SOPS December Newsletter

Dear Fellow Postdocs,

Hope the end of your term is going well. As you wrap up the term and travel over the holiday season, we ask you consider submitting a presentation or poster abstract to the 6th Annual Society for Postdoctoral Scholars (SOPS) Postdoctoral Symposium. The symposium is on February 5, and the abstract submission deadline is on January 15th, both of which will be here very soon. If you know of any Postdocs or graduate students who are not aware of the SOPS symposium, please make them aware of this exciting research-related opportunity.

The 6th Annual SOPS Symposium is Coming on February 5th!

Do you like to publicize your research? The SOPS Symposium is an excellent way to engage with the broader research community in either an oral or poster presentation format. We will also have a juried competition for best research presentation. This year’s symposium is sponsored by the Graduate College and the Provost’s Office, and will be hosted at the Beckman Institute. Our keynote speaker is Dr. Adam Kruse from the School of Music. He will be presenting a keynote lecture entitled “Bring the Noise: Challenging the Relationships Between Hip-Hop and School Music”. The submissions will feature Postdocs and graduate students from a variety of disciplines, so be sure to submit your work and/or register today!

 

Abstracts submission will be open until January 15th, 2016. The registration fee is $15 for all participants. This includes coffee, a light breakfast, catered lunch, and light evening refreshments at the reception. As the number of oral presentations are limited, those abstracts not selected for oral presentations will be offered poster presentations. Graduate students are particularly encouraged to submit abstracts for the poster session. Travel awards will be available. The abstract word limit is 200 words.

For more information, please visit our website:

http://sops.beckman.illinois.edu/current-symposium/

To register, please follow this link:

https://conferences.beckman.illinois.edu/registration.aspx?event=1089

We look forward to seeing you there!

Coming up a bit more imminently, and in celebration of another semester in the history books, SOPS will be hosting a happy hour on the Wednesday of finals week. We will be getting together at Murphy’s Pub (Green and Sixth Streets) on Wednesday, December 16th from 5:30 to 7:30 for some end-of-the-semester socializing. Murphy’s Pub will open their second bar for some end-of-the-semester socializing as well as have special offers on drinks and burgers. Look out for our next e-mail with more details. Please stop by if you can!

We are still interested in organizing a session for interested Postdocs to practice their job talk or more generally gain exposure to public speaking. If you would like to present (or even simply attend as an audience member), contact Bradly Alicea (balicea@illinois.edu), Maryam Shakiba (mshakiba@illinois.edu), or Ilaria Berteletti (ilariab@illinois.edu). We will then determine a meeting time and place. Should be a fun time!

 

Since December is a holiday infused month, there are no special events scheduled. However, other events and deadlines to look out for in the New Year include:

1) the Graduate College Career Development office will offer more than 20 workshops on a range of topics during Spring 2016. Their interactive workshops offer information and practice to help you get from where you are to where you want to be. Our Spring 2016 workshop series includes useful information on:

Resumes & Cover Letters

Preparing for Faculty Job Interviews

Negotiation Strategies

Career Exploration Group

Getting Started on the Non-Academic Job Market

2) iBiology Young Scientist Series. Deadline: January 11, 2016. URL: http://iBiology.org

iBiology is now accepting applications from PhD students and postdocs to participate in the 2016 YSS competition. It is a fantastic opportunity for trainees in the biological sciences to develop their communication skills and to showcase their work on a unique, international platform. Four winners will attend a multi-day workshop led by the Alan Alda Center for Communicating Science, a leading organization in training scientists to give effective talks. After this training, the selected scientists will record a 30-minute talk in iBiology’s green screen studio. The talks will be posted on iBiology.org as part of the Young Scientist Seminars.

3) Future Faculty Workshop NextProfScience at the University of Michigan. Deadline: February 21, 2016. URL:http://sites.lsa.umich.edu/nextprof-science/

NextProf Science is aimed at future faculty—advanced doctoral students or postdoctoral fellows who are interested in an academic career in science at an exceptional academic research institution and who have demonstrated a commitment to diversity. The science and mathematics departments of the U-M College of Literature, Science, and Arts will host 48 future faculty participants on the U-M campus to show them the rewards of an academic career, help them understand the faculty search process, and connect them with faculty in their research area, as well as academic leaders, and other participants.

 

The NextProf Science 2016 workshop is free to participants, who must be U.S. citizens or permanent residents. Underrepresented minorities and women are especially encouraged to apply. Travel, lodging, and meals will be covered by the program. Applicants may nominate themselves or be nominated by a faculty mentor. Find additional information about the workshop and application materials on the NextProf Science website.

 

See you in 2016!

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