The Vulcan Materials Academic Success Center is a centralized hub for academic support services that is open to all UAB students, regardless of major or academic standing. One growing offering is academic success coaching, which is available to all students, whether or not they are experiencing problems with grades.

Free will still exists, and no brains are “typical”: Philosopher Josh May, Ph.D., shares some of the lessons he picked up by going back to school and joining a research lab to write “Neuroethics: Agency in the Age of Brain Science,” which was selected as one of the top academic titles of 2024.

Amy Chatham, Ph.D., has been named executive director of the expanded center. “These offices are here to help faculty and are laser-focused on providing the tools, training and service that enable UAB’s teachers to be the most effective,” said Scott Phillips, Ph.D., vice provost for Innovative Teaching and Academic Engagement.

Meet two UAB employees who are recent graduates of the master’s program in the School of Health Professions, along with the program’s leaders. Grads with health physics training are “in really high demand,” said program director Emily Caffrey, Ph.D.

Generative AI tools such as ChatGPT pose all kinds of questions for the future of writing instruction. Meagan Malone, Ph.D., assistant professor in the Department of English, has launched a website and blog called Composing in the Age of GenAI to share ideas and resources and spark conversations with others in the field.

A focus on applying sociology to practical work projects, cutting-edge data analysis and supportive faculty make this one of the nation’s top online graduate programs in the field. In this article, faculty explain what sets it apart and two UAB employees/alumni share how they are using its lessons in their work.  

Specialized test-prep courses can be effective, but they are expensive and not covered by student loans. Samantha Giordano-Mooga, Ph.D., an assistant professor in the School of Health Professions, has created a for-credit class that includes test prep and other support.

In “Nazi Germany: Society, Culture and Politics,” Jonathan Wiesen, Ph.D., professor in the Department of History, highlights the current understanding, which has been slow to appear in textbooks, of the “tension between coercion and consensus” in the Nazi period, he said.

Three students who will present their work at the Summer Expo on Thursday explain the benefits of joining a UAB lab, from peer learning to practicing professional skills and more.

Brandon Blankenship, J.D., teaching assistant professor and director of the Pre-Law Program in the J. Frank Barefield, Jr. Department of Criminal Justice, shares interactive exercises he uses in the classroom, and how he is using AI in a project to identify suspected bias in judicial decision-making.

Amber Wagner, Ph.D., says AI tools are allowing her to accelerate student learning and can help future programmers keep pace with the constant change that has always been part of the profession.

Assistant Professor Meagan Malone, Ph.D., teaches First-Year Composition and 300-level Professional Writing courses in the Department of English. Here is how she reworked her classes this fall to incorporate generative AI tools.

Researchers can secure funding to cover article processing charges in open access publications and publish at no cost in Wiley and Cambridge journals, furthering UAB Libraries’ mission to advance research and scholarship equitability through prioritizing open access publishing.

With fall semester already in high gear, here is a quick refresher on all that the UAB Career Center offers to support students on their career journeys.

The Virtual Anatomy Lab, created by a faculty member and a graduate student who is about to begin medical school, brings together a wealth of resources and study tools, from textbooks to podcasts.

Biobehavioral Nutrition and Wellness, launched in fall 2021 by the Department of Nutrition Sciences, includes training in health technology, the psychology of eating behavior and effective communication techniques. The Bachelor of Science program prepares graduates for a range of in-demand jobs, leaders say.

Students in Michelle Wooten’s AST 101, 102 and 103 courses discovered unique connections to course material by creating artwork as part of class assignments.

Shadi S. Martin, Ph.D., brings extensive experience in international and graduate education and a strong record of interdisciplinary scholarship to this new combined role.

A new textbook by Randy Cron, M.D., Ph.D., the first of its kind, can help physicians diagnose and treat an often-puzzling condition with a host of causes.

So three students and their instructor, Health Behavior Chair Kevin Fontaine, Ph.D., walk into a class — and explain why an Honors College seminar on comedy and well-being is such a hit.