Resources for Non-Academic Career Planning

 

What should you do when your trainee wants to pursue a non-academic career? OCPD works with graduate students and postdocs in every stage of their career and professional development. They have resources and services to help them assess themselves, explore career options, and develop the professional skills to succeed in their career. 

The Office of Career and Professional Development (OCPD) recommends that you advise your trainees to work through the following steps. Resources for each step are described and you will find links to OCPD's website so that you can point your trainees to the appropriate resources. Most importantly, you and your trainees should set a reasonable agreement about commitment to lab work and space for career exploration.

Self Assessment: What is Important to Them?

Self assessment is the first step of career planning, especially when your trainee is interested in something outside of academia. 'Self assessment' is one's ability to reflect and articulate one's values, interests, abilities and personal work style. This step is often overlooked when students and postdocs are thinking about their career choice, but it's important since their responses serve as their criteria to evaluate the pros and cons of different career paths and specific jobs.

**Note that some IDP tools (like MyIDP) start with this step, and this step can be helpful for any career path.**

 

Check out the resources for your trainees provided by OCPD!

 

Exploring Careers for PhDs

A wide range of career opportunities are available for PhD-trained researchers in academia, industry, policy, consulting, education, business, law, and government, and more. 

OCPD offers resources that your trainees can use to explore career options that match their skills, interests, and values. They also provide access to structured career exploration programs, UCSF student and postdoc groups, and professional career counseling.

Of particular note here would be two structured career exploration programs.

** Data show that structured participation in a career exploration program does not increase time to degree.**

Motivating INformed Decisions (MIND)

guides graduate students and postdocs though a career exploration program designed to minimize the amount of time they spend away from their lab. In this structured program, students and postdocs:

  • engage in coursework to develop the skills and tools they need to explore a variety of career paths,
  • explore different career environments by connecting with biomedical PhDs in careers outside academic research.

Read Faculty FAQs and Learn More

Graduate Student Internships for Career Exploration (GSICE)

a program at that allows graduate students to do internships outside of academic research. The goal of GSICE is to provide students with hands-on experience in appropriate career environments in order to help them make informed decisions about which of the many career paths to pursue post graduation. The GSICE program consists of two main components: the GSICE training component and the GSICE internship.

Read Info for Faculty and Learn More

 

 

 

 

 

 

Check out the resources for your trainees provided by OCPD!

 

Positioning Themselves for Their Career Path

Once they've narrowed their career path to one or two choices, it will be time to prepare for what a career transition would look like after graduation. This means that they will determine the skills they need to be competitive, develop those skills while at UCSF, and find connections and build a community to help them succeed in that career path. Topics covered by OCPD include:

  • Determine the skills and experiences needed to succeed in a job
  • Start developing skills and gaining experiences
  • Gain practical experiences at UCSF
  • Discuss your career transition decision
  • Communicate how you will use your research skills in your new career

 

 

Check out the resources for your trainees provided by OCPD!