I am pleased to announce the extension of the appointment of Dr. Michael Hunt, Dean pro tem, for the Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies. This extension is for the period January 1 - June 15, 2025.
Dr. Hunt is a Professor in the Department of Physical Therapy. His research is at the intersection of human movement, pain, and health, and is currently funded by a number of funding bodies, including CIHR and NSERC. Prior to stepping into the role of Dean pro tem in January 2024, he served as Senior Associate Dean, Policy and Programs with G+PS since 2021 and as Associate Dean, Graduate and Postdoctoral Education in the Faculty of Medicine from 2019 until 2022. While in the Faculty of Medicine he oversaw the implementation of a graduate student wellbeing strategy, a Faculty-wide peer mentorship program, a dedicated graduate program review process, and programs for supervisors and trainees to foster and maintain healthy and respectful working environments.
During his first term as Dean pro tem, Dr. Hunt has emphasized the overall graduate student experience and has created a number of working groups with graduate students and campus partners – in particular the Vice President, Students – to tackle issues relevant to graduate students and postdoctoral fellows such as: health and wellbeing, housing, research supervision, career and professional development, and funding. He has also engaged with Faculty leadership to enhance collaboration and partnerships with graduate programs.
I wish to thank Dr. Hunt for his leadership of the Faculty over this past year, and I look forward to continuing to work with him in the coming months.
With regards to next steps, we are in the final planning stages of a review of the Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies. Scheduled to take place in February, this process is intended to be an informal high-level review to inform the President and Provost on the role of G+PS for the Strategic Plan Refresh with a focus on the vision for graduate studies at UBC, and to examine the structure of G+PS and the resources needed to fulfill its role. We will have an update to the community shortly with more information on this upcoming review.
Gage Averill
Provost and Vice-President, Academic, UBC Vancouver