CSU Pre-Professor Program (UCI-PREPP)

PREPP Program Features

PREPP Fellows will be partnered with a CSU Faculty Mentor who will oversee the project. Fellows will learn what faculty life is like at a comprehensive master’s granting institution. Your doctoral studies and post-doc positions prepare you for research and scholarship, which is a large part of the job. This program focuses on the other components of a faculty position, instructionally related activities (teaching, curriculum, mentoring students), service activities, and how research is conducted at a master’s comprehensive university. UCI Graduate Division will provide travel stipend to visit your assigned CSU campus ($200 for Southern California CSU campuses and $750 for Northern California CSU) and a $1,000 award for completing the program.

Instructional Activities
Instructional activities are a broad topic that encompasses teaching (and all the tasks associated with that) and mentoring. Teaching is a rather broad category that includes several tasks, from planning for instruction, planning and teaching lessons, and mentoring students (teaching in small groups or one-on-one).

Campus Culture of a Comprehensive Master’s University & Service
Fellows will learn how a campus runs and the role of a faculty member within the structure of a comprehensive university. First and foremost, Fellows need to learn about department life within their field(s). How does a department run, what’s expected of new faculty, and in what role(s) do junior faculty engage? How is research carried out, and what forms of support are there for research? These questions will be answered by participating in a variety of tasks, discussions, and assignments.

Typical Program Activities/Assignments

I = Instruction, M = Mentoring, C = Campus Culture, S = Service, JR = Job Readiness

  • Develop a Syllabus (I)
  • Prepare and teach two class sessions in a course within your doctoral discipline (ideally one lower-division and one upper-division) (I)
  • Observations of teaching with debriefing (I)
  • Identify instructional support services on campus (I)
  • Curriculum Committee (I, C, S)
  • Attend a department meeting (C)
  • Meet with Department Chair (C)
  • Tenure/Retention Expectations (C)
  • Understanding Shared Governance (S, C)
  • Components of a good cover letter (JR, C)
  • Inclusive Excellence Statement/Teaching Philosophy Statement (JR, C)
  • Attend a lab meeting (M)
  • Attend a mentoring meeting between faculty and student (M)

Applications for Fall 2024 now open!

Information Session 

Learn more about the application process and hear from PREPP Alumni.

CSU PREPP Information Session
Friday, February 23, 2024

Please click here to watch. 

How to Apply

Interested doctoral students and postdoctoral scholars will prepare an application and submit the following documents to be reviewed by PREPP program faculty. A PDF with application instructions is available.

Please prepare the documents listed below. Once you have them ready, complete the PREPP application and upload your documents to the CSU PREPP UCI Fall 2024 Application.

The application deadline is June 28, 2024.

For questions, please contact Dr. Arturo Zavala, CSU PREPP Director at azavala@calstate.edu.

Please include your most recent CV. 

Include a personal statement (500 words or less) that focuses on the following prompts: 

  1. Tell us about yourself. 
  2. Why are you applying for this program? What do you hope to gain from the experience? 
  3. Where do you see yourself in 5 years? 

Include a teaching statement (500 words or less). Your statement might include responses to the following prompts: 

  1. What teaching experience have you had? Describe your strengths and weaknesses as an instructor. 
  2. What do you want to learn about teaching and instructionally related activities? 
  3. What do you think teaching diverse undergraduate students might look like? 
  4. What do you think would be the most effective approaches to teaching diverse undergraduate students? 
  5. Describe a particular memorable teaching/learning episode. 

As this program requires time, we require approval from your primary research advisor/supervisor. The mentor should complete the PREPP Mentor Support Form. When you submit your application, you will be asked to submit their email so they can get a link to upload the form.  Download form here.

Hear From Past Fellows

Alejandra Hormaza Mejia

Assistant Professor, Mechanical Engineering, Cal Poly Pomona

Ph.D., UCI Mechanical Engineering, 2023

PREPP was the perfect program for me to participate in as a graduate student. It exposed me to a career with the perfect balance of teaching and research.

I especially appreciated the built-in mentoring from a variety of professionals who had my dream job, and the ability to network with others at CSULB in my field. The program was also especially useful because it provided me with a close-up view of the path I needed to take to achieve my career goals. I highly recommend participating in this!

Alma P. Olaguez

Assistant Professor, Psychology, CSU Los Angeles

Ph.D., UCI Psychological Science, 2021

The PRE-Professor Program truly introduced me to the role of a faculty member at a CSU. I met with several individuals at various levels throughout the university (department, college, university) which helped me understand what shared governance was and how my role as a future faculty member contributes to this ecosystem. I developed my identity and confidence as a faculty member, which was critical to my performance during my job interview. I had the language to describe my potential contributions to the various levels at the university, showing my commitment to students and faculty beyond the department level. The introduction to the tenure process was also great, these conversations allowed me to ask questions without judgement. I deeply appreciate this experience, and I still have valuable relationships with faculty I met during that semester. I’d encourage future fellows to maximize their experience by meeting as many folks as possible and fellows can reach out to me if they’d like to establish a network!

Yasmine Sherafat

Assistant Professor, Psychology, CSU San Marcos

Ph.D., UCI Neurobiology and Behavior 2021

The PREPP program provided me with invaluable resources and opportunities to learn about the responsibilities and expectations of being a professor at a CSU. Now, as a current faculty member at a CSU, I continue to benefit from the networking and insights I gained, which have been instrumental in my professional development.