July 16 and 17, 2020
Online Program
As part of the RI Consortium for Coastal Ecology Assessment, Innovation & Modeling (RI C-AIM) Career Development Program (CDP) Metcalf Institute held a two-day online professional development workshop for RI C-AIM participants via Zoom. The program was open to graduate students, post-doctoral scholars, and pre-graduates (senior undergraduates planning to do graduate work in any of the STEM fields) at any of the eight RI C-AIM member institutions.
Earn a Career Development Certificate
Show potential employers that you’ve gained a unique set of professional development skills – in management, science communication and more – that set you apart from the competition. Register for a Career Development Certificate and note that the 2020 Summer Intensive sessions satisfy many of the CDP Certificate requirements or electives. Once you’ve satisfied all CDP requirements, you’ll receive a printed certificate to add to you curriculum vitae.
Agenda
Note: participants could choose to register for individual sessions
Thursday, July 16
9:00 – 10:30: Your Individual Development Plan
Cara Mitnick, URI
This session is a CDP Certificate requirement
Creating an Individual Development Plan, or IDP, allows you to set professional development and career planning goals and puts in place an action plan to complete those goals. In generating a unique and “individualized” professional development plan, you will take into account your strengths, interests, and values, while considering what qualifications and skills are necessary for success in your chosen career. Participants must complete an IDP prior to this session (see link below). Ms. Mitnick, director of professional development for the URI Graduate School, will help participants interpret their IDP results and develop strategies to leverage individual strengths and resources with the goal of exploring career goals more deeply.
Important Note: Click here to complete required steps in advance of this session.
10:30 – 10:45: Break
10:45 – 12:00: Fundamentals of Science Communication, Part 1
Sunshine Menezes, URI
Parts 1 and 2 together make up one course, Fundamentals of Science Communication. This course is a requirement for the CDP Certificate.
This session will provide an essential introduction to strategic and inclusive science communication.
12:00 – 12:45: Break
12:45 – 2:15: Fundamentals of Science Communication, Part 2
Sunshine Menezes, URI
Parts 1 and 2 together make up one course, Fundamentals of Science Communication. This course is a requirement for the CDP Certificate.
Following a presentation about the fundamentals of framing and crafting clear messages, participants will use this information to develop clear messages about their research for specific audiences and then work in small groups to refine the framing. Participants will report out to the full group with a 2-minute description of their research and its relevance for assigned public audiences.
Friday, July 17
9:00 – 11:00: Effective Writing Habits
Austin Jackson, Brown University
This session is a CDP Certificate elective
Writing is a learned skill that requires practice. This workshop will help participants develop effective writing habits that can be applied to many important tasks over their careers, including theses, dissertations, proposals, manuscripts, and public writing. After his presentation, Dr. Jackson, assistant director of Brown University’s Writing Center, will work with participants in break-out groups to build the habits that support successful writing.
11:00 – 11:15: Break
11:15 – 12:45: Meeting the Challenge of Communicating Scientific Uncertainty
Jean Goodwin, North Carolina State University
This session is a CDP Certificate elective
Dr. Goodwin, distinguished professor of communication and member of the Leadership in Public Science cluster at NCSU, will present a mini-workshop on best practices for navigating the challenges of communicating with public audiences about the inherent uncertainty in research. Participants will be better equipped to handle questions from non-experts, including the press, other researchers, family and friends.
12:45-1:30: Break
1:30-2:30: Conversations About STEM Careers
Karlisa Callwood, Perry Institute of Marine Science; Heather Goldstone, Woods Hole Research Center
This session is a CDP Certificate elective
Meet three scientists and engineers working in a variety of professional fields outside of academia to learn about their career paths and their perspectives on career success. This session is designed to help participants explore career pathways, ask questions, and consider how to prepare for the future.
This work is supported by the National Science Foundation under EPSCoR Cooperative Agreement #OIA-1655221. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.
