MeCanIsms - the pathway to success for current and future global (technical) leaders

ScienceCareers.org | Training Postdocs: Communication is Key: Bonetta: 31 August 2007

2007-09-11T08:57:00.000-04:00

ScienceCareers.org | Training Postdocs: Communication is Key: Bonetta: 31 August 2007

Graduate Education Newsletter

2007-08-22T11:10:00.000-04:00

Graduate Education Newsletter

Brought to you by the American Chemical Society Office of Graduate Education

BEST—Building Engineering & Science Talent at Dow

2007-08-22T07:39:00.000-04:00

I should be going to Midland, MI next month to attend this symposium. I will report from there. I love it when corporate America spends money to empower underrepresented PhD's and give them insight into the world of industry!

BEST—Building Engineering & Science Talent at Dow

Start with The Physics Today Buyer's Guide

2007-08-03T10:43:00.000-04:00

Have you seen the Buyer's Guide published by Physics Today, the flagship magazine for the American Institute for Physics? Well, it's not just for physicists, as some of you already know. In many ways it trumps Cole-Parmer, Fisher and VWR because you are not limited by the agreements these retailers have with a few selected equipment makers. For example, if you are looking for a vacuum pump, you are directed to the contact information for a number of companies that actually manufacture the product itself and related items. You may then look to Fisher to make your order or contact the company directly. But it may save you time to start here with the Buyer's Guide first.

ScienceCareers.org | Mastering Your Ph.D. - Series Index: Gosling: 10 November 2006

2007-08-01T09:32:00.000-04:00

Attention all PhD students!

Do I wish I had read these articles in or before grad school.

ScienceCareers.org | Mastering Your Ph.D. - Series Index: Gosling: 10 November 2006

ScienceCareers.org | Joining a Trend, Scientists Increasingly Say Call My Agent: Gura: 16 January 2004

2007-08-01T09:25:00.000-04:00

Need a job? Hire an agent to look for you!

ScienceCareers.org | Joining a Trend, Scientists Increasingly Say Call My Agent: Gura: 16 January 2004

You Are/Will Be a Consultant Whether You Like It or Not

2007-08-01T09:23:00.000-04:00

ScienceCareers.org | Opportunities: The Accidental Consultant: Fiske: 13 July 2007

Guide to graduate students: how to pick a lab - News Article on Nature Network Boston

2007-07-12T21:28:00.000-04:00

This is a must read! Well, it might be a bit late for some of you, but it applies to those into post-docs as well.

Guide to graduate students: how to pick a lab - News Article on Nature Network Boston

Mind to Market Mini Conference at Towson University

2007-06-19T19:11:00.000-04:00

“Going From Mind to Market” is a fundamental workshop that will instruct emerging technology entrepreneurs and companies how to access capital and get their products/services to market.

This Practical and Informative Workshop Will:
Teach You:
The key elements of a winning business plan
How to assess your business and provide recommendations for improvement and success
How to protect your intellectual property
Where and how to find financing
When and how to commercialize technology through federal laboratories
Benefit You By:
Helping you prepare a Strategic Executive Summary (SES) that investors will read
Show you how to successfully market your product/service
Make your Strategic Executive Summary available to interested investors
Offer Technical and Management assistance in business planning and development

Register by June 25, here

Consider Community Colleges

2007-06-18T23:40:00.000-04:00

I urge graduate students to consider teaching at community colleges as a career focus. You can make a difference, work on multiple research and/or community based outreach projects, and they pay fairly well. Read the article below to find out more:

ScienceCareers.org | Community College Faculty: Must Love to Teach: Webb: 25 May 2007

BioAgenda Institute

2007-06-18T07:43:00.000-04:00

This is last minute, but better late than never.

A very interesting one-day summit on politics and biotechnology, June 21, 2007 - Silver Spring, MD.

BioAgenda Institute

Finding a Great Job in a Weak Market

2007-06-06T06:57:00.000-04:00

Blogger's Note: I haven't given you much in terms of career advice, but here is a good one from www.wetfeet.com - a great company, but one that is expensive unless you know exactly what you want to do before you start buying their .pdf booklets. For graduate students and postdocs, this advice applies if you are thinking about a career change or thinking about applying your current skills in an unconventional way, or thinking about being an entrepreneur.

