The COMPASS Career Subcommittee is truly excited to bring a bevy of helpful resources to the annual meeting this year. We have given a lot of thought to what students and postdocs like ourselves want, regardless of whether we’re in the beginning, middle, or end of our training. The offerings this year include one-on-one career coaching, CV review, discussion tables and networking sessions with popular employers of life science PhDs.
The COMPASS Career Subcommittee is truly excited to bring a bevy of helpful resources to the annual meeting this year. We have given a lot of thought to what students and postdocs like ourselves want, regardless of whether we’re in the beginning, middle, or end of our training. The offerings this year include one-on-one career coaching, CV review, discussion tables and networking sessions with popular employers of life science PhDs.
One of our most exciting additions to this year’s Career Center is a dedicated career coach. Toby Freedman, author of the book Career Opportunities in Biotechnology and Drug Development, is coming to New Orleans to help ASCB trainees navigate the complex world of opportunities for life science PhDs. Toby’s book has become a popular resource, and her background also includes founding a life science recruiting firm. If you are starting to consider what may be out there after the PhD or postdoc, Toby is the person to talk to! If you’re beyond that point, but still need help applying for a job, then we will also have experienced ASCB members on hand to help you hone your CV. Whatever your stage, we have people on hand to help.
In addition to the one-on-one help, we will also be hosting career panels on patent law and intellectual property, business management, science policy, and research administration. We’ll be hearing from successful members in these different professions on how they arrived at their current positions as well as what their current field is all about. Attendees will be able to ask questions to get further insight into each career direction.
Every year, a large number of exciting companies come to the annual meeting to talk with you as a potential customer. We’re turning the tables this year by asking a select few of them to meet you as a potential colleague. Starting at 11:00 am on Monday, representatives from Enzo, Addgene, Zeiss, Fisher, Nikon, and GE will be giving short presentations and answering questions about life at their company. You can also meet with a number of employers more informally at 5:00 pm on Monday during a happy hour.
We would also like to highlight a management seminar led by Joanne Kamens, director of Addgene. Joanne travels widely, giving talks on a number of different issues in the management of science. This year, she will be leading a workshop called Management 101 for Scientists on Monday at 2:00 pm, designed to provide some helpful resources on how to effectively manage science.
COMPASS has also joined forces with the Women in Cell Biology and Education Committees to produce this year’s mentoring theater to be held on Sunday at 2:30 pm. We will be humorously tackling interviewing for academia and industry by employing an excited group of thespians: Tim Mitchison, John Pringle, Clare Waterman, Katherine Schmeidler, Lucy O’Brien, Tracie Gibson, Sophia Gayek, and Pinar Gurel. Come have a good laugh and learn how not to, and how to, interview!
That might sound like a lot, but there’s so much more that we just can’t cover in this article. We’ve highlighted some of the most exciting events, but please check out all the events in the professional development track (for more detail go to “Browse Sessions by Thread” in the app). Looking forward to seeing you in the Career Center soon!
About the Author:
Kellyann Jones-Jamtgaard is a graduate student at the University of Kansas Medical Center in the department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Molecular Genetics. Her research focuses on how Hepatitis C Virus modulates host cell trafficking. Kellyann serves as the COMPASS liaison to ASCB's Public Policy Committee.
