The PDFO is dedicated to providing a wide variety of quality professional development opportunities to UBC’s postdoc community.
The PDFO is proud to offer four flagship professional development programs in addition to regularly-scheduled professional development workshops:
- Foundations of Career Planning Program: A three-part workshop program designed to introduce postdocs to the support and resources required to establish the foundations of a post-PDF career in academia or with a primary focus on industry. By the end of the
- Postdoctoral Fellows Teaching Internship (PDTI): In collaboration with the Centre for the Integration of Research, Teaching and Learning (CIRTL), the Postdoc Teaching Internship is comprised of a three-day Instructional Skills Workshop (ISW) and opportunities to work with a mentor.
- Essentials of Project Management Program (formerly called the Summer Institute in Project Management): A program designed to provide a comprehensive overview of topics in research project management, including an introduction to the principles, and key elements of scope, time, cost, quality, stakeholder and risk management for projects in research. Participants attend six two-hour sessions over a two-month period, and modules are supplemented by online readings and videos.
- Winter Institute in Advanced Project Management: A follow-up to the PDFO's Summer Institute in Project Management, the Winter Institute in Project Management covers intermediate and advanced topics in project management and leadership. Building on the learning outcomes of the Summer Institute, this pilot program will provide participants the opportunity to apply these learnings by working on a group project. Participants will also learn about essential elements of leadership and management.
Additional professional development resources that are available to UBC-appointed Postdoctoral Fellows can be found on the Professional Development Resources page.
Upcoming Workshops and Events
UBC offers and administers programs that provide professional development to PDFs. Events offered by the PDFO will open for registration approximately two weeks in advance of each session. Registration is required for all PDFO events. Participants who are successfully registered in a professional development session will receive a confirmation email from the PDFO within a week of the session.
The PDFO reserves the right to cancel, postpone, or reschedule a course due to low enrollment or other unforeseen circumstances. If this occurs registrants will be contacted via email as soon as possible.
Previous Events
| Event Title | Event Date | Organizer Sort descending |
|---|---|---|
| Working with Recruiters - Advice for STEM PhDs (Online) | Beyond the Professoriate | |
| Non-Academic Career Options for STEM PhDs | Beyond the Professoriate | |
| Online Teaching: Lessons Learned (online) | Beyond the Professoriate | |
| Non-Academic Career Options for Humanities and Social Science PhDs | Beyond the Professoriate | |
| Leaving academia? Here’s what you need to do to prepare. | - | Beyond the Professoriate |
| 2020 Lessons Learned (And Ways to Prepare for 2021) (online) | - | Beyond the Professoriate |
| Leaving academia? Here's what you need to do to prepare. | - | Beyond the Professoriate |
| The Postdoc Academy: Succeeding as a Postdoc | Boston University | |
| Live Tech Love Life: Industry disrupting work & an unparalleled quality of life await you in Calgary, Alberta | - | Calgary Economic Development |
| Tax Webinar: Benefits and Credits for Persons with Disabilities | - | Canada Revenue Agency |
Privacy Notification: Your personal information is collected under the authority of section 26(c) of the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (FIPPA). This information will be used for the purpose of planning and administering each professional development workshop and event offered by the Postdoctoral Fellows Office (PDFO). Questions about the collection of this information may be directed to the PDFO at postdoctoral.fellows@ubc.ca.