2) Group Culture and Principles

This section was written by past and current Webber Energy Group members to express our ambitions for the group culture and principles.

We strive to be highly group-oriented:

While research is nominally an independent exercise, we seek to do activities as a group and make decisions that support the group as a whole.
We are supportive of each other and provide appreciation and an appropriate level of constructive criticism of other members' work.
We are respectful and tolerant of others' personal, political, and religious beliefs.
We attend weekly group meetings, which are mandatory (except when they take place during the week of qualifying exams).
We attend fellow group members' presentations and talks on campus or at conferences to provide support and feedback.
We take the time to help each other and share knowledge.
We are always willing to give each other advice about classes, professors, journal publications, reference material, dentists. . . nearly anything, so do not be afraid to ask.

We conduct research that is conscious of, and communicates with, the world outside of basic science and engineering:

We are motivated to make the world better.
We are out to change the world.
We pay attention to the world outside of engineering and research (i.e. we stay up on current events).
We care about educating the public.
We realize that our research may differ from traditional engineering academics at times, and keep this in mind.
We seek to share our research beyond the typical conference/ journal publications, and make efforts to reach out to the target audience.
We are polite, tactful, and professional in our interactions with others.
We employ visual elements such as infographics and make extra effort to develop video material.
Our work often leads us to travel more than most graduate students. Be aware of this and try not to flaunt it.

We strive to do high-quality work, and be high-quality people:

We conduct research in accordance with the scientific method and without bias.
We commit to a high quantity and quality of publishing and presenting.
We ask good questions and find good answers.
We are dependable.
We make conscious effort to be helpful to the group, the University, Dr. Webber, and all of those around us. We realize our actions reflect upon these parties and conduct ourselves accordingly.
We are professionals who behave professionally.
We have annual goal-setting meetings with Dr. Webber to solidify personal directives and keep him aware of our intentions so that he can best support them.
We say “please” and “thank you.”

We strive to be well-rounded leaders and to develop ourselves outside of academics:

We are hard-working, well-rounded individuals.
We like to be social and have fun.
We are typically involved in our communities and extracurricular activities.
We make service, outreach, and giving back to the community a priority outside of research and classes.
We are encouraged to take non-traditional classes.
We care about and have fun with what we do. It’s not “just a project” or “just a degree.”