National Postdoctoral Association

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With the varied levels of interest, experience and career goals that postdocs may have, it is often hard to assess the needs of the individual. A one-on-one career advice and counseling service may be an appropriate idea for an institution to consider.

Many higher education institutions have a careers and employment service for their undergraduates, alumni and staff, and it could be negotiated to see if their advice and services could be open to postdocs, rather than having a dedicated member of the Postdoctoral Office taking on this responsibility. These departments could also be a source of trained personnel for an institution wishing to run workshops and study panels. Stanford University’s Career Development Center for Students runs a Career Counseling Service that is open to postdocs; they offer either a fifteen-minute walk-in service, or a longer appointment (forty-five minutes) can be made ahead of time by phone.

Other institutions having career counseling and advising resources that are targeted to or applicable for postdocs:

• UCSF Office of Career & Professional Development
• UNC-Chapel Hill Office of Postdoctoral Services Career Resources
• UC Davis Postdoctoral Careers Page
• University of Alberta Career Centre
• NYU Center for Career Education and Life Planning
• NIEHS Fellows’ Career Development Web site

Some of the larger professional societies run career services and Web sites for their members. These are frequently offered as a regular part of the society’s annual meetings:

• American Society for Microbiology Postdoc Career Page
• FASEB Career Center
• American Mathematical Society Careers and Employment
• American Physical Society Careers and Employment
• Society for Neuroscience Training and Resources

Other useful links on career advising/counseling

• Science Career Magazine
• National Postdoctoral Association’s Career Development Page
• The Chronicle of Higher Education Careers Section
• The Chronicle’s CV Doctor The Chronicle Careers Section is one of the best resources for jobs, articles and career advice for academics. Registration for online access is free to this section, as is access to the job board.
• Acorn Career Counseling and Resume Writing offers some online advice on how to create effective resumes. This business counseling firm’s Web site is well worth investigating.
• Creating a Professional Portfolio (Ball State University Quick Guide)
• Wetfeet
• CareerStorm
• CareerLab
• National Career Development Association
• JobWeb’s Career Library - a web site of career development and job-search information for college students and new college graduates, is owned and sponsored by the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE).
• University of Waterloo Career Development eManual – an online step-by-step guide for undergraduates and alumni. Many postdocs would benefit from utilizing this type of self-assessment and development guide.
• Tomorrow’s Professor Listserv– a Web site maintained by the Center for Innovations in Learning. Hundreds of postings containing advice on many topics for postdocs interested in academic careers, teaching and research.

Useful Articles and Books on career advising/counseling

Web Articles:

• Don't Let Them Wear You Down: How to Take Control of Your Career
• The "Other" Postdoc Curriculum
  
• Career Development Is a Two-Way Street: The FASEB Individual Development Plan for Postdocs and Mentors
• I'm Too Busy! The #1 Obstacle to Successful Career Development: Insufficient Time
• Office of Fellows' Career Development at NIEHS
• The Chronicle’s Career Advice Columns
• It's April and I Still Don't Have a Job! The Panicked Scientist's Guide to Accelerated Job Searches
• A Resume Makeover

Books:

• Career Renewal Tools for Scientists and Technical Professionals
  By Stephen Rosen and Celia Paul, Academic Press
• Put Your Science to Work - The Take-Charge Career Guide for Scientists
  By Peter S. Fiske, AGU Publications
• Consulting for PhD’s, Lawyers and Doctors
  Wetfeet Consulting Guides
• The Academic Job Search Handbook (4th Edition)
  By Julia Miller Vick, Jennifer S. Furlong, Pennsylvannia University Press
• Job Search in Academe: Strategic Rhetorics for Faculty Job Candidates
  By Dawn M. Formo, Cheryl Reed, Stylus Publishing