-
Home
- 2010 nsf advance workshop:
- 2010 nsf advance workshop:
- Building your lab -transitioning
The handout accompanying the panel discussion presented by Bonnie Bartel and Rob Griffin at the 2010 NSF ADVANCE Workshop: Negotiating the Ideal Faculty Position, A Workshop for Underrepresented PhDs and Postdocs in Science, Engineering and Psychology
September 19-21, 2010
Cultivate mentors and colleagues both inside and outside your institutional/departmental
- stay in touch with previous mentors
- seek out official department mentors – help with promotion/tenure etc.
- seek out informal mentors – more senior scientists
- build relationships with potential letter writers for tenure
- establish a set of confidants
Gain recognition and an independent identity
- talks, meetings (important for you and your students)
- service at institution (choose wisely)
- professional societies
- grant panels
- collaborations - understand your institution’s culture/expectations on interdisciplinary research (joint publications, grants, etc.)
- publications!
- strong plan to separate
your research program from previous advisor’s program
Develop your leadership and management style
- create a vision for your lab
- create a mission statement
- develop a written five year plan
- obtain feedback from senior faculty
- assess progress and update often
- establish a lab culture
- build an effective team
Staff your lab
- determine staffing needs
- technical staff
- graduate students vs. postdocs vs. undergrads (dept/university funding available?)
- be picky about who is your group – productivity does not scale linearly with numbers
- sell yourself as a junior PI
- learn what size group is right for you
Consider equipment needs
- balance of new vs. established techniques
- account for inflation when preparing budget
- funds for equipment maintenance?
Constantly improve leadership skills
- find role models
- take courses, read books
- get to know your strengths and weaknesses – exploit one, compensate for the other
Protect your time
- it is OK to say no (repeat daily)
- learn what does not require your best effort – save it for what really matters
- can be as important to learn what
not to do as it is to learn what you need to do
Source:
OpenStax, 2010 nsf advance workshop: negotiating the ideal faculty position. OpenStax CNX. Feb 11, 2011 Download for free at http://cnx.org/content/col11275/1.4
Google Play and the Google Play logo are trademarks of Google Inc.
