Career Development Tools

LinkedIn is a powerful tool for students who are preparing to graduate and start the next exciting chapter of their lives. It can help you define your career path, build a professional network, and even find your first job.

Successful progression in training years and beyond builds the dynamic portfolio of a scientist. Portfolios can include curriculum vitae (CV), resumes, specialized documents of competencies (teaching or research documents, writing samples) and other relevant material. Being proactive and using best practices in crafting and updating these documents is crucial for professional growth. Physical portfolios and online professional profiles (LinkedIn, Twitter, websites, blogs, etc.) are living documents that require grooming and updating in order to be effective. There are many resources within and outside of our office at the University of Michigan that provide guidelines and hands-on training in portfolio building and personal branding.

A resume highlights your skills related to your career interests. It connects your story to your community and includes your academic achievements, volunteer experiences, extra-curricular activities, summer jobs and internships. Employers initially scan a resume for 30 to 60 seconds so you need to communicate your story clearly and concisely to land the interview.

Finding a great job starts with writing a great resume, one that speaks to your personal and professional strengths. Learn how to write a resume that stands out and makes employers take notice.

Biotech Career Development is a structured program to educate, train, and provide career exposure to many aspects of biotechnology outside of the traditional academic tenure-track faculty position.

Throughout the program, graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, and early-career scientists from life science programs will engage in a series of workshops, seminars, and panel discussions to explore career options and prepare for an experiential learning opportunity with an on-campus unit, small business startup, large corporation, non-profit organization, governmental agency, law firm, or any additional non-academic entity.  

You have put a lot of time and effort into pursuing your PhD degree. Now it's time to focus on how to leverage your expertise into a satisfying and productive career. An individual development plan (IDP) helps you explore career possibilities and set goals to follow the career path that fits you best.

myIDP provides:

• Exercises to help you examine your skills, interests, and values
• A list of 20 scientific career paths with a prediction of which ones best fit your skills and interests
• A tool for setting strategic goals for the coming year, with optional reminders to keep you on track
• Articles and resources to guide you through the process