Postdoctoral Professional Development Events
CURRENT EVENTS
OCTOBER 2020
CAREERS IN ACADEMIA
A Postdoc’s Journey: F32s and Faculty Applications
Kathleen Grogan is an anthropological geneticist who studies how environmental change interacts with genomic variation to affect fitness in humans and endangered primates. She obtained her B.S. from Vanderbilt University and her Ph.D. from Duke University before completing an IRACDA postdoctoral fellowship at Emory University followed by an F32 postdoctoral fellowship at Pennsylvania State University. This fall, she began a position as a tenure-track Assistant Professor at the University of Cincinnati.
Register at https://forms.gle/jenSKKPYDHrLLUGb7
CAREERS IN NON-PROFIT RESEARCH
Journey of a neuroscientist from Penn State: Careers in Nonprofit Research
October 2, 2020 at noon ET via Zoom
The Office of Postdoctoral Affairs is pleased to offer a webinar on careers in non-profit research.
Join Dr. Lauren Chaby, Senior Scientific Program Manager, Cohens Veterans Bioscience for a discussion of how to identify your career plan A, plan B, and plan C, as well as practical considerations for how to approach finding a career outside of academia.
Dr. Chaby is a neuroscientist trained at Penn State; she transitioned from an academic postdoctoral position to become a Scientific Program Manager at a leading non-profit research organization.
Bring your questions for this interactive discussion of career paths available to you! Register at https://forms.gle/f9kg4nGvV6o4gd2r8
SEPTEMBER 2020
Annual Postdoc Research Exhibition
PAST EVENTS
AUGUST 2020
Webinar on Vocal Yoga
JULY 2020
Webinars on creating effective presentations and persuasive writing
JUNE 2020
MENTORSHIP DEVELOPMENT
The Office of Postdoctoral Affairs is organizing workshops on topics related to mentorship for postdocs and assistant research professors. These workshops would be of interest to those who are currently supervising researchers (undergrads or graduate students) or intend to do so. Individuals can register for any of the sessions and topics. Those who attend both these topics in June and the one on Diversity in July( date to be announced in mid-June), complete the activities associated with the webinars will receive a certificate of attendance from the Office of Postdoctoral Affairs.
The workshop will help postdocs develop strategies and skills around- Aligning Expectations, Maintaining Effective Communication with mentees and understanding diversity.
The workshop is relevant to researchers from all departments and disciplines. The workshop will be facilitated by faculty members and staff trained through NIH funded National Research Mentoring Network and Big Ten Academic Alliance collaborative grant
JUNE 11, from 12:30 p.m. to 2:00 p.m. on ALIGNING EXPECTATIONS by Prof. Stephen Schaeffer, Department of Biology.
Setting expectations and working in teams remotely will also be discussed.
ZOOM Link will be sent on June 10, 2020.
JUNE 12, 2020, from 12:30 p.m. to 2:00 p.m. on COMMUNICATION by Prof. Eric Hudson, Department of Physics.
ZOOM Link will be sent on June 11, 2020
VISA AND IMMIGRATION QUESTIONS
Ms. Bernadette Bove, J-1 visa advisor, Office of Global Programs will present and discuss visa related questions on June 19th, 2020 from 12:30 p.m. to 1:30 p.m.
Registration link: https://forms.gle/
MAY 2020
CRAFT YOUR RESUME AND COVER LETTER FOR INDUSTRY CAREERS
May 12, 2020, Noon to 1:30 p.m.
https://forms.gle/qRMo8iAS92cc8Yct9
Presented by Pallavi, Eswara, Director, Office of Postdoctoral Affairs
Registration ends at 11 a.m. and a Zoom link will be emailed then to those registered.
CAREERS IN CONSULTING AND INDUSTRY
The Office of Postdoctoral Affairs is pleased to announce a webinar on Consulting and beyond.
Dr. Tetzlaff and Dr.Molino from Medical College of Wisconsin will present about the formation, running of Catalyst, BioConsulting Club, involving postdoctoral researchers and graduate students. They will also discuss the leadership and training experiences that the club provides and how it prepares members for careers in industry.
Dr. Julie Tetzlaff, Associate Dean
Postdoctoral Affairs and Graduate Studies; Faculty Advisor of Catalyst BioConsulting Club, Medical College of Wisconsin
&
Dr. Salvatore Molino, Research Scientist,
Co-Manager, Catalyst BioConsulting Club, Medical College of Wisconsin
ON MAY 14, 2020, from 3:30 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.
