Career Articles

Do I need to bring my own chalk?

At the Biophysical Society 61st Annual Meeting in New Orleans, Louisiana, the Early Careers Committee sponsored a panel entitled, Networking and Personal Branding: The Workshop. The panelists were Lisa Fauci, Tulane University, Jennifer Ross, University of Massachusetts Amherst, and David Warshaw, University of Vermont. Much of the discussion is summarized here.

Throughout our careers, there is always a hierarchical power structure in the workplace. Even if you rise to the top of the ladder, there is still feedback that you encounter about your performance each day. This can come from a scientific advisor, board of directors, grant reviewers, journal editors, etc...

There is an increasing interest for science PhD students to pursue an "alternate" career beyond the traditional bench research followed by a tenure-track faculty position. The options include marketing, sales, intellectual property, policy, and writing, among others. This article highlights four important steps you can take to prepare for any of these non-bench careers.