Professional Development Series
Summary
In my experience as a graduate student and supervisor I have noticed a high degree of uncertainty, from even the most gifted students, about the requirements of their degrees and the expectations of academia more broadly. These students are well versed in theory and approaches to course work and writing papers but often many other components of their journey including conducting field work, publishing, attending conferences and applying for funding and jobs remain a mystery. As a student, I was fortunate to learn about these activities from a group of supportive mentors and peers but I feel that more opportunities for professional development discussion and training are needed. In 2010, I added a voluntary professional development module to the graduate methods course I was teaching at the University of Toronto. The positive experience and feedback encouraged me to develop a broader initiative at Uppsala University for all of the PhD students in the geography department. To date I have conducted seminars on a range of relevant topics that were determined through student surveys. These seminars typically feature a presentation about the topic that includes information, tips and strategies, a question and answer period and group discussion where the students get to raise concerns and share their own experiences, strategies and plans. According to participants, these seminars are very useful and I have personally found them very informative and rewarding.
Events
* I proposed, developed, organized and facilitated each of these events
2014
Location: Uppsala University, Department of Social and Economic Geography
Participants: Members of the department’s PhD program
* Session 1 and 2 were 2 hours. Session 3 was 3 hours
Topic: Writing Abstracts and Choosing Journals - January 28th
Topic: Conference Presentations - February 14th
Topic: Preparing for Success after the PhD - May 30th
2013
Location: Uppsala University, Department of Social and Economic Geography
Participants: Members of the department’s PhD program
* All sessions were 1 hour
- Topic: CV Writing and Self-Promotion - January 25th
- Topic: Academic Job Interviews - February 20th
- Topic: Publishing - March 20th
- Topic: Organizing Academic Events - April 24th
- Topic: Academic Presentations - June 5th
2012
Location: Uppsala University, Department of Social and Economic Geography
Participants: Members of the department’s PhD program
* All sessions were 2 hours
- Topic: Writing and Publishing - March 22
- Topic: Conferences and Networking - April 13
- Topic: Common Issues for PhD Students - April 27
- Topic: Using Technology and Tools - June 1
2010
Location: University of Toronto, Department of Geography and Planning
Participants: Members of the graduate research methods course
* All sessions were 1 hour
- Topic: Supervisors and Committees - February 2
- Topic: Publishing - February 9
- Topic: Conferences and Networking - February 23
- Topic: Research Funding - March 2nd
- Topic: Common Issues for PhD Students - March 9