APRIL 2020
WRITING YOUR STATEMENT OF TEACHING PHILOSOPHY
Office of Postdoctoral Affairs is presenting a webinar on Preparing Your Teaching Philosophy for the Job Market
April 3, 2020
Noon to 1:30 p.m. via Zoom
Larkin Hood, Ph.D., Instructional Consultant, Associate Research Professor
Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence
and
Sarah Cavallo, Ph.D. Teaching Assistant, Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence
Whether for a job search or professional development, a teaching philosophy statement is a powerful catalyst for reflecting upon one’s teaching. Past workshop participants say that the process of creating the document is as important as the finished work. In this workshop, participants will be asked to reflect on their values and goals as teachers, what their teaching looks like in action, and how students are changed as a result. This workshop can be helpful no matter how much or little you have already written or reflected upon your teaching.
Teaching philosophy statements are commonly used in hiring and tenure processes. This webinar will enable you to articulate your own distinctive approach to teaching. It will help participants who are not sure they even have a “philosophy” of their teaching, as well as participants who have already drafted a statement of their teaching philosophy.
MARCH EVENTS
RESUME, CV, WEBINARS AND CONSULTATIONS WITH OFFICE OF POSTDOCTORAL AFFAIRS
LANDSCAPE OF HIGHER EDUCATION INSTITUTIONS IN THE UNITED STATES
March 26, 2020
1:00 p.m. to 2:30 p.m.
ONLINE through Zoom. The link will be emailed to those registered.
If you are interested in applying for a tenure track faculty or a research faculty position in the near future, this seminar will be helpful for you.
The seminar will include information about the classification of higher education institutions in the United States, expectations of primarily undergraduate institutions, research-intensive universities, preparation/application package needed for faculty positions and related topics. Presented by Pallavi Eswara, Director, office of Postdoctoral Affairs.
FEBRUARY EVENTS
RESUME, CV WEBINARS AND CONSULTATIONS
WEBINAR ON CREATING YOUR IDP
JANUARY EVENTS
PANEL DISCUSSION ON “INTERVIEW AND BEYOND FOR FACULTY POSITIONS”
January 16, 2020, from 1:00 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. at 134 HUB.
Panelists are
Dr. Muzi Na, Assistant Professor, Department of Nutritional Sciences, College of Health and Human Development.
Dr. Ali Demirci, Professor, Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering, College of Engineering, College of Agricultural Sciences
Dr. Susan Sinnott, Head, Department of Material Science and Engineering, College of Earth and Mineral Sciences.
They will be presenting experiences, advice, the process of Skype, On Campus Interviews, Offer and Negotiation process. Each of them has their own lens - of a recent faculty member, a search committee chair and member, a department head.
There is also a possibility of Zooming the discussion for our postdocs who work remotely on-field or from research stations.
WEBINAR ON CAREERS IN DATA SCIENCE
Thursday, January 23, 2020 1:00 p.m.
Dr. Rong Ma, will be presenting a webinar on careers in data. He was an NSF Graduate Research Fellow in the Department of Integrative Biology at the University of Texas, and joined Penn State as a postdoc, focusing on bee sociogenomics. He recently completed a data science bootcamp and secured a position in data sciences subsequently. Data science is one of the fastest-growing job markets out there, and there are great job opportunities for biologists with a quantitative background. However, the path to becoming a data scientist can seem amorphous and non-intuitive. Dr. Ma will attempt to demystify data science career paths and boot camps by sharing experiences in making the transition. This will be an open discussion about what it means to be a data scientist and the necessary skills/perspectives to become one.
DECEMBER 2019
Webinar on Faculty Interviews
December 12, 2019, Noon to 1:00 p.m.
Presented by Dr. Guangsheng Zhang.
Dr. Guangsheng Zhang, Assistant Professor, Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Alabama, Huntsville will present his experiences and advice on interview preparation for faculty positions. r. His research focuses on in situ diagnosis and thermal management of batteries and fuel cells for electric vehicle, aerospace, and renewable energy storage applications. Before joining UAH, Dr. Zhang was a Research Associate (2013-2017) and a Postdoctoral Fellow (2011-2013) at The Pennsylvania State University, University Park and a Postdoctoral Fellow (2010-2011) at Rochester Institute of Technology. He received his Ph.D. in Power Engineering and Engineering Thermophysics (2010) from Xi’an Jiaotong University, China. Since 2010, he has participated in several projects funded by federal and state agencies including Department of Energy (DOE) and Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP). He has also collaborated with many industrial partners including BMW, EC Power, FORD, GM, and Johnson Controls.
