Career Preparation and Exploration for
BGS Students
Mike Nusbaum
BGS Director
August, 2014
Elements of Career Preparation & Exploration
1. Development of Research-Specific Skills:
(http://www.med.upenn.edu/ngg/user_docs/InteractiveLearning.pdf)
• Fundamental biomedical knowledge (Core Breadth):
Cell Biology, Biochemistry, Molecular Biology.
• Grounding in graduate program discipline (Depth).
• Experimental design, performance and analysis (Rotations).
• Biostatistics.
Elements of Career Preparation & Exploration
2. Development of Research-Related Skills:
• Critical reading of scientific literature.
o Lab Meetings, Journal Clubs, etc.
• Science-related communication skills:
o Asking Questions
o Talks
(http://www.med.upenn.edu/ngg/user_docs/TalkPreparationandPresentation.pdf)
o Posters
o Manuscripts
o Grant proposals
• Publishing: Learning how to “finish” a piece of work.
Elements of Career Preparation & Exploration
3. Individual Development Plans (IDPs). The aim of an IDP is
to help students develop and refine their career interests and
goals throughout their PhD training.
To ensure that:
• Students and mentors communicate openly.
• Students are working proactively toward developing the
skills they will need to succeed.
(http://www.med.upenn.edu/bgs/idp.shtml)
Elements of Career Preparation & Exploration
IDP - Junior Students (Year 1-2 PhD, Year 3 combined degree)
Elements of Career Preparation & Exploration
IDP - Junior Students (Year 1-2 PhD, Year 3 combined degree)
A. Skills and Motivations
PRIVATE – USE THESE QUESTIONS TO GUIDE DISCUSSION, NO WRITTEN
ANSWERS NEEDED
Questions for junior students


What aspect(s) of graduate school are you most
worried about? Would you like to be assigned a
tutor to help with coursework?
What aspect(s) of graduate school are you most
excited about?

What research areas most interest you?

What type of lab environment is most appealing to
you?

Have you identified a suitable rotation/thesis lab?

