It’s never too early to think about your professional development! Keep an eye out for new opportunities to present your work, interact with professionals from your desired field, and sell your brand!
See the information and links below for ways to get started:
Networking Opportunities:
- 80% of jobs are found through networking
- Start networking early and use social media to maintain and expand your network, in addition to what you can do at the local level.
- ACS Columbus Chapter (http://columbus.sites.acs.org/)
- Invite speakers for seminars on campus (MLS invitation)
- Become a member of national organizations (ASBMB, ASCB, AAAS, etc.)
- Join BioOhio and gain access to their networking events, career fairs, and training resources.
- Buckeyes Helping Buckeyes
- Connect with The Ohio State University Buckeye Network on LinkedIn
- Annual CBC Industry Day
- Handshake: a career network for college students and recent grads
Brand yourself with social media
It is another way to share your skills and accomplishments and maintain an active network of colleagues. LinkedIn and Research Gate are common forums for these. Additionally, the links below are useful tips for creating and updating your profile.
- Create a profile early and start making connections to build up your network
- 7 LinkedIn Profile Tips
- 7 Expert LinkedIn Tips A Lot of People Don’t Really Know About
- How to make a better LinkedIn profile
- LinkedIn Profile tips for job seekers
- Tips for writing a summary on your LinkedIn profile AND summary examples
- Check our Buckeye Biochemistry profile to connect with program alumni: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ohio-state-biochemistry-program-717b177a
Research Gate
Decide on a Career Path:
Use helpful guides to help determine your career goals for after graduate school.
Individual development plan to assess your interests, skills and goals. Combines these three things to set monthly goals for embarking on your path
Careers in Biomedical Sciences
A book from Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press describing the variety of career options available to science PhDs
Examine career options and pathways and view a variety of resources for each step of the process: from choosing a field to interviewing.
Online community of Ph.D.s. Explore career options, paths and view job postings.
Online community of STEM professionals that matches you with a mentor in your field of interest to provide you with advice and help you explore that career path.
Hosted bi-annually by OSBP and other IGP programs to provide students with opportunity to interact with successful professionals and learn about the variety of career fields available to STEM PhDs. **If there is a field that interest you, please contact your program’s Professional Development Chair.
Throughout Graduate School:
Ohio State provides a number of resources to help you prepare for your career goals.
- Consider completing a graduate minor:
- Graduate Interdisciplinary Specialization in Teaching
- Business Health Sciences
- Biomedical, Clinical, and Translational Science
- And many more.
- Utilize the variety of on campus programs and workshops (summarized here: http://www.gradsch.osu.edu/Depo/PDF/CareerDevelopmentGraduateStudents.pdf )
- Career Connection
- Ohio State Alumni Career Management Office
- With links to webinars, networking events and career programming with fellow Buckeyes
- Alumni Career Connection – contains job postings, resumes, and additional resources
- Individual Career Advising
- Buckeye Careers
- Council of Graduate Students (CGS) and Ohio Union Activities Board (OUAB)
- A new calendar every month including career and professional development workshops
- Teaching intensive resources:
- University Center for the Advancement of Teaching (UCAT)
- And their sponsored monthly events to promote teaching
- Preparing Future Faculty
- Begin developing a teaching portfolio
- University Center for the Advancement of Teaching (UCAT)
Resources for transitioning into Industry:
- SciPhD provides training for scientists who want to transition from academia to non-academic careers
- American Chemical Society Career (ACS)
- Apply for internships:
- OSU Technology Commercialization Office (TCO)
- Frequently update your resume and tailor it to each job posting. Really integrate the keywords in the job posting into your resume.
- Free resources can be found at zety.com, PhdsGetHired, Stanford Career Resources
- NETWORKING! Connect with all professionals you meet on LinkedIn.
- Send a personalized message with the invitation to increase your chances of them accepting the connection.
- Take initiative and reach out to someone in your career field of interest… most people would love to meet for coffee or even talk over the phone to discuss their job!