Why a career-planning tool may not help as much as it’s meant to
Individual development plans or IDPs—multi-part worksheets that help junior researchers asses their skills and map out possible career paths—are often touted as valuable training tools. The US National Institutes of Health (NIH), for example, “strongly encourages” IDPs for all graduate students and postdoctoral researchers funded through the agency, and many US institutions have made them mandatory. Read more
Depression and anxiety are common among graduate students
More than 40% of respondents to the voluntary survey had anxiety scores in the moderate to severe range, and nearly 40% of respondents showed signs of moderate to severe depression. Both rates were more than six times greater than those found in the general public using the same standardized questionnaires. Read more
Adios to academia
US science and engineering PhD students are losing interest in academic careers because their career preferences change throughout their training, finds a study – not because of limited faculty-job availability. Read more
Career success: Reframe your thinking
Milgram, who spoke at NIH’s 10th annual Career Symposium in May, says that junior scientists, including graduate students and postdocs, need to become active participants in their career development, and that a chief component of that participation is talking with people about various career paths. “Talk with them — and learn from them,” she told her symposium audience. Read more