What Comes Next? Career & Life Choices After Your Postdoc

January 24, 2023

Being a postdoc, and eventually a postdoc alum, is only one part of who you are. Building a career is only one part of building a life. Making the right choices headed into your first permanent position, while balancing work and life demands, can be difficult. Peter Loge, whose career includes serving in senior staff positions in Congress and the Obama administration, writing a book explaining how soccer can make people better managers, and advising organizations ranging from American Farmland Trust and America's Funniest Home Videos to WickedCoolStuff.com and the World Wildlife Fund, will lead a conversation about how to build and balance your life and career.

Speaker: Peter Loge, M.A., M.S., associate professor of media and public affairs; associate director, School of Media and Public Affairs, The George Washington University; strategic consultant

Industry

February 28, 2023

Many postdocs wonder about the pathway into industry without ways to learn the truth about the journey. Join two leaders from industry as they share their thoughts on the current industry postdoc landscape, discuss misconceptions about postdocs and careers in industry, clarify differences between industry and academic postdocs and positions, offer recommendations to postdocs seeking to enter industry positions, and provide insights on future trends that may affect postdocs in industry. This is intended as a collaborative discussion so bring your questions!

Speakers: Ian Mangion, Ph.D., distinguished scientist, process R&D enabling technologies, Merck; Christopher J Rhodes, Ph.D., chief scientist, research and early development, cardiovascular, renal and metabolism, biopharmaceuticals R&D, chair, AstraZeneca’s postdoc programme, AstraZeneca

Take Charge of your Immigration Education

March 28, 2023

Your career success as an international postdoc in the United States depends not only on your skills, credentials, and experience but also on your ability to obtain a work visa or permanent residency as fast as possible. To secure the proper immigration status, you need to assemble an immigration portfolio, similar to a job application package. An immigration portfolio helps you stand out and includes evidence of your credentials, work experience, international recognition, and the importance of your work. Unlike job packages, immigration portfolios are more robust and less understood. Preparing an immigration portfolio is like building a network--it takes time, effort, and knowledge. Come learn how to use your professional development activities to create an immigration portfolio by prioritizing activities that satisfy the immigration criteria for substantial merit or the National Interest Waiver while increasing competitiveness for diverse careers.

Speakers: Natalie Chernets, Ph.D., director of postdoctoral affairs & professional development, associate director, MD/Ph.D. program, assistant professor, College of Medicine, Drexel University; Paola Cépeda, Ph.D., director, Office of Postdoctoral Affairs, Washington University in St. Louis School of Medicine, International Officer, NPA

Unconscious Bias and Beyond

April 25, 2023

Biases and barriers at an interpersonal and systemic level impacts an individual's growth, successful interactions between teams, and mismatch in expectations. In this talk we will discuss the impact of compounding barriers, including unconscious bias, that affect the culture of science, society and innovation.

Speaker: Srikant Iyer, Ph.D., director, Workforce Development and Education Partnerships, Life Science Washington

Maximizing Your Time (As a Postdoc)

May 23, 2023

Postdoc appointments simultaneously offer great opportunities for growth and great demands on your time. How do you make sure you are using this limited window of opportunity effectively? In this class, we will cover time management at two different scales. First, you’ll learn how to balance the day-to-day demands for your attention. Second, you’ll gain insight into planning the trajectory of your training to make the most of a relatively short period in your career.

Speaker: Wesley Marner II, Ph.D., educational programs manager, Morgridge Institute for Research

Recipe for Success: How to Mentor-- and be Mentored

June 27, 2023

Everyone finds themselves in the role of being mentored and of being considered a mentor, critical components of success at work and in life. This is explicitly true of postdoctoral fellows – they serve as mentors to undergrads, graduate students and postdocs, while also seeking guidance from their peers and faculty mentors. However, few of us have been formally trained to be a mentor. This session will cover best practices in both identifying mentors and being a successful mentor. At the completion of the session, participants will leave with an understanding of the properties of the outstanding (and not so outstanding!) mentors in their life.