Getting a Great Job in a Weak Market

Faced with a still-soft job market, many incredibly talented people are still scrambling hard to find a job. While it’s natural to have moments of anxiety and disappointment, you can work past these emotions by focusing your energy on different job-seeking tactics. Here are eight creative approaches that just might net some worthwhile results.

1. Take a time-out. If you’ve been working almost nonstop with your job search, take time off to reenergize, redirect your focus, or revise your plans. Whether it involves taking a minibreak or vacation, do what you need to do to gain inspiration and motivation, and to continue your momentum. See a movie, host a slumber party, go for a run, play Myst, or start writing in a journal. Do what makes you happy. Clear your mind and relax. Use this time to reflect on your job-search efforts and match them up with your bigger lifework vision.

Reality-check questions to consider are:

Am I being realistic with my target goals and objectives?

What’s working and what isn’t?

What haven’t I done that I can start doing?

Whose help do I need?

Is it time to change directions, move to a contingency plan?

For example, instead of trying to switch to a new industry as well as a new functional role, target the same role in a new industry or a new role in the same industry. Alternatively, think about taking an interim step that will get you closer to the job you want. Though you may not be able to reach point S from point A, you could get from point A to point M and then to point S.

Or, you may want to return to your former company –- if this is still an option –- with the understanding that you’ll have the opportunity to pursue new responsibilities, build new skills, or take on different clients in addition to your original job responsibilities.

2. Work for free. Identify, from within your targeted industries or companies, the decision-makers with whom you best connected during interviews, recruiting, or networking events.

Contact at least five to ten people –- by e-mail is fine. Let them know that while you’re still in your job search, you want to continue building experience and stay productive. Offer to contribute your time. This could be for a pet project that lacks resources, a discrete chunk of a larger project, or something your contact just needs an extra pair of hands or expertise on.

Agree on the project scope, deadlines, and deliverables. Then run with it, taking as much initiative and working as independently as possible.

Exceed your manager’s expectations. At minimum, you will have gained solid experience in your choice industry to add to your resume; this can make all the difference in landing the job you want. At best, your manager will actively create a job for you, connect you with others who can, and/or serve as a solid reference.

3. Volunteer for a nonprofit or for your city government. Besides the feel-good factor of doing something that matters and giving back to others –- no doubt a great way to keep your attitude positive, volunteering is good for job searching. Fellow volunteers can be a diverse new source for contacts in new industries and organizations. As well, volunteering can develop a skill or competence that will make you a stronger candidate for your next job or your career toolkit. City government and nonprofit roles may also open up outstanding career opportunities you may not have considered previously.

4. Write an article. Contribute to your alumni magazine, the local newspaper, a trade journal, industry magazine, or professional association newsletter. This could lead to a broadening of your job-search horizon by generating reader feedback, job leads, an expanded network, and increased exposure or recognition as an expert.

5. Rely on your friends. Depend on your friends and family for emotional support and reality checks throughout your job search. Keep your circle of friends and acquaintances aware of what you are looking for and ask them to keep you in mind. Actively pursue leads from classmates, professors, alumni, former and current work colleagues, family friends, friends of friends, and even people at your gym.

6. Discover new opportunities. Look for opportunities that others may miss. If you know someone is leaving a job, follow up to find out if you might be considered for that job. If a company is doing a lot of trade or service marking or filing for patents, it’s most likely in growth mode and will be hiring. Even though a company is in lay-off or merger mode, an opportunity may arise for someone with your strengths and experience.

For example, a company going through lay-offs may need to hire someone with human resource planning skills to integrate roles and responsibilities, career coaching experience for its laid-off employees, or strong writing expertise for the extra communication needs required to do damage control. Such positions could be offered on a project basis.

7. Do projects or consulting gigs. Think about whether you want to take on a project to tide you over while you are in your job search or whether you want to develop a portfolio of projects or consulting gigs à la career portfolio. Take something you really excel at and/or have a passion for, and translate it into cash flow. You may have talent in: conducting research or financial analysis, teaching, planning, writing, giving presentations, cooking, planning events, or designing for the Web. Use one or more of those competencies to cobble together meaningful work.

8. Go with the flow. Embrace the fact that job markets are cyclical. Soft and boom markets have come and gone, time and again. This down cycle won’t last forever. In the meantime, use this time as a gift. Make a living, but more important, take the time to reflect and to build valuable skills that are recession-proof.

