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Career Development
Career Development

Empowering Success:Developing Transferable Skills for Graduate Students and Postdoctoral Fellows

Wednesday, October 23, 2024
12:00 PM – 1:00 PM MT
Location:Careers 360, Exhibit Hall

Career Development

Transferable skills, often referred to as "portable skills," are essential competencies that individuals carry across various professional contexts throughout their careers. The National Academy of Sciences advocates for the active cultivation of critical thinking, problem-solving, communication, collaboration, and creativity to build a diverse skill set. However, graduate students and postdoctoral fellows frequently lack exposure to these highly valued skills within traditional academic curricula. Yet, proficiency in transferable skills is crucial for success in diverse settings, including large pharmaceutical companies, startups, Contract Research Organizations (CROs), or academic roles like starting as an assistant professor. Proficiency in these skills not only enhances leadership, teamwork, and project management abilities but also boosts employability and career advancement. Furthermore, they foster interdisciplinary collaboration, driving innovation in healthcare. By cultivating transferable skills, scientific professionals can remain versatile, resilient, and capable of making significant contributions to pharmaceutical industry, research as well as education thereby advancing excellence in healthcare. This session aims to outline beneficial transferable skills to be inculcated graduate students and postdoc fellows, ultimately enhancing the success of junior scientists.

Plan for breakout discussion and talks
- Three speakers will present brief talks, 15+5 minutes each. on 1) Critical Thinking and Problem-Solving Skills; 2) Effective Communication Skills and 3) Leadership and Teamwork Skills with an emphasis on success in the pharmaceutical industry – 30 minutes
- Participants will be divided into three groups and discuss how to practice these transferable skills and answer any questions that the participants might have – 30 minutes

- Graduate students
- Postdoctoral fellows
- Junior scientists

Learning Objectives:

  • Upon completion, participants will understand how to enhance graduate student's ability to communicate complex ideas clearly and persuasively to diverse audiences.
  • Upon completion, attendees will learn strategies to strengthen graduate students' capacity to critically analyze information, identify problems, and generate innovative solutions.
  • Upon completion, participants will gain insights into fostering graduate students' abilities to lead effectively, collaborate with diverse teams, and manage projects toward successful outcomes.