Getting the Most Out of GCDI Workshops

Each semester, the Digital Fellows offer a series of workshops focused on developing practical digital skills and concepts, freely available to members of the Graduate Center community.

Because many of these short workshops cover connected topics, and pair well with other GCDI offerings, the below offers a few tips and tricks on how to make the most of these opportunities to ensure you can connect with the widest breadth of available resources.

Be sure to check out our remaining fall workshops listed at the bottom of this post and on our website!

Tips

Before the Workshop

  1. Register early. Our workshops frequently fill to capacity, so we’d recommend registering early. However, a waitlist is always available—so be sure to sign up if a workshop is already at capacity. When seats become available we contact those on the waitlist ASAP. And, when possible, we try to extend the number of seats to accommodate as many attendees as possible.
  2. Cancel if you cannot make it. If you realize you can’t make it, please cancel your registration ASAP so someone else can attend.
  3. Register with a friend. Learning is better together. Plus, it means you can share resources later on, and have someone to troubleshoot and collaborate with.
  4. Complete any downloads and check pre-reqs. Some of our workshops require downloading a particular software or signing up for a service. Others have pre-reqs (which are covered in the intro-level courses). Please look into these beforehand so you can follow-along during the presentation.

During the Workshop

  1. Be present. Arrive on time, and try to stay for the full workshop! We jump right into things, and so you don’t want to miss any key information.  
  2. Take notes. A friendly reminder. This can be easy to forget!
  3. Ask questions—lots of them! We not only save ample time for questions at the end, but always have a second support fellow operating the Zoom chat to help as we go along. Also, check out our “How to Ask Coding Questions” resource, if needed!
  4. Complete the survey. At the end of each workshop we ask attendees to complete a quick survey on their thoughts. These help us collect ideas from the community in order to make more resources for you. Your responses inform our future offerings and approaches!

After the Workshop

  1. Build on your skills. Try out some of the concepts/tools learned in a way that suits your needs and interests. The best way to develop tech skills is through application.
  2. Connect. Try to connect with another workshop participant and share notes/ideas as a team. You should also consider attending a Working Group! In these casual collaborative meetings you will not only find others with similar interests, but will be able to put your skills and ideas to work in a welcoming environment for novices and experts alike.
  3. Set-up a consultation. Sometimes things don’t stick the first time around. Sometimes you want to expand your ideas in ways we didn’t have time to cover in the workshop. Set up a consultation for one-on-one support with a Digital Fellow after a workshop! And, if you are unsure which follow-up workshops might be best, we’ll help you figure it out.
  4. Sign up for another workshop. Our workshops are best when paired. For example, the skills you learn in the intros to Python and R will be built on in related data analysis workshops in those languages later on in the semester. Gaining an intro to Git and Github will allow you to work with version control on all your digital projects while you learn, share your work, and collaborate with others. And, our workshops on HTML/CSS and Bootstrap are part of a series that will include building JavaScript skills next semester.

Fall 2022 Workshop Offerings

This is a listing of the remaining workshop offerings for this semester. To read the full workshop explanations and register, please see this page on the GCDI site and/or refer to the GCDI calendar.

Getting Started Programming with Python // September 27 @ 2:00 pm – 4:00 pm

Put it on the Web: An Intro to HTML and CSS // September 30 @ 1:00 pm – 3:00 pm

R You Ready? An Absolute Beginner’s Crash Course for R // October 6 @ 12:00 pm – 1:30 pm

Data Analysis in R // October 11 @ 5:00 pm – 6:30 pm

What is WordPress? Basics to create, manage or author on a website // October 12 @ 6:00 pm – 8:00 pm

Git It: Intro to Git and GitHub // October 14 @ 3:00 pm – 4:30 pm

Spreadsheets aren’t Boring! (Intro to Spreadsheets) // October 20 @ 4:00 pm – 5:30 pm

Spreadsheets and Pandas and Python! Oh my! (Data analysis in Python) // October 28 @ 2:30 pm – 4:00 pm

Using Bootstrap to create visually stunning webpages // November 4 @ 1:00 pm – 3:00 pm

On a closing note: if you have not yet read the GCDI’s welcome letter written by Rebecca Krisel, check it out! It includes information about many other GCDI offerings this semester. And, for a reference of many relevant GCDI-related links all in one place, check out our Linktree.

 

Cover image source: photo by Samantha Borges on Unsplash