Work on developing high-priority skills and competencies that are portable wherever you’re working –- communication and presentation, teamwork, and project management skills, for example.

Explore and think about what really matters to you. What’s your purpose? How does work fit into your total life vision? How can you create a bold, meaningful, and dynamic work life?

Author Bio
Sherrie Gong Taguchi is an author, educator, and HR executive. Her experience coaching managers and individuals on their careers includes serving as VP of University Recruiting for Bank of America, Director of Corporate HR at Dole Foods, and Assistant Dean of Career Management at the Stanford Graduate School of Business. Taguchi’s book, Hiring the Best and The Brightest … A Roadmap for MBA Recruiting, has been an incredible resource for job seekers and employers.

She is at work on a second book for McGraw Hill, for individuals seeking bold, meaningful, and dynamic careers over a lifetime. Taguchi is a contributor to the San Francisco Chronicle’s Career Section, Worker’s Dozen Panel. She is based in London and the Bay Area.

Using Tablet PC's Mandatory at Va Tech

2007-05-31T18:06:00.000-04:00

Gmail - Engineering Education: CONNECTIONS May 2007: "III. Teaching Toolbox

Take a Tablet

By Corinna Wu

Today�s college kids arrive on campus armed with an array of electronic gadgets. Cell phones, iPods and digital cameras are no longer luxuries but near necessities for staying well connected and adequately entertained. Last fall, incoming freshmen at Virginia Tech added one particular gadget to their back-to-school shopping list: a tablet PC. The university required all 1,400 of its new students to buy one. The tablets look much like regular laptop computers, except their digitized screens can be swiveled around, folded over and written on with a stylus.

But these computers aren�t just high-tech notepads, a 21st century replacement for pen and paper. Engineering faculty members around the country have recognized that this simple write-on feature allows them the opportunity to radically change the way they run their classrooms. Instead of writing on a board or an overhead transparency, they write on a tablet PC over their PowerPoint slides. The students, outfitted with their own tablets (all connected via a wireless network), see the instructor�s writing appear on their computers in real time and can add their own notes on top. Students can also send documents to the instructor for instant feedback. [read more here].

With support from the National Science Foundation, Microsoft and tablet manufacturers like Fuj"

Post-Doc Conference: Be There Or Be Square (sorry)

2007-05-31T07:14:00.000-04:00

This type of event is EXACTLY what MeCanIsms is all about promoting - a bunch of business and organizations getting together to treat postdocs like royalty and make us feel special! It is the 2nd Annual Post-doc Conference to be held at NIST on June 27 and put on by the Tech Council of Maryland. I am calling all postdocs to click on the link below and find out more.

ScienceCareers.org | Meetings: Archive: Access to STEM Talent

Events | Maryland NanoCenter

2007-05-28T20:27:00.001-04:00

Events | Maryland NanoCenter

Tue, Jun 26, 2007 12:00 pm	Nanotechnology in Foods and Cosmetics Speaker: The conference will bring together leading scientists to present cutting-edge scientific research	hide
Place Greenbelt Marriott, Greenbelt, MD Speaker The conference will bring together leading scientists to present cutting-edge scientific research Contact Judy Quigley jquigley@umd.edu Abstract This is the eighth in a series of annual symposia on food safety and applied nutrition jointly organized by the Central Science Laboratory (CSL), UK, and the Joint Institute for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition (JIFSAN), University of Maryland, College Park. Each year a different theme is selected. Over the past several years there has been increased interest in the application of nanotechnology to foods and cosmetics. These applications include improved packaging materials, preservatives, flavors and colors. Nanotech materials often have chemical or physical properties that are significantly different from those of their larger counterparts. Due to these differences nanotech materials have the potential for use in a vast variety of products and may pose new and unique safety issues. The focus of the 2007 annual CSL/JIFSAN Joint Symposium on Food Safety and Nutrition will be Nanotechnology in Foods and Cosmetics. Tentatively, symposium sessions will address the identification of regulatory issues, research approaches, characterization and detection methods, routes of exposure and toxicology, and risk analysis and decision making related to food and cosmetic applications of nanotechnology.

