Graduate life is full of big ideas, and even bigger to-do lists. That's why the UNH Graduate School offers community gathering programs designed to support productivity and create space for meaningful engagement across disciplines.
Each semester, we host Community Lunches, where graduate students come together over a shared, home-cooked meal made by our very own administrators in the Graduate School. These lunches allow students to take a well-deserved break and help strengthen our academic community in a relaxed, welcoming setting.
We also host the Weekly Writing Group. Meeting two times per week, we offer a consistent coworking environment for graduate students at any stage of their work. Whether you are writing, reading, replying to emails, or organizing your tasks, you are welcome to join. The space includes designated quiet areas for focused individual work as well as social spaces for informal conversation and peer support. For formal writing assistance, be sure to check out our annual Moorhead Writing Academy.
All graduate students and postdocs are invited to participate. We hope to see you there!
Upcoming Events
-
Nov201 p.m. - 2 p.m.
-
Nov2411 a.m. - noon
-
Nov271 p.m. - 2 p.m.
-
Weekly Writing Group
Register here for Fall 2025!
The Graduate School invites you to join our Weekly Writing Group! The writing group offers you the chance to work on your own writing in a quiet, classroom-style space. Each semester, we host two weekly writing group sessions with free lunch at Holloway Commons (HoCo) for all participants on Mondays. This year (2025-2026), the weekly sessions will take place on Mondays from 11 a.m. to 12 p.m. (Lunch at HoCo afterward) and Thursdays from 1 p.m. to 2 p.m.
Location(s):
Click Here for Fall 2025 room schedule
You only need to register once a year to participate. Lunch is always optional. Feel free to drop in when you can!
-
Community Lunch
Register here for Fall 2025!
Stop by the Hamel Recreation Center Demo Kitchen (room 239, second floor) for lunch on us! This low-key, informal event is meant to help us get to know each other and the faculty and staff at the UNH Graduate School. Join us to celebrate the start and end of the semester. No worries if you can't make the whole block of time—please stop by and eat with us if you can! It is open to all graduate students and postdocs at UNH.
We have two lunches scheduled for this semester (both Wednesdays):
- September 3rd, 12:00 - 1:30 PM
- December 10th, 12:00 - 1:30 PM
-
"When you've hit an impasse with your studies and stay isolated, it feels like a mountain that cannot be climbed. The writing groups, not only keep me accountable with structured calendar blocks for study, but when I express my concerns, I often get strategies or support from the incredible community of students who have either been there before or are also facing similar challenges. Knowing that I am not alone and am a part of a community of scholars turns that mountain into a small foothill!" - Shantel Palacio, PhD Student in Education
-
"As a doctoral student in the final stages of my dissertation, some challenges for me have been isolation and a sense of being untethered to any kind of schedule. I started going to writing sessions and retreats set up by the Graduate School to give me something to anchor my weeks and provide structure. They did that, but I was totally unprepared for the support and accountability I also found during these sessions. Without them, I would not have finished my dissertation as successfully as I did.” - Jennifer Spillane, Ph.D. Molecular and Evolutionary Systems Biology
