PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT AND CAREER PLANNING
UW-Madison offers a wealth of resources intended to enrich your graduate studies and enhance your professional skills. Starting your very first year on campus, it is expected that you will take full advantage of the career and professional development resources that best fit your needs and support your goals. Since our alumni thrive not only in academia but also in industry, corporate, government, and non-profit arenas, we strive to be in-tune, holistic, and innovative in our approach to meeting the diverse professional development needs of our students. By actively participating in these professional development opportunities, you will build the skills needed to succeed academically at UW-Madison and to thrive professionally in your chosen career.
Local Resources for Professional Development and Career Planning
List and describe your local professional development resources and workshops, student organizations and leadership opportunities and/or available practicums, clinical experiences, field courses, “capstone projects” that they can take as part of the curriculum that also serve professional development.
How can TAs take advantage of opportunities for mentoring and professional development related to teaching experience and improvement training? To what degree does the program encourage participation in organized TA trainings, workshops, programs, and other opportunities that are intended to enhance skills in teaching?
For students pursuing faculty careers, this is a good place to describe the role their faculty advisor will play in mentoring them as they approach the academic job search, such as appropriate timing, writing letters of recommendation, and professional networking.
In addition, be sure to point students toward your school’s/college’s career services center for students pursuing careers beyond the tenure track.
Describe any program-provided/required education in the responsible conduct of research/scholarship (e.g., conflict of interest, data management, mentor/trainee relationships, publication practices, peer review, collaborative science issues, human subjects, research involving animals, research misconduct)?
Does the program offer awards to students for teaching or research?
If you would like your program to offer more in this area but need support in doing so, you may contact the Graduate School Office of Professional Development (OPD) to discuss options. OPD staff are available to visit your program and share information with students regarding professional development resources, as well as to tailor a workshop to the unique needs of your students. Additionally, some programming funds may be available from OPD for workshops hosted by programs that can be made available to a wide graduate student audience across multiple disciplines.
Travel to Meetings and Conferences
An important part of the professional development of graduate students is the participation in professional meetings and conferences. Consult your advisor about the appropriate venues for you to attend. Some advisors may have access to funds to help support travel costs or can help students to apply for external funds (e.g. through sponsoring societies). Students should also explore volunteer opportunities at conferences to offset registration costs, e.g., by calling the supervisor. Students who have reached dissertator status are eligible to apply for Vilas Conference Presentation Funds from the Graduate School (grad.wisc.edu/pd/vilas/conference/).
Funding for conference or meeting travel can come from different areas:
- obtained through a faculty advisor’s grant
- apply for a travel award through the department (see funding section above)
- apply through the organization directly for travel and scholarship funds
- Apply through The Graduate School Grants Competition: https://grad.wisc.edu/funding/grants-competition/
- Apply for other independent scholarships (research through the Grants Library in Memorial Union.)
When planning on travel, you should discuss this with your advisor for approval.
Once you have obtained your advisor’s approval, discuss plans and order tickets, reserve hotel room with the Botany main office. Upon returning, submit your electronic reimbursement through the system (with receipts.)
All travel is subject to the rules and limitations by the University of Wisconsin System and State of Wisconsin. It is your responsibility to adhere to these rules: http://www.bussvc.wisc.edu/acct/travel/index.html
Campus-wide Resources for Professional Development
In addition to opportunities at the local level, the Graduate School Office of Professional Development provides direct programming in the areas of career development and skill building, and also serves as a clearing house for professional development resources across campus. The best way to stay informed is to watch for the weekly newsletter from OPD, GradConnections Weekly, and to visit the webpage grad.wisc.edu/pd/events for an up-to-date list of events. For example, typical topics covered throughout the year are:
- Individual Development Plans (IDPs)
- Planning for academic success
- Dissertation writing support
- Communication skills
- Grant writing
- Teaching
- Mentoring
- Research ethics
- Community engagement
- Entrepreneurship
- Career exploration: academic, non-profit, industry, government, etc.
- Job search support
- Pursuing postdoctoral training
Be sure to keep a pulse on programs offered by the following campus services as well.
- Writing Center wisc.edu/
- Grants Information Collection library.wisc.edu/
- Student Technology Training (STS) doit.wisc.edu/
- Delta Program wisc.edu
- UW Teaching Academy wisc.edu/teaching-academy
- UW Center for the Humanities wisc.edu
- Wisconsin Entrepreneurial Bootcamp wisc.edu/degrees-programs/non-business- majors/wisconsin-entrepreneurial-bootcamp
Individual Development Plans
The Graduate School webpage grad.wisc.edu/pd/idp offers a collection of IDP resources to support graduate students, postdoctoral researchers, mentors, PIs, grants administrators, and graduate program coordinators.
The university recommends the use of IDPs for all postdoctoral researchers and graduate students, and requires their use for all postdoctoral researchers and graduate students supported by National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding.
As you begin your Graduate School career, an Individual Development Plan (IDP) is an essential tool to help you:
- Assess your current skills and strengths
- Make a plan for developing skills that will help you meet your academic and professional goals
- Communicate with your advisors and mentors about your evolving goals and related skills.
The IDP you create is a document you will want to revisit again and again, to update and refine as your goals change and/or come into focus, and to record your progress and accomplishments. It also serves to start – and maintain – the conversation with your faculty advisor about your career goals and professional development needs.
The onus to engage in the IDP process is on you, although your mentor, PI, or others may encourage and support you in doing so. The IDP itself remains private to you, and you choose which parts to share with which mentors. Through the IDP process, you may decide to identify various mentors to whom you can go for expertise and advice.
We recommend using one of the following two IDP tools, or a more specific IDP tool that your program or training grant has developed. Each tool will include a self-assessment of skills, interests, and values; goal-setting guidelines; and reference to skill building and career exploration resources.
IDP tool for all graduate students and postdocs
UW-Madison IDP template, which includes instructions and examples, is flexible and appropriate for all disciplines. grad.wisc.edu/pd/idp#mentees
IDP tool for sciences and engineering
For graduate students in the natural sciences and engineering, the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) online tool “myIDP” provides a comprehensive set of materials and exercises that will guide you through the process of self-assessment, career exploration, goal-setting, and implementation of your plan. Set up a free account and create and monitor your IDP at myidp.sciencecareers.org.