organization for Research Mentoring (WORM) is aimed at fostering personalized and thus useful mentoring experiences for women in STEM at UCSD at all levels. To give both mentors and mentees the most meaningful mentoring relationship, mentees can search through potential mentor profiles to find a mentor that matches her needs and interests. Mentors can accept or reject mentee applications to allow for the best fit. We welcome all students, postdocs, staff, faculty, emeriti, alumni, and friends from industry who identify as female or non-binary.

Contact: Dillan Cellier [dcellier@ucsd.edu]

 Questions about the program or website? Official PhD program website: https://cogsci.ucsd.edu/graduates/index.html

Charmaine Lising, M.A. (Graduate Advisor; cogsphd@ucsd.edu)

Akshay Nagarajan (Graduate Representative; anagaraj@ucsd.edu)

Quirine van Engen (Graduate Representative; quvaneng@ucsd.edu)