| Course ID: | FORS(ECOL) 8140. 2 hours. |
| Course Title: | Professional Development in Ecological Careers |
Course
Description: | Students will develop an understanding of the application and
interview process for these different types of opportunities,
including preparation of all application materials, pre- and
post-interview research and materials, and negotiating
considerations. Through this process, students will assess
similarities and differences across positions at career stages
and employment sectors. |
| Oasis Title: | Professional Development |
Semester Course
Offered: | Offered fall semester every odd-numbered year. |
| Grading System: | A-F (Traditional) |
|
| Course Objectives: | The primary objective of this course is to provide students with an
opportunity to prepare the materials needed to apply for
post-graduate opportunities to further their ecological careers.
At the end of the course, students will have prepared and
assembled all of the materials needed to apply for a position
aligned with their career objectives. |
| Topical Outline: | 1.Finding job opportunities
2.Identifying job opportunities aligned with your career goal
3.Assembling materials for application submission
a.Prepare/update your cv
b.Prepare a cover letter
c.Prepare a research statement
d.Prepare a teaching philosophy
e.Prepare a teaching portfolio
f.Prepare a diversity statement
g.Prepare other documents (e.g., “example article” for science
communication careers) for careers outside of academia
4.Preparing for a phone/skype interview
a.Types of questions to expect
b.Questions to prepare
c.Background research
d.What is appropriate and what isn’t—there is a time for
everything
5.Preparing for interview
a.Prepare a job talk
b.Prepare a course syllabus/outline
c.Prepare a chalk talk
d.Background research
e.Meetings with administrators
6.Negotiating an offer
a.Salary
b.Startup
c.Infrastructure/resources
7.Similarities and differences to consider across different
career searches
a.Postdoc vs. assistant professor
b.Industry vs. academia
c.Government
d.Other alternatives |