The Buscadores Program: Graduate School Application Writing Support and Mentorship

In any discipline. For any essay prompt. We're here for you.

Mission Statement

The Buscadores (Searchers) Program assists all students applying to graduate school, medical school, law school, and other professional (and prestigious) opportunities. Experienced University Writing Program faculty guide students searching for future career opportunities that require advanced degrees by teaching the “hidden” curriculum of application essays. We provide equitable and inclusive opportunities for success through a series of workshops, writing labs, and 1:1 faculty mentoring focused on all forms of the application essay. We welcome UCR students at any stage of the writing process!

This program is free of charge and open to all current and former UCR students.

Student Success Stories: See where UCR students went, and which programs they were admitted into

Spring 2025 Schedule

We provide writing support for:

Graduate School Applications
Medical School Applications, including residency applications
Law School Applications
Professional Applications
Prestigious Programs and Scholarship Applications

Spring 2025 Schedule Preview

Where-to-Start Workshops

April 10th, Thursday, 2:00 pm to 3:00 pm

April 18th, Friday, 3:00 pm to 4:00 pm

April 28th, Monday, 12:00 pm to 1:00 pm

May 7th, Wednesday, 1:00 pm to 2:00 pm

May 16th, Friday, 11:00 am to 12:00 pm

May 19th, Monday, 12:00 pm to 1:00 pm

June 6th, Friday, 11:00 am to 12:00 pm

More opportunities for support may be added on the RSVP Sign-Up Form. Access the Form for more details.

WHY YOU SHOULD SIGN UP:

We're an experienced team of University Writing Program instructors who will provide writing support as you complete your graduate school application essays. We can guide you through any stage of the writing process. Our series of workshops, labs, and 1:1 mentoring is designed with you and your schedule in mind. Come join us!

Ask-Me-Anything Writing Labs

April 15th, Tuesday, 2:00 pm to 4:00 pm

May 1st, Thursday, 2:00 pm to 4:00 pm

May 7th, Wednesday, 2:00 pm to 4:00 pm

May 13th, Tuesday, 2:30 pm to 4:30 pm

May 20th, Tuesday, 3:00 pm to 5:00 pm

May 29th, Thursday, 1:00 pm to 3:00 pm

June 4th, Wednesday, 2:00 pm to 4:00 pm

More opportunities for support may be added on the RSVP Sign-Up Form. Access the Form for more details.

One-on-One Mentoring

location varies

Once you connect with a UWP mentor, both of you can arrange your meetings based on your availability. Your mentor can work with your schedule.

Grad App Mentors

Show entries

Search:

Mentor Name	Email Contact	Compositional Specialties/ Areas of Interest
Dr. Clare O’Brien	clare.obrien@email.ucr.edu	Comparative Literature with a focus in Arabic, Medieval Spanish, and German, Translation, and World Literature. Having taught both Arabic and English to native, heritage, and non-native language speakers, I aim to help students incorporate their skills and experiences into their professional goals.
Dr. Elizabeth Stela McDonald	emcdo001@ucr.edu	Research interests include: popular and traditional music; ethnography; oral history; transnationalism; Japanese migration; Brazilian history; gender and sexuality studies; phenomenology; grant writing and other job materials. Personal interests include early childhood education, and nature in Southern California.
Dr. Grant Palmer	grant.palmer@ucr.edu	Technocultural theory, American and British literature, American film, video game studies, media studies, queer theory, gender and sexuality, biopolitics, critical theory, and digital media.
Dr. Jennie Friedrich	jfrie005@ucr.edu	MA in English/Writing with a creative emphasis, and experience with psychology and genres of writing relating to fundraising (not strictly grants); medieval history and literature; disability studies; dogs and dog training; music and creative writing; records and turntables
Dr. John Acker	johna@ucr.edu	Professional nerd. Specialties in business writing, copyediting/proofreading, religion and literature, and 19th-century American literature.
Dr. Kathy Hardun	khard004@ucr.edu	Medieval literature and history, Early Modern literature, queer theory and LGBTQ+ history, French, science writing, application materials (job, graduate school, etc.).
Dr. Raymund Papica	rpapi001@ucr.edu	Program Lead for the Buscadores Grad App Writing Support and Writing Across the Curriculum. Specializes in medieval and early modern literature, graphic novels, comics, science writing, science fiction, and digital media (film, games, etc.).
Dr. Stephanie Fousek	sfous001@ucr.edu	Personal narrative, creative nonfiction, Latin American literature, psychology, meditation/ mindfulness, printmaking
Dr. Todd Luce	tluce002@ucr.edu	Environmental history and history of the American west, borderlands, and Southern California. Personal narrative, noir fiction, and post-colonial literature are areas of great interest.
Dr. Vlad Sirbu	vlad.sirbu@email.ucr.edu	Comparative Literature with a focus on German, Chinese, and English, Horror Films, and Interdisciplinary Media Studies. I am also seasoned in International Education Systems (Spain, Germany, China, and the US) and grad school applications across multiple languages and cultures. My interests include the challenges international students and non-native English speakers face in American academia. Language proficiencies: English, Spanish, German, Chinese, Italian, and Romanian.

Showing 1 to 10 of 10 entries

Contact Us

Raymund Papica, Ph.D.

UWP Associate Director
Writing Across the Curriculum Coordinator

University Writing Program

raymund.papica@ucr.edu