PDFO/MITACS Event: Networking

Date & Time

Wednesday, 27 November 2013 - 4:00pm to Wednesday, 27 November 2013 - 6:00pm

Location

Paetzold HEC Multi-Purpose Room, located within the Jim Pattison Pavilion, VGH (899 W. 12th Ave.)

Organizer

Postdoctoral Fellows Office (PDFO) and Mitacs Step

 

This session is being offered in collaboration with the MITACS Step program. Mitacs Step offers a holistic, inter-disciplinary approach to professional skills development. The workshops that are offered provide practical tools in business, communications, and project management through experiential learning from industry professionals in an interactive environment, arming graduate students for success within or beyond academia.

For many graduate students and post-doctoral fellows, the idea of networking is a scary thought, bringing with it connotations of schmoozing, kissing babies, and handing out business cards with a wink and a smile. In fact, networking is an easy-to-master and valuable skill that, if put into play early in one's training, can reap huge rewards when it comes time to finding employment. In this interactive workshop, trainees will learn what networking really entails, the returns it can generate, and how to leverage the power of the networks they already have. Practical tips for creating new networks will also be covered, including finding and attending networking events, the use of online tools, and the art of writing letters of introduction.

About the Facilitator:

Dr. Jennifer Gardy has been working with Mitacs Step since the inception of the program in 2008. Dr. Gardy leads BCCDC’s Genome Research Laboratory and is an Adjunct Professor in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology at the University of British Columbia. She obtained her BSc in Cell Biology & Genetics from UBC in 2000 and completed her PhD at Simon Fraser University in 2006. She completed three years of postdoctoral training in the R.E.W. Hancock laboratory at UBC, using systems biology techniques to study the mammalian innate immune response and working on visualization tools to facilitate scientists’ exploration of biological network data. Dr. Gardy joined BCCDC in 2009, where she works in the emerging field of genomic epidemiology, combining whole genome sequencing with both new and old epidemiological techniques to understand the origins, evolution, and transmission dynamics of outbreak organisms, including tuberculosis and influenza. She also leads BCCDC’s Research Development Unit and is a member of several Research Advisory Councils, including the Womens’ Health Research Institute, the Michael Smith Foundation for Health Research, and the Provincial Health Services Authority. She is also a passionate science communicator involved in a number of science media projects, including regular appearances on CBC Television’s documentary series The Nature of Things.

Registration:

Registration is required, please register online. Those successfully registered will receive a confirmation email from the PDFO one week prior to the workshop.

For graduate students, please register via the Graduate Pathways to Success program.