Advising Office Open House with Free Bagels!

You’re Invited to the Spring Sonnet Soiree!

In order to fundraise for What You Will’s spring show, they will be hosting a Spring Sonnet Soiree! This will be a spring regency tea ball complete with dancing, a raffle, and sonnet recital ! The soiree will be Saturday, March 7th from 7-10pm in the Illini Union. Tickets to the soiree can be purchased at this link: https://my.cheddarup.com/c/spring-sonnet-soiree-tickets.

Black, Jewish, and Beautiful: Contemporary Blewish Voices

“Signs of the Material World: Dostoevsky, Science and the 19th Century Novel” with Melissa Frazier

When: Tuesday, March 10 from 5:00-6:00pm
Where: Lucy Elllis Lounge in the Literature, Culture, & Linguistics Building
Who: Melissa Frazier, Ilja Wachs Chair in Outstanding Teaching and Donning at Sarah Lawrence College

Drawing on Dostoevsky’s relationship with science, Signs of the Material World explores the literary impacts of nineteenth-century materialism.  Dostoevsky’s scientific interlocutors range from Auguste Comte and the “vulgar” materialists to Charles Darwin, James Clerk Maxwell, George Henry Lewes, Charles Sanders Peirce, and the Russian Nikolai Strakhov; in literary terms, Dostoevsky writes in conversation with a wide range of contemporary writers across Europe and the United States, including Lev Tolstoy, Nikolai Chernyshevsky, Wilkie Collins, Charles Dickens, George Eliot, Nathaniel Hawthorne, and Friedrich Schiller.  This talk will sketch the broad contours of Dostoevsky’s combined literary and scientific practice before turning to explore one aspect of that practice in particular:  Dostoevsky’s recourse, like Dickens, to an “indexical” allegory that lends itself to the more contingent and relational kind of materiality that Dostoevsky calls “living life.”

Gilman Scholarship Drop-In Advising with Pizza!

Advisors from the National & International Scholarships Program are hosting a Gilman Scholarship Drop-In Advising event next Tuesday, March 3 from 3-6pm in the LAS Hub in Lincoln Hall in collaboration with the Writers Workshop, Study Abroad, and Financial Aid. This is a great chance for students to get some last-minute feedback on their applications before the March 5 deadline — plus, there will be pizza!

Creating Your Powerful Resume Workshop

How can you highlight your service experience in your resume? Through service and volunteer work you get to make a positive impact in your community, but you are also gaining valuable skills and experience that will stay with you long after your project ends. Join We CU and the Career Center’s James Castree on Thursday, March 5th, from 5:00 to 6:30 p.m. at Siebel Center for Design, Classroom 1000 for our Creating Your Powerful Resume Workshop.

Having a powerful resume is key to standing out from the applicant pool and landing an interview! Upon completion of this workshop, you will be able to draft an effective resume that describes the qualifications, skills, and experience you have gained from your service and volunteer experience, as well as your other activities as an Illinois student.

Dinner will be served, but space is limited. Register today to make sure you don’t miss this opportunity: https://forms.illinois.edu/sec/1459647483

Info Session for Institute for Field Education (IFE) in France or Spain

The IFE program offers immersive experience for students in France and Spain that integrate language and cultural immersion, academic coursework, and professional internships. Through IFE, students can earn 17 credit hours while engaging in a three-month internship, committing four days per week (approximately 350 hours). IFE works closely with students to identify and secure internship placements aligned with their academic background and professional interests.

In addition, students complete a pre-internship training program that includes coursework, site visits, discussion sections, and intercultural workshops. At the conclusion of the program, students complete a research paper exploring a specific topic connected to their work with their internship host organization. The courses, internship, and research paper are conducted entirely in Spanish/French, making it an excellent opportunity for students to gain international professional experience in their target language, while building upon their intercultural knowledge and skills. The information session will take place on Tuesday, March 3^rd in the LAS HUB located in Lincoln Hall, just behind the marble stairs.

“Dive-In” Movie Night Screening of Sinners

When: 7:00-10:00pm on Friday, Feb. 27th
Where: Activities and Recreation Center Indoor Pool
Make a splash at our Dive-In Movie Night featuring Sinners—where the water’s warm, but the chills run deep. Grab your float, sink into the pool, and experience every twist and turn of this dark thriller!

Looking for a Second 8-Weeks (POT B) Course? Check These Out!

GER 205: Germany and Europe: Europe in Trouble?
Gen Ed – Humanities & the Arts and Western/Comparative Cultures
It may seem like Europe is in trouble all the time, and yet the European Union has proven to be more relevant and resilient than ever. The course’s central theme concerns Europe’s “struggle for identity” in relation to other global powers that underlies many of the controversies surrounding Europe’s global role today. Course material includes a historical overview, in-class screenings of several films, and we will read one novel. No prerequisites or prior knowledge necessary; taught in English.