Those interested can sign up here: https://forms.gle/pmD2HppJ6nX97RsQ9
Seminar on Careers in Data Science
Dec 12, 2019 at 1:00 p.m. in MSC W203
Organized by Prof. Christina Grozinger and Department of Entomology
Dr. Rong Ma, will be presenting a seminar on careers in data. He was an NSF Graduate Research Fellow in the Department of Integrative Biology at University of Texas, and joined Penn State as a postdoc, focusing on bee sociogenomics. He recently completed a data science bootcamp and secured a position in data sciences subsequently.
Data science is one of the fastest growing job markets out there, and there are great job opportunities for biologists with a quantitative background. However, the path to becoming a data scientist can seem amorphous and non-intuitive. Dr. Ma will attempt to demystify data science career paths and boot camps by sharing my experiences in making the transition. This will be an open discussion about what it means to be a data scientist and the necessary skills/perspectives to become one.
Interviewing for Non Academic Jobs
December 13, 2019 from 12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m. in 131 HUB
Presented by Pallavi Eswara, Office of Postdoctoral Affairs
This seminar will present on preparing for interviews in non-academic careers including responding to questions from HR, Hiring Manager and others. There will also be an interactive portion where attendees can prepare responses for behavior questions. This seminar will provide an opportunity to respond to questions around ideal work environment, strengths and weaknesses, overcoming challenges or questions that are outside of research expertise.
Those interested can sign up here: https://forms.gle/
Resources and Services Available to Postdocs
December 18, 2019 from Noon to 12:45 p.m. in 131 HUB
Presented by Pallavi Eswara, Director Office of Postdoctoral Affairs
Learn about Resources and Services available to postdocs at University Park. Walk-in, no registration necessary.
Individual Development Plan
December 18, 2019 from 1:00 p.m.-2:00 p.m. in 131 HUB
Know your strengths, interests, values and explore career options through this interactive session. Start building your own Individual Development Plan. Explore myIDP and Imagine PhD and other tools for creating Individual Development Plans and explore career paths. Open to postdoctoral fellows, scholars, assistant research professors from all disciplines.
Those interested in attending the workshop on Individual Development Plan can register here: https://forms.gle/
PAST EVENTS
NOVEMBER 2019
Sessions on Grant Writing
You may select any or all of the sessions to attend and register at https://forms.gle/
Seminars on NSF and NIH Grant writing
November 14, 2019, noon to 1:30 p.m. at 233 A HUB
Presented by
Dr. Erica Smithwick, Professor, Geography (NSF grants)
Dr. Scott Showalter, professor, Department of Chemistry (NIH grants, specifically R21 Tech and how the review committee works)
Webinar on Applying for Fellowships to Foundations
November 20, 2019 at 11:30 a.m.
by Dr. Raghav Poudyal, Postdoctoral Fellow, Department of Chemistry
Office of Postdoctoral Affairs will provide resources on fellowships and grants that international postdocs can apply.
Zoom link will be sent to those registered for the webinar.
Webinar on NIH Fellowships and Grants-F32, K99/ R00
November 21, 2019 at 11:30 a.m.
by Dr. Anna Stanhewicz, Assistant Professor, Human physiology, University of Iowa. Dr. Stanhewicz is a Penn State postdoc alum and a recipient of F32, K99 awards from NIH
Zoom link will be sent to those registered for the webinar.
OCTOBER 2019
Careers in Research Administration & Grant Writing
Wednesday, October 16 at 12:00 PM
Speaker is Dr. Shashank Priya, Associate VP for Research & Director of Strategic Interdisciplinary Office (SIRO); Professor, Material Science and Engineering
The Office of Postdoctoral Affairs and Strategic Interdisciplinary Research Office (SIRO) are offering a seminar about careers in research administration, grant writing and creating strategic collaborations in higher education institutions. The seminar will talk about what such positions involve, what skill sets one would need and impact of such positions in high education. Learn about working in SIRO at Penn State and career in research administration and grant writing.