ScienceCareers.org | Transferable Skills And Portable Careers: Aschwanden: 20 April 2007

2007-05-23T21:28:00.000-04:00

ScienceCareers.org | Transferable Skills And Portable Careers: Aschwanden: 20 April 2007

NAMS: North American Membrane Society Meeting in Disney World!

2007-05-13T20:24:00.000-04:00

I arrived today to the North American Membrane Society (NAMS) Conference in the heart of Disney World, Orlando, FL. I think this is supposed to test your devotion to the society - go to the sessions or Epcot, Animal Kingdom or a workshop...VERY TEMPTING!

In any case, it is easier to attend the sessions when you don't have your family with you...or when you are a stranger to the community. Case in point - I did not do my graduate work in membranes, and the membrane community is fairly small, so people really know each other. So I really feel like I stick out. That's why I've got to go, meet and greet. That's my mission -

GO, MEET, AND GREET!

Mecanisms Search

2007-05-03T23:08:00.000-04:00

Try the Mecanisms Search Google Style to the right. It will return relevant information related to the topics addressed in this blog - careers, science policy, science education, conferences, etc.

Having a BLAST! at the AAAS S&T Policy Forum

2007-05-03T22:46:00.000-04:00

I am blogging from the AAAS S&T Policy Forum and I AM HAVING A BLAST! In my world, the people I am meeting are celebrities and heroes alike (here is a short list) -

Mary Sue Coleman, President of the University of Michigan and PhD Biochemist

Alan Leshner, CEO of AAAS

Rep. Bart Gordon (R-TN) - Chairman, House Committee on Science and Technology

John (Jack) H. Marburger, III - Director - White House Office of Science & Technology Policy for President George W. Bush

Jay M. Cohen - Under Secretary for Science and Technology, U.S. Department of Homeland Security

Calestous Juma, Professor, Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University

Marta Cehelsky, Senior Advisor, Office of the Director, National Science Foundation

Tomorrow I hope to snap some pictures and get some quotes up on the site.

Career Basics Booklet

2007-04-30T14:49:00.000-04:00

Download Full PDF

(taken from the link above)

Struggling with your next career step? Science Careers’ editorial team brings you “Career Basics: Advice and Resources for Scientists.” The booklet provides advice and help on preparing CVs and resumes, writing grants and scientific papers, networking, and much more. Read each article in the booklet online, or download each chapter or the entire booklet as a PDF. All for free. It is one more tool Science Careers provides to help you jump-start your career, be it in academia or outside the ivory tower!

GTD for Scientists

2007-04-23T15:18:00.000-04:00

GTD or Getting Things Done, is a "life" management process developed by David Allen that emphasizes collecting all tasks into an inbox and processing them by context. I like it because processing by priority can be frustrating, especially when it is logistically inconvenient. Check it out at the website OR the book, after checking out the GTD Wiki.

Scientists are really jumping unto this process, possibly because it is so "geek-friendly" with its similarities to email. See the thread on GTD for Scientists.

AAAS S&T Policy Forum

2007-04-21T22:57:00.000-04:00

Interested in science policy? You can attend the AAAS S&T Forum on May 3-4 which includes some of the most important people in science and government. They encourage graduate students and postdocs to attend and are offering them a lower registration fee ($120 for members and $150 for non-members).

I could be wrong, but none of us GS&PDs (graduate students and postdocs - get used to it) can afford that nor will many of our advisers pay for this. I think we need to mobilize and "encourage" them to lower the fee significantly or offer scholarships to those interested.

The MeCanIsms Calendar

2007-04-20T10:09:00.000-04:00

The purpose of the MeCanIsms Events Calendar to this site is to gather all the relevant event dates, deadlines and itineraries related to technical meetings, symposiums, conferences, etc. including abstract deadlines, calls for papers, grant proposal deadlines, and so on and so forth.

I will try to harness the power of the Google Calendar and Google Search and try to automate it is much as possible. If not, I will just have to call up all the major organizations and bully them into adding their events to this calendar first. (I'll let you know how that goes).

But you are welcome and ENCOURAGED to add technical events to the calendar, even if it is a small, local program. For now, I am primarily catering to the U.S., but you may add something outside of the U.S. if you'd like.

