BGS Career Development

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PSPDG, “How to Meet with Your Representative”

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The Penn Science Policy and Diplomacy Group (PSPDG) will host a workshop with Hannah Silverfine from the Union of Concerned Scientists. 

This workshop is aimed at anyone who is interested in being able to effectively lobby for their cause and meet with their representative in government (at the different levels), and make the whole process seem a lot less daunting.

Participants will learn the value of meeting decision makers and the necessary skills to craft a pitch.

When: Thursday, May 9, 2019, 12-1 PM
Where: BRB 251
Lunch provided!
RSVP: https://bit.ly/2VA5juY

ASCB: How to ignore good advice and postdoc in a newly opened lab

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Image result for ASCB

The American Society for Cell Biology (ASCB) features one scientist’s reflections on the process of searching for a postdoc position as he neared the end of his PhD. The author ultimately decided to join a newly opened lab despite initial misgivings, and he shares honest insights on what he sacrificed and gained in the process (i.e. loss of built-in networks versus gaining an immediate impact on the lab’s research and culture.)

Read more here.

BGS Professional Skills Series

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This year’s BGS Professional Skills Series will conclude with, ‘Science & International Diplomacy’, presented by Dr. Mahlet Mesfin, Deputy Director of the Center for Science Diplomacy at the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), on Thursday, May 16th, 4:00 – 5:30 PM in the Barchi Library (140 John Morgan). This event is co-sponsored by the Penn Science Policy and Diplomacy Group (PSPDG).

Dr. Mesfin will speak to the intersections of science, policy, and society. An alum of Penn (SEAS PhD ’11), Mesfin joined AAAS in May 2017.  She also serves as executive editor of the open-access policy journal Science & Diplomacy. Read more on her background here.

Light refreshments will be served! Please register here: https://forms.gle/wkibmCk5XbQjvNQs6
If you have any questions, please contact Rebecca Lopez.

Symposium in Honor of P. Leslie Dutton

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faculty photo

One of the PSOM’s most distinguished faculty members, P. Leslie Dutton, FRS, Eldridge Reeves Johnson Professor of Biophysics and Biochemistry, is retiring. Leslie is a former chair of the B&B department, and a former chair of the Biophysics Graduate Group (before BC and BP merged). There will be a scientific symposium in his honor, Friday, May 31st – Saturday, June 1st.

More than 25 PhD students graduated from Leslie’s lab, from 1978 onwards, and almost ALL of them will be at the symposium! About 10 of them will be speaking. These alumni have gone on to successful careers in academia, industry, gov. research. consulting etc., so this would be a unique opportunity for BGS students to see and meet them. The symposium is open to everyone, and there are also two breakfasts which would provide opportunities for students to meet and talk informally with these alumni.

To see the full itinerary for ‘Les Fest,’ click here.

Nature: “Essential elements for high-impact scientific writing”

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This Nature article emphasizes the importance of expressing the excitement of research through one’s scientific writing. Done successfully, communicating science can both increase its accessibility and progress your career. The author explains how to use research to tell a story, determining when to write and when to use a figure, and more.

Read the full article here.

12th Annual NIH Career Symposium

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12TH ANNUAL NIH CAREER SYMPOSIUM
NIH Campus, Bethesda, Maryland
Natcher Conference Center, Building 45 
May 10, 2019 8:00 am – 4:00 pm

Register

The NIH Career Symposium highlights the diversity of career choices available to your generation of biomedical researchers.  Whether you are a new graduate student, postdoc, or clinical fellow just beginning to consider career options or a senior student/fellow ready to look for a job, the NIH Career Symposium is for you. Here are the panel descriptions and the agenda:

Panel Descriptions
Career Symposium Agenda

NIH invites any postdoc, clinical fellow or PhD-level graduate student to join, regardless if you are part of the NIH intramural program or not. This event is free to attend (participants are responsible for their own travel expenses)

Wondering what the Career Symposium is all about?  Check out past events here.

(Via NIH)