JS 399: Special Topics – American Jewish History
This course offers an opportunity to learn the nuances of archival work using the collections available locally—the University of Illinois Library! While learning the broader context of the American Jewish experience, enrolled students will apply this knowledge right away to reconstruct the development of Jewish communities in Central Illinois based on the university’s archival holdings.  Meets in English room 109.

RST 226: Esports Foundations
This course introduces the study of the role of video games and esports in society. It explores how the design, implementation, and culture of esports connects with themes related to health, socialization, community development, economic development, and nationhood. Specific focus will be placed on the esports industry broadly defined, including individual stakeholders, game developers and publishers, communication and distribution platforms, live events and venues, and the broader cultural impact of esports.

GEOL 118: Natural Disasters
Gen Ed: Natural Sciences & Technology
Introduces the nature, causes, risks, effects, and prediction of natural disasters including earthquakes, volcanoes, landslides, subsidence, global climate change, severe weather, coastal erosion, floods, mass extinctions, and meteorite impacts; covers scientific principles and case histories of natural disasters as well as human responses (societal impact, mitigation strategies, and public policy).

IB 108: The Biology of Dinosaurs
Gen Ed: Natural Sciences & Technology
The origin, diversity, and extinction of dinosaurs will serve as a conceptual framework to explore fundamental principles of biology. We will consider dinosaurs as animals, examining evidence for their physiology and behavior, and how evolution and speciation produced the diversity of dinosaurs. We will relate the influence of Earth’s changing environments on dinosaurs to environmental change on human timescales. We will emphasize how scientists collect and evaluate fossil data through an understanding of living organisms.

RUSS 122: Russia and Black America
Gen Ed – US Minority Cultures
A survey of the interactions and intersections between key African American figures and cultural practices, and Russian imperial, Soviet, and post-Soviet culture, in a historical, social, and political context, with emphasis on Russian-sourced cultural transfers that influenced and sometimes shaped the Black American experience and which functioned as the currency and medium of the African American–Russian connection.

Present Your Research at the 2026 Chicago Area Undergraduate Research Symposium

2026 English & Creative Writing Convocation – Register Now

For those of you who are planning to graduate this spring or summer, you can now register to participate in the 2026 English & Creative Writing Convocation! In addition to our departmental celebration, there will also be a universitywide commencement ceremony; you are welcome to participate in either ceremony or both, but please remember that you must register for each one separately. You will need regalia (cap and gown) to participate in any ceremony, so don’t forget to rent your cap and gown by April 13th.

English & Creative Writing Convocation – REGISTER HERE
When: Saturday, May 16 at 5:00pm
Where: Smith Memorial Hall

Universitywide Commencement – REGISTER HERE
When: Saturday, May 16 at 9:30am
Where: Gies Memorial Stadium

For those of you who we believe to have plans to graduate either this spring or summer, we have invited you to participate in the English & Creative Writing Convocation via email. If you believe that you will be graduating this spring or summer and have not received such an invitation, please contact the advising office immediately at englishadvising@illinois.edu

Participate in a Research Study

Students, faculty, and professionals are invited to participate in a research study on how Generative AI tools, such as ChatGPT, Gemini, and Claude, are used and perceived in writing and work contexts. This study is part of an English Honors thesis conducted by Eleanor Henricksen under the direction of Dr. John R. Gallagher at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. The anonymous survey takes approximately 8–12 minutes and includes questions about your experiences with GenAI, your writing background, and optional demographic information. Participation is voluntary.

For questions about the study, contact Eleanor Henricksen at eh19@illinois.edu or Dr. John Gallagher at johng@illinois.edu. For questions about your rights as a research participant, contact the University of Illinois Office for the Protection of Human Subjects at irb@illinois.edu or 217‑333‑2670.

Survey link: https://illinois.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_cAZXcH7828p7fTM

Career Fairs, Jobs, Internships, and More!

For more information about a study abroad opportunity at the University of East Anglia, such as how to apply, visit the Illinois My Study Abroad webpage

Senior 100 Honorary – Applications Now Open

The Senior 100 Honorary is one of the Alumni Association’s most prestigious distinctions, recognizing 100 outstanding seniors for their leadership, service, and lasting impact on the campus community. Recipients are selected through an anonymous review process by an impartial panel of judges and will be recognized at a luncheon in May.

