In 2025, ConnectEd organized its first nonprofit PhD Incubator to support people preparing to apply for doctoral study. A sustained mentoring initiative for the next stage of academic development.
From September 2025 through January 2026, more than twenty faculty members, postdoctoral researchers, and doctoral students worked with prospective applicants through a webinar series, small-group workshops, application-writing feedback, and mentor interviews.
The initiative grew out of ConnectEd’s wider community work. Its aim was to lower the communication and information barriers that often stand between strong applicants and the labs they hope to join.
| Focus | Doctoral preparation and academic mentorship |
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| Participants | Prospective PhD applicants |
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| Mentors | 20+ faculty members, postdocs, and doctoral students |
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| Duration | September 2025 – January 2026 |
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The community behind the incubator
- 1,000+ faculty members have shared funded master’s and doctoral openings in their groups through ConnectEd.
- 50,000+ community members in our network of scholars and prospective researchers.
- 200+ volunteers help run ConnectEd’s community initiatives.
- 50+ volunteers have joined labs they sought or received funded doctoral offers.
Three formats of support
Application Webinars
A monthly series on the core stages of a PhD application, each led by one or two mentors. Sessions ran 60–90 minutes, combining a focused talk with Q&A, and some included breakout rooms, peer review, or practice exercises. Recordings remained available to participants.
Small-Group Workshops
Groups of up to five participants, organized by field and target country, met with a mentor during the application season. Participants submitted questions or drafts in advance and received live feedback on statements, strategy, and field-specific questions.
Mentor Interviews
Short recorded conversations with mentors on topics such as interviews, contacting prospective advisors, the value of a PhD, doctoral life in North America, and the skills each research area looks for. Mentors reviewed every interview before it was shared.
The webinar series
Eight sessions followed the application calendar, from early planning to final decisions. Sessions were held on Zoom with a capped audience so that everyone had time to interact with mentors, and priority went to incubator participants and ConnectEd volunteers. Dates are listed in U.S. Eastern Time where confirmed; other sessions are shown by their planned month.
| Session | Focus | Timing |
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| 01 · Planning & Time Management | Building a realistic application timeline. | September 2025 |
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| 02 · The Academic CV | Presenting research experience clearly. | September 2025 |
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| 03 · Contacting Faculty & Recommendation Letters | The process of reaching out to prospective advisors and securing recommendations, mentors’ own experiences, and breakout-room Q&A.
Led by doctoral students in engineering education at Ohio State and in education at UC Irvine. | September 27, 2025 |
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| 04 · The Statement of Purpose | How to approach and structure a statement of purpose, what makes one effective, and live Q&A.
Led by a Columbia University doctoral researcher in adult learning and leadership, and a Penn State doctoral candidate in language education. | October 4, 2025 |
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| 05 · Writing a Research Proposal | What a research proposal is for, how to write one, common difficulties, and a live exercise in designing research questions and methods.
Led by an Illinois State University assistant professor in literacy education, with a doctoral student in educational technology. | October 4, 2025 |
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| 06 · A Faculty Perspective | What makes a strong candidate. | November 2025 |
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| 07 · Interview Preparation | Common questions and mock interview practice. | December 2025 |
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| 08 · Choosing Offers & Fellowships | How to compare doctoral offers, how to apply for scholarships, and breakout-room Q&A.
Led by a doctoral student in biomedical sciences at UT Southwestern Medical Center. | January 24, 2026 |
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Who mentored
- 3 assistant professors
- 2 postdoctoral researchers & research scientists
- 1 board-certified physician
- 18 doctoral students & graduates, first year to fifth year
Their research spans education and literacy, learning sciences, educational technology, language education, engineering education, linguistics, statistics and biostatistics, chemical and environmental engineering, electrical engineering, industrial engineering, computer science, biomedical sciences, clinical and preventive medicine, public health, cognitive science, gerontology, business and marketing, and management science.
Mentors came from institutions including Harvard University, Columbia University, the University of Oxford, UCLA, USC, Peking University, Mayo Clinic, and HKUST.
Mentors are listed below by the names they chose to use publicly. Roles are as of the 2025–26 application cycle.
