Freshwater and Marine Sciences Graduate Program Handbook-Professional Development and Career Planning
- Local Resources for Professional Development and Career PlanningÂ
- Travel to Meetings and Conferences
- Campus-wide Resources for Professional Development
- Individual Development Plans (IDPs)
Local Resources for Professional Development and Career PlanningÂ
A goal of the FMS program is to provide students with diverse training that will prepare them for a range of flexible and sustainable careers (e.g., academia, industry, government, science policy and administration, science education and outreach at all levels, etc.). We encourage students to discuss options with their advisory committee to develop in areas most relevant to an individual student’s career goals. Examples of development possibilities include teaching internships, earning a Delta teaching program certificate, earning M.S. degrees in areas that complement a student’s FMS studies (e.g., statistics, computer science). Faculty also offer graduate seminars that highlight themes such as communicating with the media, scientific writing, and application of disciplinary principles to environmental problem solving.
UW-Madison offers a wealth of resources intended to enrich your graduate studies and enhance your professional skills. Starting your very first year on campus, it is expected that you will take full advantage of the career and professional development resources that best fit your needs and support your goals. Since our alumni thrive not only in academia but also in industry, corporate, government, and non-profit arenas, we strive to be in- tune, holistic, and innovative our approach to meeting the diverse professional development needs of our students. By actively participating in these professional development opportunities, you will build the skills needed to succeed academically at UW-Madison and to thrive professionally in your chosen career.
Travel to Meetings and Conferences
An important part of the professional development for graduate students is participation in professional meetings and conferences. Consult your advisor about the appropriate venues for you to attend. Students can request travel support from your advisor or advisor’s home department. Students should also explore travel grant opportunities at conferences to offset registration costs. Students who have reached dissertator status are eligible to apply for Vilas Conference Presentation Funds from the Graduate School. https://grad.wisc.edu/studentfunding/grantscomp/conference/
Students should work with the department’s financial specialist to register and request reimbursement for conferences well in advance as there are a remarkable array of byzantine rules and regulations regarding travel expenses.
Campus-wide Resources for Professional Development
In addition to opportunities at the local level, the Graduate School Professional Development provides direct programming in the areas of career development and skill building, and also serves as a clearing house for professional development resources across campus. The best way to stay informed is to watch for the weekly newsletter from OPD, GradConnections Weekly, and to visit the webpage grad.wisc.edu/pd/events for an up-to- date list of events. For example, typical topics covered throughout the year are:
- Individual Development Plans (IDPs)
- Planning for academic success
- Dissertation writing support
- Communication skills
- Grant writing
- Teaching
- Mentoring
- Research ethics
- Community engagement
- Entrepreneurship
- Career exploration: academic, non-profit, industry, government, etc.
- Job search support
- Pursuing postdoctoral training
Be sure to keep a pulse on programs offered by the following campus services as well.
- Writing Center writing.wisc.edu/
- Grants Information Collection grants.library.wisc.edu/
- Student Technology Training (STS) https://at.doit.wisc.edu/training/software-training-for-students/
- Delta Program https://delta.wisc.edu/
- UW Teaching Academy https://teachingacademy.wisc.edu/
- UW Center for the Humanities humanities.wisc.edu
- Morgridge Entrepreneurial Bootcamp (MEB) https://wsb.wisc.edu/programs-degrees/ programs-nonbusiness-majors/morgridge-entrepreneurial-bootcamp
Individual Development Plans (IDPs)
The Graduate School webpage grad.wisc.edu/pd/idp offers a collection of IDP resources to support graduate students, postdoctoral researchers, mentors, PIs, grants administrators, and graduate program coordinators. The university recommends the use of IDPs for all postdoctoral researchers and graduate students and requires their use for all postdoctoral researchers and graduate students supported by National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding.
As you begin your Graduate School career, an Individual Development Plan (IDP) is an essential tool to help you:
- Assess your current skills and strengths
- Make a plan for developing skills that will help you meet your academic and professional goals
- Communicate with your advisors and mentors about your evolving goals and related skills.
The IDP you create is a document you will want to revisit again and again, to update and refine as your goals change and/or come into focus, and to record your progress and accomplishments. It also serves to start – and maintain – the conversation with your faculty advisor about your career goals and professional development needs.
The onus to engage in the IDP process is on you, although your mentor, PI, or others may encourage and support you in doing so. The IDP itself remains private to you, and you choose which parts to share with which mentors. Through the IDP process, you may decide to identify various mentors to whom you can go for expertise and advice. We recommend using one of the following two IDP tools. Each tool will include a self-assessment of skills, interests, and values; goal-setting guidelines; and reference to skill building and career exploration resources.
IDP tool for all graduate students and postdocs UW-Madison IDP template, which includes instructions and examples, is flexible and appropriate for all disciplines. grad.wisc.edu/pd/idp#mentees
IDP tool for sciences and engineering For graduate students in the natural sciences and engineering, the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) online tool “myIDP” provides a comprehensive set of materials and exercises that will guide you through the process of self-assessment, career exploration, goal-setting, and implementation of your plan. Set up a free account and create and monitor your IDP at myidp.sciencecareers.org