Career Development

A successful postdoctoral experience requires not only progress in your research endeavors but development of your career plans. We are available to assist you in reviewing CVs, cover letters, and research statements for job applications and welcome your requests for an appointment. More importantly, however, you should be prepared to devote significant time and energy into mapping out your career and acquiring the skills necessary to succeed. Please try to take advantage of the many resources below.

Annual Evaluations
Career Development
Lecture Series
Postdoctoral Scholar
Travel Fund
Graduate Career Services
Grant Writing
Scientific Writing

Responsible Conduct of Research
Yale Biotechnology and
Pharmaceutical Society
Yale Business Cards
Online Career Resources
and Job Postings
Postdoc Fellowship Websites

Annual Evaluations (Central Campus Only)

As part of the annual reappointment process the postdoc and faculty mentor are expected to write an evaluation or progress report of the postdoctoral appointee’s activities in a manner that is clear and timely. The postdoc and faculty mentor fills out his/her part of the evaluation, discuss the progress made and future plans, and both sign the form. The form is then returned to the relevant Postdoctoral Affairs office via the postdocs's departmental administration.

Career Development Lecture Series

Fundamental principles of scientific writing

Wednesday January 27th, 2010
330-5pm
Hope 110 (315 Cedar St)

To attend please register at: www.yale.edu/training, select Postdoctoral Affairs, TRN Courses and click on REGISTER.

The best data in the world does not mean much if it is not communicated well. What in terms of writing style and composition distinguishes award winning research papers, grant proposals, and other technical documents?

Dr. Angelika Hofmann will present a workshop, intended for graduate students, postdocs, and junior faculty, to introduce you to the fundamental principles of scientific writing. The workshop aims to convey clear technical writing style and maximum impact for scientific documents with the reader in mind. Dr. Hofmann is the instructor of the highly regarded semester-long Scientific Writing Course for postdocs and a scientific editor of several recent Nobel Prize papers.

After the workshop, Dr. Hofmann will be available to sign copies of her recently published, comprehensive text and reference book on Scientific Writing and Communication: Papers, Proposals and Presentations. Copies of this work will be available for purchase (suggested manufacturer's retail price is $30). Payments can be made in cash, by credit card, or by personal check (you will need two valid IDs).

Negotiating the Academic Job Offer

Yale faculty members from the departments of Applied Physic & Mechanical Engineering, Immunobiology, and Chemistry will discuss and answer questions related to the academic job offer.

Thursday, February 4th, 2010
3:30pm-5pm
Sterling Chemistry Laboratory, 225 Prospect St.,
Room 160
Please click HERE to register for the event (Click on Postdoctoral Affains and then TRN to find the event)

ENGLISH CONVERSATIONS @ THE MEDICAL SCHOOL

Tuesdays, 6:30pm to 7:30pm Fulton Room, SHM L-215 Sterling Hall of Medicine, 333 Cedar Street

This series is designed to meet the needs of our international postdoc and scholar population, particularly those in the Medical School area. Informal conversations feature a different topic each session. Light snacks will be provided. Please contact erin.gustafson@yale.edu to sign-up.

September 15: Small Talk Tips
How to have a conversation with your lab mates.

October 20: Idioms
The most popular turns of phrase that come up in conversation.

November 17: Reading a Newspaper
How to follow current events and use them in conversation.

December 15: Pronunciation
The most commonly mispronounced words and how to overcome being misunderstood.

January 19: Making an Introduction
How to introduce yourself or others.

February 16: Work Relationships
How to talk to your lab mates and your boss.

March 16: English Language Etiquette
How to speak politely and why it's important.

April 20: Conversation Game
Having fun while keeping a conversation going.

CVs, Cover Letters & Research Statements for Academic Jobs & Resumes for Industry
November 11th, 2009
4:00-5:30pm
Sterling Chemistry Laboratory, Room 110
(225 Prospect st.)

Click here for materials

Writing your First Grant
Wednesday, September 9th, 2009
3:30-5:00pm
Hope 110, Yale Medical School (315 Cedar St.)

Negotiation Skills for Postdocs
October 29th, 2009
3:30-5:00pm
Hope 110, Yale Medical School, (315 Cedar St.)

Click below for materials:

1. Handouts 2. Powerpoint Presentation

This course will review the four recognized negotiating styles and the implication of these styles in a negotiation setting. Participants will learn how to plan for and conduct a well-organized negotiation. Topics will include personal approaches to take during negotiations, how to deal with difficult negotiators, and tips for negotiating a job offer. This 90 minutes session is instructor led with a focus on participant involvement and includes presentation of materials, self assessment, and discussion.