Faculty
- Gui Ying (Annie) Yang-Heim · Assistant Professor · Illinois State University, School of Teaching and Learning · PreK–6 literacy, Indigenous children’s literacy learning, teacher education, AI in education
- Dr. Rosner · Assistant Professor · UCLA Samueli School of Engineering · Direct air capture and CO2 utilization, renewable energy systems, process modeling and techno-economic analysis
- Guanao Yan · Assistant Professor · Michigan State University, Computational Mathematics, Science and Engineering · Statistical bioinformatics, statistical methodology, statistics in education
Researchers & Clinicians
- Dr. Dandan Yang · Research and Evaluation Specialist · UCLA · Quantitative methods, educational technology, bilingual and child development, program evaluation
- Zhitian (Skylor) Zhang · Postdoctoral Researcher · University of Tübingen · Education, creativity, self-motivation
- Dr. Sun · Clinical Fellow, Board-Certified Physician · Mayo Clinic & University of Minnesota · Clinical medicine, preventive medicine
Doctoral Students & Graduates
- Yuxuan (Melody) Wang · PhD Student, Year 4 · Harvard University, Linguistics · Linguistics
- Lulu Guo · Recent PhD Graduate · Teachers College, Columbia University, Adult Learning and Leadership · Adult development, transformative learning, creative learning design, arts-based research
- Jialing Wu · PhD Student, Year 2 · The Ohio State University, Engineering Education · Engineering education, computational social science
- Yvette · PhD Student, Year 5 · Penn State University, Education · Language education: vocabulary, reading, writing
- Siling Guo · PhD Student, Year 4 · UC Irvine, Education · Child development, mathematical cognition, causal inference
- Rui Huang · PhD Student, Year 3 · Northeastern University, Electrical Engineering · Integrated magnetic inductors and transformers, N/MEMS microfabrication and advanced packaging
- Cheney · PhD Student, Year 1 · UW–Madison, Learning Sciences · Human–AI interaction, embodied cognition, learning analytics, self-efficacy, data science education
- Lee · PhD Student, Year 3 · University of Florida, Business Administration · Marketing: consumer privacy, judgment and decision making, prosocial behavior
- Jasmine Zhang · PhD Student, Year 3 · UT Southwestern Medical Center, Biomedical Sciences · Human genetics, lipid metabolism, metabolic disease
- Zifeng · PhD Student, Year 5 · Northeastern University, Industrial Engineering · Advanced manufacturing processes, iterative learning control
- Sylvie · Incoming PhD Student, Fall 2025 · University of Oxford, Education · Applied linguistics, foreign language education
- Rongchen · PhD Student, Year 2 · University of Southern California, Chemical Engineering · Hydrogen and renewable natural gas production
- Yumeng Yang · PhD Student, Year 1 · HKUST, Social Science · Cognitive science, visual cognition, eye tracking, autism spectrum disorder, face recognition
- Chris Paul · PhD Student, Year 2 · University of Southern California, Gerontology · Aging, cognitive neuroscience, neuroimaging and multimodal integration
- Xinyue Fan · PhD Student, Year 1 · Macao Polytechnic University, Educational Technology and Innovation · Educational technology in higher education, interdisciplinary applications of EdTech, technology literacy
- Meiyi Wang · PhD Student, Year 2 · University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Management Science and Engineering · Management, finance
- Ning Huang · PhD Student, Year 4 · Peking University, Public Health · Child and adolescent mental health, digital interventions
- Jerry · PhD Student, Year 2 · University of Notre Dame, Computer Science and Engineering · Cyber-physical systems, safe learning
What participants received
- Live access to the webinar series, with recordings available for replay.
- Regular small-group sessions with mentors in their field during the application season.
- Peer review and practice activities, including interview rehearsal.
- Shared application resources, such as outreach-email and recommendation-letter templates, sample statements, and a bank of interview questions.
- A discussion community with mentors and fellow applicants for questions throughout the cycle.
For mentors
The incubator was designed to fit around the schedules of working researchers. Its format offers a model for how faculty and doctoral students can take part in future editions.
How mentors took part
- Each mentor chose two or three of the three formats.
- Webinar speakers presented once, on the application topic they knew best.
- Workshop hosts met their group about once a month during the application season, with no advance preparation required.
- Interviews took 10–15 minutes online. Mentors could appear as an avatar, suggest edits, and approved the final cut.
What mentors received
- An honorarium in recognition of their time, intended to support their own research.
- For especially significant contributions, recognition as a ConnectEd Distinguished Mentor, which can be listed on a CV as academic service.
- Connections with promising future scholars, and for faculty, a way to meet potential doctoral students.
- Public engagement through interviews shared with tens of thousands of readers on ConnectEd’s social media channels.
Mentor with ConnectEd
Why a sustained format matters to our approach
The incubator was designed to give participants time to ask questions, reflect on their goals, and develop their application materials with feedback.
It complemented research training by focusing on the transition toward doctoral study and participation in academic communities.
Operating as a nonprofit
Participants paid a modest registration fee to keep the incubator sustainable. The fee went only to mentor honoraria and core operating costs, such as technology, event coordination, and administration. Outreach relied on low-cost channels, including our own social media and nonprofit partners.
Looking ahead
The 2025 initiative is presented here as part of our past community work. Future editions, eligibility, and participation arrangements will be announced separately when confirmed.
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