Speaker: Bill Mahoney, Ph.D., associate dean, graduate student and postdoctoral affairs, UW Graduate School; associate professor, laboratory medicine & pathology, UW School of Medicine; director, Molecular Medicine & Mechanisms of Disease (M3D) PhD Program

Developing Your EQ for Professional Success

July 25, 2023

Emotional intelligence is the ability to identify and regulate one's emotions and understand the emotions of others. This is relevant as it allows you to communicate effectively, empathize with others, and be both self and socially aware. This talk will discuss emotional intelligence (EQ) and its impact on career success, job performance, and stronger mental health. Participants will learn the definition of EQ & understand how it differs from IQ, be introduced to the four parts of EQ, and acquire ways to develop and strengthen EQ, including increasing self-awareness, developing empathy, identifying emotions, and embracing differences.

Speaker: Diane A. Safer, Ph.D., director, career and professional development for graduate students & postdocs; assistant professor, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Albert Einstein College of Medicine

Professional Networking in the Digital Age

August 22, 2023

In today’s digital world, professional networking has become essential for career success. This workshop will provide participants with valuable insights and practical strategies to navigate the digital landscape and build a strong professional network. Postdocs will learn how to create a compelling online presence that showcases their skills and expertise, attracting relevant connections. They will also discover how to tap into digital networks to uncover job opportunities and foster professional growth.

Speaker: Karin Lawton-Dunn, M.S., senior career services specialist, Graduate & Postdoctoral Career Services, Graduate College, Iowa State University

Transitioning Out of Your Postdoc

September 26, 2023

How can you best prepare oneself for entering a full-time, permanent position after your postdoc. What professional skills do you need to succeed? How should you approach career exploration to best succeed in finding the right position?

Speaker: Chanelle Case Borden, Ph.D., associate director of training programs, National Cancer Institute

Obtaining a Faculty Position

October 24, 2023

Progressing from postdoctoral training to a faculty appointment is a daunting transition, and may be especially challenging to those who have followed a less-than-conventional path or whose peers have lost interest in academic careers. How should you prepare for and progress through the application process, which takes approximately one year, and what should you expect at each step? Good preparation and careful planning are important, as is managing expectations to avoid becoming discouraged early in the process. We will cover how to go about choosing, applying, interviewing, negotiating, transitioning, and getting started in your faculty position.

Speaker: Jim O. Vigoreaux, Ph.D., Breazzano Family Green & Gold Professor of Biology, joint professor of molecular physiology & biophysics, University of Vermont

Science Writing: The Craft and Career Pathways

November 28, 2023

Sponsored by RISE UPP

This talk will make you more aware of the variety of jobs across diverse settings for communicating science. But how does one get started? Learn how to find opportunities to do science writing during your postdoc (and get published). Find out how to be more efficient via techniques and tools, including AI language chatbots such as ChatGPT. Learn about courses, fellowships, and mentorship programs if you want to dive deeper into science communications. Attendees will leave with a list of resources and are welcome to bring questions. There will be time for Q&A at the end of the talk.

At the end of this class, you will be able to:

1. Describe careers and common pathways in science communications
2. Identify science writing opportunities (and get published)
3. Recognize best practices to communicate with the general public
4. Apply techniques and tools to improve your writing and editing
5. Access resources (e.g., style guidelines, professional organizations)

Speaker: Ellen Kuwana, M.S., scientific writer and editor, Kuwana Consulting LLC

Leadership and Management in Scholarly Research

December 19, 2023

Sponsored by RISE UPP

Graduate school and postdoctoral training are designed to make you an independent researcher or scientist, ready to tackle pressing questions and drive cutting-edge research. But running your own research projects and leading a team involves more than applying your scientific skills; it requires managing both people and projects. In this workshop we will discuss approaches to being a leader and a manager, and how to guide and mentor the students, postdocs, and staff that will eventually be part of your amazing, successful team!

• Describe the differences between leadership, project management, and personnel management.
• Summarize how vision and mission statements help direct successful, strategic leadership.
• Define directive and supportive behaviors in a leadership context and describe approaches to applying them to the different types of individuals (students, postdocs, staff) that work in research groups.

Speaker: Garth A. Fowler, Ph.D., associate director of systems, process, and analytics, Office of Human Resources, Northwestern University