Most Popular Resources in "Essential Skills"
» Most popular resources on the site
» Most popular resources in "Essential Skills"
» Return to "Essential Skills"
» Most popular resources in "Essential Skills"
» Return to "Essential Skills"
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The Real Science Crisis: Bleak Prospects for Young Researchers
- Chronicle of Higher Education , September 2007. "[F]or many of today's graduate students, the future could not look much bleaker. They see long periods of training, a shortage of academic jobs, and intense competition for research grants looming ahead of them. 'They get a sense that this is a really frustrating career path,' says Thomas R. Insel, director of the National Institute of Mental Health. So although the operating assumption among many academic leaders is that the nation needs more scientists, some of brightest students in the country are demoralized and bypassing scientific careers."
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How to Succeed in Graduate School: A Guide for Students and Advisors
- by Marie desJardins. " This paper attempts to raise some issues that are important for graduate students to be successful and to get as much out of the process as possible, and for advisors who wish to help their students be successful. The intent is not to provide prescriptive advice -- no formulas for finishing a thesis or twelve-step programs for becoming a better advisor are given -- but to raise awareness on both sides of the advisor-student relationship as to what the expectations are and should be for this relationship, what a graduate student should expect to accomplish, common problems, and where to go if the advisor is not forthcoming. "
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How to write a great research paper
- Great advice from Simon Peyton Jones at Microsoft Research.
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After the Offer, Before the Deal: Negotiating A First Academic Job
- By Chris M. Golde, Academe , January-February 1999. " What is a fair salary? Can I ask for moving expenses? When can faculty members negotiate reductions in their teaching loads? These are the kinds of questions graduate faculty often hear from their students who have just been offered academic jobs. Besides training young scholars as teachers and researchers, we also mentor them in their search for jobs. As a result, we're expected to know the answers to such questions. In this article, I offer suggestions to the just-appointed faculty member who seeks to be a savvy participant in negotiating the terms of a first job. "
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Negotiating: Please Sir, Can I Have Some More?
- ScienceCareers.org "Whether you're a fresh Ph.D. searching for a lab in which to do a postdoc, or you're trying to land a junior faculty position and create your own lab, negotiations are crucial in developing your scientific career. Reaching satisfying compromises with the head of a lab or the department chair requires first-rate communication and social skills. Professional bargaining, for example, could win you promises of more start-up funds, additional space, or extra equipment. At the postdoctoral level, good negotiating may mean you wind up taking away part (or all!) of your project when it's time to leave. But negotiating doesn't start and end at interviews: Interacting with an employer, department chair, or lab director takes place throughout your research career."
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The Noel Smith-Wenkle Salary Negotiation Method
- "Salary negotiation is something at which hiring managers are usually a lot more proficient than the people they hire. In the interest of leveling the playing field, here is a method for salary negotiation that has worked for me and many others."
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Academic Scientists at Work: Negotiating a Faculty Position
- ScienceCareers.org "Negotiating a job is similar to playing a hand of poker: the stronger your hand - your credentials - the more you can demand. The trick is to know what aspects of the position are negotiable and what the limits are; otherwise, you may find that the offer has folded. This article will discuss the issues at stake in academic science research positions and offer some suggestions on how you could approach your own negotiations so that you get the job you want and the start-up package you need."
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Networking on the Network
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in NetworkingNetworking is a vital skill. Here's how to use the Internet for building professional networks.
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The "Right" Postdoc Mentor
- by Robert J. Dooling. "What should a new trainee look for in identifying a postdoc mentor?"
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Negotiating Offers for Faculty Positions
- A guide from the UNC Office of Postdoctoral Affairs.
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Negotiating Your First Academic Job Offer
- by Margaret L. Newhouse. " Many first-time academic job candidates assume that, once they receive a job offer, their arduous search is over. In fact, no matter how delighted you are with an offer, it is wise to view it as part of the last stage of the process -- the negotiation stage -- even if you ultimately decide not to negotiate anything. This pamphlet offers some general principles and advice on negotiating academic job offers, particularly initial ones. "
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Nine Key Negotiating Points
- "Laurie Weingart, a negotiations expert and behavioral analyst, provides advice on nine issues that should be addressed when negotiating a junior faculty position."
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PLoS Computational Biology: Ten Simple Rules for Getting Grants
- "At the present time, US funding is frequently below 10% for a given grant program. Today, more than ever, we need all the help we can get in writing successful grant proposals. We hope you find these rules useful in reaching your research career goals."
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Women and Minorities Negotiating Salaries
- "The objective of this article is to heighten awareness for women and minorities about the effect of starting salary on career earnings and the materials available for assessing your potential employer. The bottom line is that a low starting salary will haunt you throughout your academic career."
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Armando's Paper Writing Page
- Great tips on writing effective papers and on how to review papers.
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Choosing The Right Research Adviser
- by Richard Reis. "This month, I want to explore the other side of this research coin -- how to go about finding the right adviser -- an issue that is important not just in the sciences but in the humanities and social sciences as well."
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How to Give a Talk
- by James Allan. " The purpose of this page is to present some ideas about presentation style. These are all surface issues and do not address the actual content of your talk (because it is, of course, spectacular). "
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PLoS Computational Biology: Ten Simple Rules for Making Good Oral Presentations
- "Continuing our Ten Simple Rules series [15], we consider here what it takes to make a good oral presentation. While the rules apply broadly across disciplines, they are certainly important from the perspective of this readership. Clear and logical delivery of your ideas and scientific results is an important component of a successful scientific career. Presentations encourage broader dissemination of your work and highlight work that may not receive attention in written form."
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When hard work doesn't pay: In some high-pressure labs, training is an afterthought
- US News & World Report , March 29, 1999. The report card on graduate doctoral programs in research universities, part of the annual ranking of graduate schools, is less than glowing.
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Academic Scientists at Work: Where'd My Day Go?
- ScienceCareers.org - "'5:30! I hardly got anything done today,' your colleague with the curly red hair shouts at you as she passes you in the hall. You think you didn't get anything done either, yet there the two of you are standing in the hall yabbering about how the day went by and nothing got done. You both complain that there was no time to finish your experiments, write your test questions, revise your hot manuscripts, meet with your advisees, help with graduate-student recruiting, design the new Web site for your department, order the food for the department poster session, and pick up the kids from soccer practice at 7:00. But, as you look around, some of your colleagues seem to have it all under control. How do they do it?"
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Giving a Job Talk in the Sciences
- " As a doctoral student or postdoc seeking a professorship, your academic job talk may well be the most important presentation you will ever give. An excellent talk can get you the job, while a poor one will almost surely eliminate you from contention. "
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Rules for a perfect math job talk
- by Eugene Lerman at UIUC. Useful advice on how to give a successful job talk at a research university.
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Graduate School - Choosing an Advisor
- Grad school success hinges on finding your perfect match
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How to Write a Grant Application
- courtesy of the National Institutes of Health
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Choosing a Thesis Lab
- "A thesis lab is a place that you will spend much of the next several years of your life. The work you do in your thesis lab will influence the work you do in the rest of your career. The recommendation you receive from your thesis advisor will determine what options will be open to you after you receive your degree. Choosing your thesis lab is an important decision, so take it seriously and make it carefully."
