Chemical Education Today
Association Report: ACS Education Division
Preparing for Life After Graduate School An American Chemical Society Workshop by Joel I. Shulman
Although it is a prestigious university, the training…really did not prepare us very well for life after graduate school. This quote is from a Ph.D. industrial chemist, in response to a 2002 survey conducted by the American Chemical Society Committee on Professional Training (1). The author of this quote would probably agree that the current system of doctoral education in the U.S. does a very good job of preparing chemists for a career in research. However, (s)he would also probably agree with the survey respondents that two major deficiencies are Career Information/Guidance and Preparation for an Industrial Career (1). Genesis of “Preparing for Life After Graduate School” Since its establishment in 2000, the ACS Office of Graduate Education (OGE) has been concerned about preparing doctoral students to enter the work force. Its initial efforts were largely directed toward students who want to teach, exemplified by ACS participation in the Preparing Future Faculty program (2). In addition, during his ACS presidency in 2004, Chuck Casey initiated a new program called the Academic Employment Initiative, sponsored by OGE together with several other segments of the Society (3). To complement these efforts, which are directed toward careers in academe, the OGE wished to provide an educational opportunity for doctoral students who were unsure of their career path and, more specifically, for students who desired a career in industry. Indeed, more than half of Ph.D. chemists work in industry (4); however, in the words of one major industrial employer, “Most recent doctoral graduates…do not have the foggiest idea of what industrial research is all about (5).” It was from this desire to provide career guidance to all doctoral students in chemistry that the two-day “Preparing for Life After Graduate School” (PfLAGS) workshop was born.1 PfLAGS Coverage Sponsored jointly by the ACS OGE and Department of Career Management and Development (DCMD), PfLAGS covers three broad topics:
• Defining careers for chemists
• Defining some of the non-technical skills and knowledge needed to be successful in your career (with an emphasis on industry)
• Finding employment opportunities (including a postdoc).
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These topics are covered in approximately equal proportions in the workshop. Defining Careers for Chemists The workshop begins by comparing and contrasting typical jobs in academe, industry, and government. Included is a discussion of what counts in industrial and academic jobs: how employees are evaluated and opportunities for promotion; the dual ladder concept in industry; the tenure decision in the academic world. Definitions, with examples, are given for basic research, applied research, and product development. Possible government careers are discussed, as well. A module on teaching discusses jobs at doctoral/research (Research I) universities, four-year colleges, and two-year colleges in terms of how effort is distributed differently among teaching, research, and service at each. Another module describes possible career options in industry: starting out as a bench scientist; the responsibilities of individual contributors and managers; matrix organizations and project teams; working for large vs small companies; examples of non-research careers. Necessity of Non-Technical Skills and Knowledge This part of the workshop starts from the position that technical mastery is necessary but not sufficient for success as a Ph.D. chemist. Emphasized here are non-technical communications such as writing persuasive memos and conducting/receiving performance reviews; patents and intellectual property; understanding the culture of an organization; networking and mentoring; and ethics in research. To simulate team approaches to problem solving, group exercises are incorporated into this and other sections of PfLAGS. Finding Employment Opportunities This section of the workshop starts with the why and how of finding a postdoctoral position, including strategies to catch the attention of potential postdoctoral advisors, then moves to the actual job search. Modules on targeting the job market, writing a resume and cover letter, and interviewing skills for industry rely heavily on material from the popular workshops presented by the DCMD at ACS national meetings and at other sites around the country. An added feature covers academic research proposals and the teaching philosophy statement, which are needed in most searches for academic jobs. The intellectual exercise of preparing for a job search is important, but there is nothing like the real thing. To help students better prepare for the experience, they are encouraged to do an
Journal of Chemical Education • Vol. 85 No. 3 March 2008 • www.JCE.DivCHED.org • © Division of Chemical Education
Chemical Education Today
“Most recent doctoral graduates… do not have the foggiest idea of what industrial research is all about (4).”
Faculty sponsors of PfLAGS have echoed the students’ responses: The students were quite enthusiastic about our bringing them this opportunity to learn about the next steps of their careers. Their evaluation forms showed how valuable they thought it.
What’s Next? on-site mock interview and resume/CV review with a DCMD career consultant at the end of the workshop. Many find this to be among the most valuable parts of the workshop. Presentations of PfLAGS Workshops PfLAGS is designed for third- and fourth-year doctoral students because they have will have finished most or all of their non-dissertation requirements for the Ph.D. and are in a position to begin thinking deeply about and preparing for life after graduate school. The workshop is designed to be interactive, and thus works best with 20–35 students at a session. All PfLAGS facilitators are experienced presenters of career workshops for the DCMD. All have had experience in industrial research. They draw upon local talent at the workshop location to add perspective on topics such as life at doctoral/research universities and four-year colleges; finding a postdoctoral position (from a current postdoc’s perspective) and the traits a faculty member looks for in postdoctoral applicants; and putting together a strategy for finding a job in academe. The initial presentation of the PfLAGS workshop was in December 2005, in the Department of Chemistry at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. Since then, it has been presented about a dozen times at the chemistry departments of various universities and at a regional meeting of the American Chemical Society. Responses from student participants in PfLAGS show that the workshop can be a valuable adjunct to their graduate education, as captured in these quotes:
OGE and DCMD will continue to offer the two-day PfLAGS workshop at host chemistry departments as well as at central sites that are convenient for students from multiple doctoral-granting universities. Departments interested in finding out more about hosting a session of PfLAGS, and gradutate students interested in finding out more about the workshop, should contact the ACS Office of Graduate Education at
[email protected]; 202/872-4588. Note 1. PfLAGS is modeled on a one-credit graduate course that has been offered in the Department of Chemistry at the University of Cincinnati since 2002.
Literature Cited
I have now thought more about my future in these two days than I have in my whole graduate career.
1. American Chemical Society, Graduate Education in Chemistry 2002, 17; https://portal.acs.org/portal/fileFetch/C/CTP_005776/ pdf/CTP_005776.pdf (accessed Jan 2008). 2. Information about the Preparing Future Faculty program may be found at http://www.preparing-faculty.org/ (accessed Jan 2008). 3. See the ACS Graduate Education Newsletter 2004, 3 (1); https:// portal.acs.org/portal/fileFetch/C/CTP_004132/pdf/CTP_004132. pdf (accessed Jan 2008). 4. Heylin, M. Chem. Eng. News 2006, 84 (45), 44. 5. National Academies’ Committee on Science, Engineering, and Public Policy, Reshaping the Graduate Education of Scientists and Engineers, 1995, 39; http://books.nap.edu/books/0309052858/ html/index.html (accessed Jan 2008).
I absolutely loved it. Thank you so much for this incredibly enlightening course.
Supporting JCE Online Material
…very insightful and creative workshop. The broad range of topics is excellent. It was immensely useful. I was petrified about my future before this course because I knew I didn’t want to teach, but I had no one to ask about industry. In my opinion, a course like this should be mandatory for all Ph.D. candidates.
http://www.jce.divched.org/Journal/Issues/2008/Mar/abs340.html Abstract and keywords Full text (PDF) with links to cited URLs
Joel I. Shulman is an adjunct member of the Department of Chemistry, University of Cincinnati, and retired Manager of Doctoral Recruiting and University Relations at the Procter & Gamble Company;
[email protected].
© Division of Chemical Education • www.JCE.DivCHED.org • Vol. 85 No. 3 March 2008 • Journal of Chemical Education
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