My Thoughts on the Virginia Tech Tragedy - I Know Why

2007-04-18T16:44:00.000-04:00

I THINK I know why the tragedy happened. But first, my thoughts and prayers go out to Virginia Tech and all the families affected. It's a terrible feeling, but I am so proud of that campus and the way they have handled themselves. The Hokie nation makes me proud to be human.

Sociology or Psychology are not necessarily the focus of this blog, but I just wanted to comment briefly on the role of middle and high schools. As they stand (and I graduated from high school in 1996 so I am not too far removed) secondary schools are breeding grounds for emotional catastrophes or emotional successes, depending on which side of the fence you fall on. If you come from a good home or good neighborhood or good church or other good social setting AND you are "cool" (however that is defined where you are) then you feel confident in society as you enter the adult years. However, if you come from a poor primary social setting (the home) AND you have something(s) that make you uncool (looks, race, culture, religion, economics...) then you could be really messed up in high school.

That's my simple psycho-social equation. THE SOLUTION? - we as adults have to intervene at the secondary school level (or earlier if you please) and make sure all children FEEL ACCEPTED, by involving them in activities (adult supervised and developed), bringing out their talents, and highlighting their similar emotional needs. This MUST be done. This should be the meaning of "no child left behind".

Thank you for allowing me a moment to vent. We all look forward to Va Tech rebounding and triumphing.

What is MeCanIsms? Why the Name?

2007-04-18T15:58:00.000-04:00

MeCanIsms or Me-Can-Isms is a creative (or quirky) term that denotes an "I Can" inspirational attitude and describes the pathway (mechanism) to success. It is derived from the "reaction mechanism" concept in organic chemistry, since I am a chemical engineer/chemist (though not really much of an organic chemist).

How MeCanIsms Began

2007-04-18T15:41:00.000-04:00

I recently came to the conclusion that I could facilitate the experience of applied sciences (chemistry, physics, biology) and engineering graduate students and postdocs because, well, I've been there...I am there! I am currently a PhD Chemical Engineer doing a postdoc in environmental engineering/materials science research. I launched this idea at this year's Spring ACS meeting in Chicago. I introduced myself to a bunch of people, told them about my idea, and collected their information. I want to personally thank each person that I spoke with, and that showed enthusiasm.

Why this? The reason is that I came from a very small, liberal arts college and I did not feel adequately prepared for many things. I did not know to participate and network at conferences, I did not know how to design and analyze an experiment efficiently, and I thought I could only be a research professor when I was done...and I wanted more options.

The goal of this blog will be to give advice, provide resources from experts in the field, and highlight events on 1)succeeding in the lab, 2)exploring alternative careers, 3)mastering the technical meeting, 4)transferring knowledge to the public/youth, and 5)whatever else I can think about.

PLEASE PROVIDE YOUR INPUT. YOU KNOW THIS IS NEEDED!

MeCanIsms - the pathway to success for current and future global (technical) leaders

ScienceCareers.org | Training Postdocs: Communication is Key: Bonetta: 31 August 2007

Graduate Education Newsletter

BEST—Building Engineering & Science Talent at Dow

Start with The Physics Today Buyer's Guide

ScienceCareers.org | Mastering Your Ph.D. - Series Index: Gosling: 10 November 2006

ScienceCareers.org | Joining a Trend, Scientists Increasingly Say Call My Agent: Gura: 16 January 2004

You Are/Will Be a Consultant Whether You Like It or Not

Guide to graduate students: how to pick a lab - News Article on Nature Network Boston

Mind to Market Mini Conference at Towson University

Consider Community Colleges

BioAgenda Institute

Finding a Great Job in a Weak Market

Getting a Great Job in a Weak Market

Using Tablet PC's Mandatory at Va Tech

Post-Doc Conference: Be There Or Be Square (sorry)

Events | Maryland NanoCenter

ScienceCareers.org | Transferable Skills And Portable Careers: Aschwanden: 20 April 2007

NAMS: North American Membrane Society Meeting in Disney World!

Mecanisms Search

Having a BLAST! at the AAAS S&T Policy Forum

Career Basics Booklet

GTD for Scientists

AAAS S&T Policy Forum

The MeCanIsms Calendar

My Thoughts on the Virginia Tech Tragedy - I Know Why

What is MeCanIsms? Why the Name?

How MeCanIsms Began

ScienceCareers.org | Joining a Trend, Scientists Increasingly Say Call My Agent: Gura: 16 January 2004