Instructor:
Gina Ohanesian, founder of Performance Alternatives, LLC, has been a consultant to organizations since 1986. With a broad background in organizational and leadership development, Gina has served a variety of clients both domestically and internationally. She has designed and conducted over 4,000 organizational effectiveness and management training programs

To register for this course:
Please click on the following link or paste into your Internet Explorer browser: https://medapps13.med.yale.edu/tms/tms_enrollments.categories?p_own_cd=PD

- Click on the TRN Courses button to be directed to the available list of courses.
- Click on the name of the course for which you would like to register.
- Click on the register button and sign in with your net id and password to register. Please note you MUST have ALL pop up blockers turned off to register for a course.
- You will receive an e-mail confirmation of your registration. If you do not receive a confirmation within 24 hours, or if you have any other questions or issues, please contact tmsadm@yale.edu

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Postdoctoral Scholar Travel Fund

Attending academic conferences is extremely important for postdocs to network, present their work, and begin to think about what the next step will be in your career path. Your faculty mentor should agree to sponsor you to attend a conference. If, on rare occasions, your faculty mentor does not have the funds to send you to such a conference, you can apply to the Postdoctoral Scholar Travel Fund. 2008-2009 was our pilot year for this program. We have received the funding to continue the program during the 2009-2010 year. Please note: The fund is only available to postdocs in departments in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences. Please click here for the information sheet and application. Good luck!

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Graduate Career Services

Part of the McDougal Center, Graduate Career Services (GCS) is a comprehensive career center for students and alumni/ae of Yale’s Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. Note that GCS seminars and workshops are available to postdocs too!

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Grant Writing

Yale's office for Grant and Contract Administration maintains searchable databases listing funding opportunities. These include funding for postdoctoral fellowships and postdoc-faculty transition grants, as well as standard research grants for faculty. The office also offers programs to train investigators in the use of these resources and can also help with searches. Their website maintains links to funding agencies, information on internal grant competitions, information on grant preparation and review, links to Yale policies, and links to resources for scientists seeking funding. They also offer annual workshops on seeking funding, applying for grants, and preparing postdoctoral fellowship applications.

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Scientific Writing

Our Scientific Writing course for postdocs is a comprehensive, 8 week program that teaches the basic principles of scientific writing and applies them to one's own scientific document, such as a research paper. Participants learn and practice technical style, word choice and location, sentence structure, and paragraph structure, and apply the presented writing principles to their own research paper or grant. Emphasis is on practical application to achieve logic, good style, and maximum impact with the reader and reviewer in mind. This course is taught by a scientific writer and editor and is designed for native and non-native English speakers alike. The course is offered twice per year, and postdocs will be alerted by email when the course will next be available.

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Responsible Conduct of Research

This 7 week course trains postdocs in the responsible conduct of research and will cover topics recommended by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' Office of Research Integrity. It is usually offered in late spring and is given by University faculty and administrators.

Topics include:
Animal Subjects
Human Subjects
Data Management
Publication/Authorship/Peer Review
Conflicts of Interest
Research Misconduct
Lab Dynamics & Conflict Resolution

Go to http://www.yale.edu/training/, Postdoctoral Affairs for more information.

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Yale Biotechnology & Pharmaceutical Society (YBPS)

The Yale Biotechnology & Pharmaceutical Society (YBPS) brings together graduate students and postdocs in the biomedical sciences, business, medicine, public health, and law for educational and career-related opportunities in the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries. The YBPS offers postdocs valuable experience, whether you plan a career in academia (how will you patent or develop a new technology?), as a researcher in industry (where can you make the best contributions to medical advances? what type of company fits your personality? how can you meet people who will hire you?), or in another role within industry (e.g., patent law, regulation, marketing, business development). The YBPS organizes several types of projects: 1) pro-bono consulting with local biotechnology companies; 2) investment analysis; 3) life sciences career fair; 4) seminar series on the private research sector. Topics of seminars and "biotech chats" range from patent law, drug regulation, venture capital, technological advances and consulting to concerns of entrepreneurs. The YBPS interacts with companies of all sizes, from five person start-ups to large pharmaceutical companies. For more information, and to sign up for weekly email announcements, visit the YBPS website.

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Yale Business Cards

Yale offers a simple and cost-effective way for you to generate official Yale business cards that you can use for networking at conferences, meetings, and other career events. Go to http://www.yale.edu/ris/sub_design_buscard.html to begin the process