What types of long-term careers interest you?
Elements of Career Preparation & Exploration
IDP - Junior Students (Year 1-2 PhD, Year 3 combined degree)
B. Plans/Goals for the Coming Year
PART OF YOUR ACADEMIC RECORD –
Plans/Goals
Courses
Rotations
Fellowship applications
Seminar series or journal
clubs to attend
Oral presentations
Poster presentations
Teaching experience
Community service/
leadership experience
Responsible Conduct of
Research training (RCR)
Clinical training
Other
Fall semester
Spring semester
Elements of Career Preparation & Exploration
IDP – Thesis-Level Students (Years 3+ PhD, Years 4+ CD)
A. Skills, Motivations and Career Planning
PRIVATE DOCUMENT – between student and mentor only.
Student and mentor should independently fill out Part A1 and
then compare/discuss. Use to assess training needs and guide your
preparation of the IDP in Parts B & C.
Elements of Career Preparation & Exploration
IDP – Thesis-Level Students (Years 3+ PhD, Years 4+ CD)
A. Skills, Motivations and Career Planning
At the bench
Designing experiments
Prioritizing & completing experiments
Working with others
Lab citizenship
Collaborative interactions
Conflict resolution
Communication
Informal interactions
Oral presentations
Learning
Seminar and journal club attendance
Active participation: group discussions
Motivation
Enjoy working in the lab
Feel I am being creative
My biggest worry is:
I’m most excited or proud about:
Strong
Medium
Weak
Strong
Medium
Weak
Strong
Medium
Weak
Strong
Medium
Weak
Yes
Medium
No
Elements of Career Preparation & Exploration
IDP – Thesis-Level Students (Years 3+ PhD, Years 4+ CD)
A. Skills, Motivations and Career Planning
A2. Career planning
When do I aim to finish my PhD?
Or, for CDs, when do I aim to finish my PhD and return to clinics?
What type of work would I like to be doing immediately after my
PhD? (postdoc or other?)
What types of long-term careers interest me?
What is important to me in a career?
What skills are most important for my desired career?
Who are my best role models or networking contacts for that career?
How can my thesis mentor best help me to further my career?
Elements of Career Preparation & Exploration
IDP – Thesis-Level Students (Years 3+ PhD, Years 4+ CD)
B. Achievements and Plans/Goals
PART OF ACADEMIC RECORD – SUBMIT TO GRAD GROUP OFFICE AND
THESIS COMMITTEE.
Elements of Career Preparation & Exploration
IDP – Thesis-Level Students (Years 3+ PhD, Years 4+ CD)
B. Achievements and Plans/Goals
Achievements
Courses
Publications
Fellowships (applied for or awarded)
Conferences or seminar series
Oral presentations
Poster presentations
Teaching experience
Community service/leadership experience
Responsible Conduct of Research Training (RCR)
Clinical training
Job applications/PhD defense
Other
Last period
(accomplished)
Next period
(planned)
Elements of Career Preparation & Exploration
IDP – Thesis-Level Students (Years 3+ PhD, Years 4+ CD)
C. Skills to Improve
PART OF ACADEMIC RECORD – SUBMIT TO GRAD GROUP OFFICE AND
THESIS COMMITTEE.
• Identify specific skills and strengths that you need to develop.
• Define concrete actions to help.
• Develop these specific skills and strengths.
Elements of Career Preparation & Exploration
IDP – Thesis-Level Students (Years 3+ PhD, Years 4+ CD)
C. Skills to Improve
Skills to improve
At the bench
Working with others
Communication
Learning
Motivation
Action(s)
Time frame
Elements of Career Preparation & Exploration
4. Exploration of Career Options:
• Career Services Programming: Career workshops, Biomed
Career Fair, etc.
• Biomedical Graduate Student Association (BGSA) and other
student groups’ alumni career talks (e.g., EEJust, PGWISE).
• Graduate Group- and Training Grant-specific career options
workshops.
• Discussions with Graduate Group Chair, Thesis Advisor, and
Thesis Committee.
Elements of Career Preparation & Exploration
5. Job Search Support via Career Services :
• Biomedical job list serve
• Workshops in CV and résumé preparation and giving a job
talk
• One-on-one career advising
• Network of alumni who are willing to talk with current
students about opportunities
Elements of Career Preparation & Exploration
6. Optional BGS Certificate Programs:
• Graduate Training in Medical Science Program
Program Directors: John Lynch and Hao Shen
• Public Health Certificate Program
Program Directors: Hillary Nelson and Mike Levy
• Environmental Health Sciences Program
Program Directors: Trevor Penning
• Certificate in Translational Research
Program Director: Emma Meagher
Elements of Career Preparation & Exploration
7. Other Optional Programs
• Opportunity to Teach (required in NGG, optional in other
groups)
• Teaching Certificate from the Center for Teaching and
Learning (CTL)
• Center for Technology Transfer (CTT) Fellows Program
Elements of Career Preparation & Exploration
The CTL Certificate requires:
1. Pedagogical Discussion and Training
Complete CTL-approved teaching workshops/programs.
2. Teaching Experience
Complete at least 2 semesters as a TA or instructor.
3. Observation and Review
Have a full teaching session observed and reviewed by CTL staff.
4. Teaching Philosophy
Participants must develop a statement of teaching philosophy and
discuss it in a CTL session culminating the certificate program.
Elements of Career Preparation & Exploration
The Center for Technology Transfer (CTT) Fellows Program:
• A program in tech transfer for scientifically-trained Penn Grad
Students & Postdocs in which Fellows allocate 5 – 10 hrs/week to
projects at their own discretion. Assignments are completed
remotely.
Instructional component: All fellows participate in a seminar course
"Biotechnology commercialization: the path from invention to market".
Fellows participate in an intensive training workshop which provides the
necessary elements to perform assessments of new technologies at CTT.
Experiential component: Fellows participate in a paid intern program
focused on assessing technical, commercial & IP aspects of technologies
at Penn, and assisting in development of commercialization strategies
for these technologies.
Elements of Career Preparation & Exploration
8. Opportunity to Take Penn Non-Science Courses to explore
areas such as:
• Science policy
• Patent law
• Business
Elements of Career Preparation & Exploration
9. Penn Grad Student Groups: Parallel Career Paths
• Penn Science Policy Group:
http://pennsciencepolicy.blogspot.com/
• Penn Biotech Group Healthcare Consulting:
http://pbgconsulting.org/
• Plus Others (e.g. BGSA, EE Just, PG-WISE):
http://www.med.upenn.edu/bgs/current_students_groups.shtml
Elements of Career Preparation & Exploration
Penn Science Policy Group:
http://pennsciencepolicy.blogspot.com/
• Penn science students and faculty discuss issues regarding
the intersection of science, society, and public policy.
• The blog provides :
o Updates on discussions from meetings.
o A forum for members to express opinions on topics
ranging from the public perception of science, science
education, advances in science, the bioethical questions
these raise, and much more.
Elements of Career Preparation & Exploration
Penn Biotech Group Healthcare Consulting:
http://pbgconsulting.org/
Where Science and Business Meet
• Penn Biotech Group (PBG) is a cross-disciplinary student run
organization at Penn.
• We focus on addressing the challenges and obstacles facing the
biotechnology industry today.
• We provide our members with education, real-world experience and
networking opportunities to enrich their exposure within the
biotechnology arena.
Elements of Career Preparation & Exploration
Plus Others (e.g. BGSA, EE Just, PG-WISE):
http://www.med.upenn.edu/bgs/current_students_groups.shtml
The End
Any Questions?