Academic Careers – Postdoc-ing and Professor-ing

Introductory resources

• Finding your Perfect Postdoc Experience (24-min video).
• From graduate student to faculty – Navigating academia (1-hour video).
• From graduate student to assistant professor – key faculty position descriptions and advice.
• What do college professors do? (BU Vault).

Venturing further in this career area

• Multiple videos on Postdoc-ing and Professor-ing, YouTube channel.
• Faculty Factory Podcast, John Hopkins Medicine.
• Articles, funding resources, and helpful tips about postdoc-ing, Help, I’m a Scientist!
• Faculty careers outside of the tenure track, (1-hour video).
• A guide to setting a lab at a research-intensive institution.
• Making the Right Moves – A Practical Guide to Scientific Management for Postdoc and New faculty, HHMI.
• Entering Mentoring, A Seminar to train the next generation of scientists.

Preparing your transition into this career area

• iBiology course on The Strategic Postdoc – to strategize your postdoc search and choose your postdoc lab wisely.
• A scientific approach to navigating the academic job market, Nature.
• Accessing data on the faculty job market, Faculty Job Market Collaboration.
• Using academic analytics to understand the pathway to the professoriate, 1-hour video.
• Look for a Future Faculty Workshop like the New England Future Faculty Workshop.
• Look for and join relevant thematic online communities, like the new PI Slack group.
• Look for GMS Alumni who have transitioned into this career area.
• The Social Scientist enables early-career scientists to receive mentorship from folks who have transitioned into various careers – connect with academic career mentors (administrators, professors, postdocs, research specialists…).
• Analyze job descriptions to learn more about what institutions are looking for in different faculty positions.
• Growing your network and having informational interviews with PhDs who have transitioned into careers of interest to you will enable you to learn more about the job’s daily responsibilities, hiring process, career progression, etc., and the sector as a whole.
• Seeking resources to prepare your applications? PhD Progression provides online modules to support your career preparation efforts. Register for the Career Development pathways and explore relevant job application preparation online modules at your own pace. Here is a great resource to help you prepare for chalk talks.