Building connection beyond the classroom: PGSA creates community in Purdue Physics and Astronomy

Graduate school can be rewarding, but it can also be isolating. Between demanding coursework, long research hours and the pressure to keep moving forward, it is easy for students to stay in their own corners. In Purdue Physics and Astronomy, the Physics Graduate Student Association, or PGSA, helps make sure graduate students have a place to connect, recharge and support one another along the way.

PGSA represents the graduate student community in the department and works to strengthen student life from multiple angles. The group offers social events, encourages professional growth, supports students academically and helps keep communication open between graduate students, faculty and department leadership. In that way, PGSA is more than a student organization. It is one of the ways the department builds a stronger, more connected community.

Kayaking trip 2025 at Wildcat Creek! (Photo provided by/Danielle Dickinson)

For Tess Hoover, an astrophysics graduate student, that sense of community became more meaningful over time.

"It took me a while to get through the core classes and join a research group," Hoover said. "In my first couple years, there were not enough astro professors who had space/funding to take on new students, but then the department hired more faculty, and I have been working in a supernova and radiative transport group since. In the past year, I wanted to get more involved with the grad student community, and so I've spent much more time at PGSA events. I'm very fortunate now to be able to do what I love in good company."

That sense of good company is central to PGSA's mission. The organization hosts events throughout the year that give students a chance to gather outside the usual structure of classes, labs and offices. Popular activities have included chess and ping-pong tournaments, movie nights, kayaking on Wildcat Creek, and weekly coffee hours in the PGSA lounge. The group has also worked to bring back the kind of in-person atmosphere that helps a department feel welcoming, with longtime community-building traditions and new ideas shaped by student interest.

PGSA Ping Pong Tournament 2025 with winner Sambit Banerjee (Photo provided by/Danielle Dickinson)

Allen Murray, also an astrophysics graduate student, said PGSA helped him settle in during his early time at Purdue.

"I had a bit of a rough start academically here at Purdue since I had a few years off between my undergraduate and graduate studies," Murray said. "This put me back a semester for my core classes. Since then, I've completed all of my courses and have joined Paul Duffell's research group. I've been involved in PGSA events pretty much since I started here in 2023 and I've had a blast integrating into the local community."

Aleksey Mohov, treasurer for PGSA says, “Having been at several schools and witnessed their graduate communities, I can say that PGSA fills a very real need for community structure. It is very possible and even likely for graduate students to isolate themselves in their work. PGSA provides important opportunities and options for students to interact with their peers in a paradigm explicitly different from their lab/research environment. PGSA hosts events throughout the year of a wide variety of types and also provides an important conduit through which students can interact with their peers, faculty, and Greater Lafayette as a whole.”

While PGSA is known for its social side, it also creates space for academic and professional support in ways that feel approachable. Students use the lounge to talk through coursework, compare ideas and step away from the stress of the day. The organization also manages the Graduate Students' Seminar Series, which gives students a chance to present their research or practice talks for prelims, defenses and conferences in a supportive setting.

"Of course we talk academics (we're nerds after all), but PGSA's purpose is more focused on the social and networking aspects of grad student life," Hoover said. "It's not uncommon for people to use the lounge to gather and discuss mutual courses or to debate the best approach to a problem. We have events, such as the grad seminar series, which both help people better understand the type of research that their peers do in our department and gives us a space to ask the novice questions."

That seminar series has become one of PGSA's most visible successes. With faculty adviser Dan Milisavljevic, the group has helped create a low-pressure environment where students can strengthen their public speaking skills and gain confidence presenting their work.

PGSA members have also helped breathe new life into the physics lounge, turning it into a more active gathering place with comfortable seating, art and plenty of whiteboard space.

PGSA Chess Tournament 2025 (Photo provided by/Danielle Dickinson)

For Murray, those events help build relationships that matter far beyond one afternoon on the calendar.

"PGSA helps students build friendships and a sense of community at Purdue by hosting several social, and academic events throughout the year," Murray said. "Some striking examples are the weekly coffee hours on Wednesdays, the Chess and Ping Pong tournaments, and the Grad Seminar. Each of these events gather students from varied fields to interact socially and learn from each other. Therefore, the people interested in attending these events build a strong community with each other."

That balance between structure and openness is part of what makes the group work. PGSA gives graduate students opportunities to connect, but it also gives them a voice. Through its events, lounge culture and student-led communication channels, the organization creates space for graduate students to share ideas, raise concerns and help shape the department around them.

Hoover sees that support show up in both the big moments and the smaller ones.

"Primarily, PGSA facilitates grad students meeting and supporting each other, whether that looks like eating lunch together in the lounge while stepping away from their lab for a breath, competing in a chess tournament, or weekly coffee hours," Hoover said.

Comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS) as observed from the PGSA Exploration Acres Trip. (Photo provided by/Danielle Dickinson)

Looking ahead, PGSA hopes to continue growing those connections, including building stronger ties with undergraduate student groups such as the Society of Physics Students. That forward-looking mindset fits the organization well. PGSA continues to evolve with the needs of the students it serves, offering a mix of community, support and opportunity that helps make graduate life in Purdue Physics and Astronomy feel more connected.

For students navigating one of the most demanding academic paths on campus, that kind of community can make all the difference.

All physics grad students are part of PGSA. They recommend joining their Discord and coming to events!