It is so wonderful to be able to send this email out to SO many students. I hope you are all doing well. We have some new students joining us in the spring of 2026 and I'm thrilled to be able to welcome you all. Please read this email for some very important updates.
GRADUATE ASSISTANTSHIPS
While the final decisions about how many graders and/or graduate assistantships we will have to offer at the Erickson School are still being made, I highly recommend that students complete their profiles on Handshake. All job opportunities at UMBC are made public through this platform which can be accessed here: https://careers.umbc.edu/students/handshake/
If you are a new student who has not yet registered for fall classes but have been accepted to ESAS, you can start your account. All features of Handshake will be made available to you upon completion of your registration.
SPRING 2026 COURSE REGISTRATION
Registration for the Spring 2026 semester is starting. Your registration window opens according to how many credit hours you have completed. Here is the schedule:
Date Time Students Eligible
10/27/2025 11:30am 30 or greater earned credits
10/27/2025 3:30pm 22 or greater earned credits
10/28/2025 11:30am 14 or greater earned credits
10/28/2025 3:30pm .01 or greater earned credits
10/29/2025 11:30am Continuing students with 0 earned credits
12/01/2025 11:30am Newly admitted students with 0 earned credits
I have attached the course offerings flyer for our AGNG graduate courses to this email. If you are uncertain about which courses to take, please schedule an appointment with me prior to registering. I am always happy to meet and to review your degree progression.
IMPORTANT GROUPS TO ADD ON MYUMBC
For those of you who are new to UMBC, the "Groups" pages. I would highly recommend you subscribe to.
UMBC Graduate Student Association
https://my3.my.umbc.edu/groups/gsa/events
Please know my door is always open and I am eager to support you in your degree/certificate pursuits.
Sincerely - Lee Ann Steffen, PhD, Director of Graduate Programs, Erickson School of Aging Studies