BGS Career Development

Making It Count!

Rebecca Lopez

iBiology: “Let’s Experiment: A Guide for Scientists Working at the Bench”

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iBiology is offering a free, 6-week online course that teaches how to think through the design and execution of experiments.

Scientists from a variety of backgrounds give concrete steps and advice to help you build a framework for how to design experiments in biological research. Case studies make the abstract more tangible. In science, there is often no simple right answer. However, with this course, you can develop a general approach to experimental design and understand what you are getting into before you begin.

By the end of this course, you will have:

  • A detailed plan for your experiment(s) that you can discuss with a mentor.
  • A flowchart for how to prioritize experiments.
  • Tips and best practices for how to get started with an experiment.
  • A lab notebook template that is so impressively organized, it will make your colleagues envious.
  • A framework to do rigorous, reproducible research.

The course is built with a busy schedule in mind and is designed to take 1.5 to 3 hours per week. It begins Tuesday, February 19, 2019. Content will be released week-by-week each Tuesday.

For more details and to register, click here.

Nature: “How to give a great scientific talk”

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Nature research journal has provided an online career guide on how to give a great scientific talk. As the author notes, “The gut-punch feeling of dread that the prospect of being on stage can trigger will be familiar to many early-career scientists.” Still, the ability to present one’s research with clarity not only helps to cement one’s own understanding of their subject matter, it can also help attract collaborators at conferences.

The article provides tips and suggestions on how to develop public speaking skills and keep calm in front of an audience.

Read more here.

ASBMB, “Industry Careers: Medical science liaison”

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The American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology developed a guide for those interested in the career path of medical science liaisons. They provide the following overview of the role and responsibilities:

“MSLs play an integral role as part of the medical affairs team to serve as a subject matter expert within a specific therapeutic area (e.g., cancer biology, autoimmune diseases). They educate internal (e.g., sales and marketing) and external (e.g., physicians) stakeholders on the most updated scientific and clinical data and best use of products (e.g., drug treatment, medical device), gather pertinent clinical insights from healthcare practitioners to inform product needs, and establish relationships with key opinion leaders across the field.”(Via ASBMB)

The post also delves into salary information, typical work schedules (flexible, with remote working opportunities and lots of traveling), qualifications, and various resources to learn more about the MSL career path and where to find open job postings. Students strongly considering this field may be especially interested in the Interactive Simulation Exercises for Career Transitions website, which contains job-simulation exercises.

Read more here.  

CTL: Teaching Outside Your Area of Expertise

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Dr. Heath Schmidt, Associated Professor of Nursing and Psychiatry, and Katerina Placek, CTL Graduate Fellow

At some point in your academic career in the biomedical sciences, you are likely to be asked to teach a topic outside of your particular specialization. This may include serving as a teaching assistant on an upper-level course that covers material far removed from your graduate dissertation work, or leading an introductory survey course spanning a wide variety of topics. In this workshop, Dr. Heath Schmidt will draw on his teaching experiences as a graduate student, postdoc, and faculty member to help workshop attendees meet this challenge, with an emphasis on skills you can develop and use in your teaching.

Counts toward the CTL Teaching Certificate.
Contact Katerina Placek for more information.

When: February 21 2019, 11:00 am to 12:30 pm
Where: BRB 1201
Please RSVP here to attend!

Career Services: Negotiating for Faculty Positions and Postdocs

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Have you ever negotiated with an employer for salary or a job offer? Have you done it successfully? A Career Services counselor will discuss strategies for what to think about and do when you interview and when you receive an offer. This workshop will address:

  • The basic principles of successful negotiation
  • What can be negotiated
  • How should you respond when offered a position


We also have online resources on negotiating academic job offers, please visit: https://www.vpul.upenn.edu/careerservices//careerfields/academicfaculty.php

When: February 19, 2019, 12 – 1:30 PM

Where: McNeil Building Conference Room 97

Register here

PGWISE Female Leadership Career Panel

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Please join Penn Graduate Women in Science & Engineering (PGWISE), Wharton Healthcare Club, and Wharton Women in Business (WWIB) at a panel discussion exploring leadership and careers in healthcare and biomedical sciences. Students from PGWISE and the Wharton Healthcare Club will moderate a discussion with:

HEATHER STEINMAN, PHD, MBA
The Executive Director of Technology Transfer and the VP of
Business Development at the Wistar Institute

DORA MITCHELL, PHD
The Vice President of Operations at Carisma Therapeutics

LINDA MILLER, PHD
Senior Director of Strategic Planning at CHOP; former Engagement
Manager at McKinsey

When: February 19th, 2019 at 4:30 – 6:00 PM
Where: The Wistar Institute Caplan Auditorium

Please RSVP here!

Age 21+ Reception Prior to Panel Discussion (starting at 4:00 PM in the Wistar atrium)!