Eligibility: Seniors who graduated in December 2025 or are graduating in May 2026

Application Overview:
Opens: January 24, 2026
Closes: March 29, 2026 at 11:59 PM
Format: Google Form with additional questions
Requirements: 4 short essays reflecting on personal experiences

How to Apply:
Scan the QR code or visit the application link
Download and complete the application
Upload it to the Google Form and submit additional responses
Application Link

Questions may be directed to uiucsenior100@gmail.com.
Google Slides
PowerPoint

Present Your Research–Humanities Projects Welcome!

Advising Office Open House

2026 English & Creative Writing Convocation – Register Now!

For those of you who are planning to graduate this spring or summer, you can now register to participate in the 2026 English & Creative Writing Convocation! In addition to our departmental celebration, there will also be a universitywide commencement ceremony; you are welcome to participate in either ceremony or both, but please remember that you must register for each one separately. You will need regalia (cap and gown) to participate in any ceremony, so don’t forget to rent your cap and gown by April 13th.

English & Creative Writing Convocation – REGISTER HERE
When: Saturday, May 16 at 5:00pm
Where: Smith Memorial Hall

Universitywide Commencement – REGISTER HERE
When: Saturday, May 16 at 9:30am
Where: Gies Memorial Stadium

For those of you who we believe to have plans to graduate either this spring or summer, we have invited you to participate in the English & Creative Writing Convocation via email. If you believe that you will be graduating this spring or summer and have not received such an invitation, please contact the advising office immediately at englishadvising@illinois.edu

English Department Scholarships – Stage Two Application Due Friday, Feb. 20

Check out the department website for the Stage Two application along with an overview and instructions. The Stage Two application is due Friday, February 20.

Upcoming Study Abroad Deadlines & Study Abroad Advising Sessions

The application deadline for Fall 2026, Summer 2026, and Academic Year 2026–2027 programs is February 15 at 11:59PM (CST). To fulfill the required advising requirement and address any questions, LAS International Programs is holding virtual drop-in advising sessions in additional to regularly scheduled appointments on the following dates and times:

Friday, February 6: 1:00–3:00 p.m. CST
Tuesday, February 10: 2:00–4:00 p.m. CST
Thursday, February 12: 2:00–4:00 p.m. CST

Students can schedule an appointment using the advising calendar. Please note that this is a particularly busy time for their office and availability is limited.

Apply to Be An Orientation Leader (OL)!

First-Gen Student Feedback Sessions

LAS & FAA Employer Visit: The Art Institute of Chicago

When: Thursday, February 19, 2026 at 1:00pm
Where: School of Art & Design, Room 133
Stop in and chat with the Assistant Director for Academic Engagement and Research at The Art Institute of Chicago, Rachel Joy Echiverri Rowland! Rachel will be on campus to speak about internships and summer intensive opportunities with the Institute. Register to attend on Handshake.

Job & Internship Opportunities

Apply for a Paid Internship with the Odyssey Project
Majors in the humanities, arts, social sciences are invited to apply for a paid internship with the Odyssey Project, a program through the Humanities Research Institute that offers free college courses to qualifying members of the C-U community. Through this work, the intern will help to translate the world of academia—and ease that transition—for those who are new to it. Deadline to apply is March 31 by 11:59PM. To apply, visit  https://forms.illinois.edu/sec/174211678

2026 UI Advancement Internship Accepting Applications
This is a highly structured summer opportunity for students to learn about the world of institutional fundraising and make a lot of networking connections. This opportunity is great for students who care deeply about the mission of higher ed but may be having second thoughts about the grad school. Deadline to apply is March 6. For more information, including how to apply, visit https://uif.uillinois.edu/news/217/2026-ui-advancement-internship-accepting-applications

Part-Time Public Relations/Customer Service Position
This campus part-time job with the University of Illinois Foundation Engagement Center can offer valuable experience relevant to both the nonprofit and for-profit worlds for students with excellent oral communication skills. For more information, including how to apply, visit https://secure.osfa.illinois.edu/vjb/detail.aspx?type=nonfws&postid=48081

Join the Ravinia Team – Open Summer 2026 Positions
For more information about the positions, including how to apply, visit https://bit.ly/workatravinia

For more information about a study abroad opportunity at the University of East Anglia, such as how to apply, visit the Illinois My Study Abroad webpage

Open to those who will have a degree in hand by the start of July (so May graduates are eligible).

Career Networking Event

This is a career event for students who:

• Wonder how to build a career around their arts-related interests.
• Love being in cultural, performance, or museum spaces
• Want to promote creative and cultural work
• Seek a career with intellectual purpose

There will be a guided networking event from 2:30 – 4pm with professionals from various Illinois arts and culture organizations, followed by a panel of discussion with student interns working for arts and culture organizations, 4 – 5pm. Students can come for any or all of it. There will be snacks.

Present Your Research–Humanities Projects Welcome!