Last week we briefly overviewed the Interdisciplinary Job Opportunities for Biomedical Scientists (iJOBS) program in its first two years of training biomedical graduate students and postdocs to be successful in a variety of non-academic careers. The NIH BEST grant funds five years of the development for the iJOBS program and expects the program to be self-sustainable after the grant period. Looking Ahead: Preview of Upcoming iJOBS events Based on feedback from the trainees and industrial partners, iJOBS will continue to expand and improve Phase I events to include more relevant and useful seminars, career panels, and workshops to help expose graduate students to knowledge and gain skills for employment. If this is your first time hearing about iJOBS, or if you have been receiving all those iJOBS emails and not reading them (pro tip: you really should), here is what’s in store for you in September: 1. What: iJOBS and ACA Workshop: Job Search Using Staffing Agencies When: September 7 from 4:30-6pm Registration: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/ijobs-workshop-job-search-using-staffing-agencies-registration-26960310013 Hear from representatives of local offices to learn how staffing agencies work and how to best utilize them in your job search at different phases in your career. There will be an opportunity to meet with the representatives after their presentations to get general feedback. 2. What: iJOBS and Alumni Association Networking Event: Students, Postdocs and Alumni When: September 15 from 5-8pm Registration: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/ijobs-and-alumni-association-networking-event-students-postdocs-and-alumni-registration-26960384235 Come join us for our first of many Rutgers/UMDNJ biomedical alumni and current trainee networking sessions! This is your opportunity to practice networking in an informal and low pressure environment with Rutgers/UMDNJ alumni who are in industry and other careers. Current students, postdocs, and alumni can practice their elevator pitch, hand out business cards, and increase their network for future job searches. Catch up with old friends and make new connections. Our goal is to form a community of alumni and current trainees to strengthen our networking power. 3. What: iJOBS and Eagleton Institute Workshop: The Politics of Climate Change with Christine Todd Whitman When: September 23 from 8:30-1:30pm Registration: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/ijobs-workshop-the-politics-of-climate-change-with-christine-todd-whitman-registration-20487243898 The session will include a conversation with former US EPA Administrator and NJ Governor Christine Todd Whitman as well as an interactive political simulation with role playing to learn how different stakeholder view decisions based on scientific evidence. 4. What: iJOBS Case Study: Pharma Market Research When: September 26 from 4:30-6pm Registration: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/ijobs-case-study-pharma-market-research-registration-26960444415 This will be a hands-on session that includes completing a case study on adherence to oral oncology and the implications for research. Dan Reinhardt of Return on Focus will lead the program. We will be looking at the data published on adherence to oral cancer medications and then have a discussion regarding the implications to patients, physicians and industry. Beyond these specific sessions, iJOBS will also continue to promote Phase II and expand the applicant pool. One major realization is that the proposed five career tracks do not adequately incorporate the wide range of career choices of the trainees and so instead of referring to “tracks”, iJOBS will expand their focus; some examples of additional career paths are science & health policy, intellectual property, regulatory affairs, science writing, and consulting, to name just a few. The team foresees the continuous expansion of this list in the future as new ideas and opportunities arise. Lastly, experience from the first two years of the program and direct interaction with people in industry revealed areas and skills that current job applicants still lack. In particular, the most common comment is that all trainees and potential hires need stronger communication skills in order to achieve greater success in the job market. With the goal of formally improving the communication skills of iJOBS trainees, Nicholas Ponzio, PhD and Janet Alder, PhD have been awarded a Borroughs Wellcome Fund grant to create a course that will train PhD students in how to communicate science more effectively and improve communication skills for smooth career transitions. This course will be offered in Spring of 2017 through a collaboration with the Rutgers Mason Gross School of the Arts and the Rutgers School of Communications and Information. From what we have seen so far, we can only expect better things to come from the iJOBS program. So stay tuned everyone, check out the events calendar, and don’t forget to read those iJOBS emails!
iJOBS Blog