Date & Time
Location
Organizer
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.
Workshop Objectives
Building and maintaining your network is an important component of your career as an academic and researcher. It can also be one of the most daunting and challenging professional skills to develop.
Based on the unique networking opportunities available to you as an academic, this Mitacs workshop provides you with easily applicable knowledge and tools in this in-person format!
Learning Outcomes
By participating in this workshop you will learn to:
- Recognize and make the most out of your existing network
- Plan and prepare for networking opportunities
- Make an impact on important contacts
Facilitator
Dr. Jennifer Gardy
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 for this workshop is required, and is now open. Graduate students and postdoctoral fellows from all BC post-secondary institutions will be accepted on a first-come, first-served basis. Successfully registered postdocs will receive a confirmation email from the PDFO one week prior to the workshop. All cancellations must be received no later than 24 hours in advance of the workshop.
Graduate students, please register through the Graduate Pathways to Success Program.
Testimonials
"Dr. Gardy was very engaging. She has convinced me that networking is not a chore but can be fun!"
"With the skills and tips learned from this workshop, I feel motivated to get out and get networking!"
"It was amazing. I learned lots of practical suggestions about networking."