FRIDAY WORKSHOPS
The PhD Job Search: Finding & Applying for Careers in Industry, Nonprofit and Government
1-2pm, Corwin Pavilion
This workshop is designed to help graduate students and postdocs strategically search for and apply to jobs in nonprofit, government and industry. Students will leave this session with a time-based action plan, specific job search resources, and concrete next steps for finding and applying for positions that reflect their interests and experience level.
Facilitator: David Blancha (Assistant Director of Graduate Career Services, UCLA)
Leveraging Internships for Post-Graduate Success
2:15-3pm, Corwin Pavilion
This workshop will provide insights from a UCSB PhD alum who has extensive knowledge and expertise in the area of graduate student internships. It will address the importance of internships for graduate students, why and how organizations recruit and select interns, and what to consider when applying for or accepting an internship.
Facilitator: Rick Bacon, CEO of Aqua Metrology Systems
A graduate of Cambridge University in Land Economy, Rick gained a PhD in Education from USCB in 2018 while also working full-time as CEO of Aqua Metrology Systems, a water technology company based in Silicon Valley. Prior to that, he held senior leadership positions in a range of international companies in the energy, food and beverage, information technology and recruitment, engineering and consultancy businesses located in the US, UK, Spain, and France. In 2009, he founded Incutoc to advise technology start-ups and more recently, Groundgame, which works with companies to develop impactful internship programs and improve the access of under-served groups to the opportunities that these programs make available.
Building and Maintaining a Professional Network
3:15-4:15pm, Corwin Pavilion
The path to every job involves some form of network. Meetings and conferences (including Beyond Academia) provide opportunities to network, but capitalizing on these opportunities can be a challenge. This interactive session will provide networking tips, techniques, strategies, and practice to meet the networking challenge.
Facilitator: Don Lubach, Associate Dean of Graduate Student Initiatives (UCSB Student Affairs)
Don Lubach earned his Ph.D. in Education at UCSB quite some time ago and has worked for over 30 years as a professional in Higher Education. As an Associate Dean of Students and Lecturer, his teaching, committee work, and interests are all around the support of student success. He believes that UCSB graduate students are capable of reaching the top of any career in any industry, and finds joy in helping them to communicate their strengths as they seek meaningful work within and outside of the academy.
Transferable Skills for Students in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics)
4:30-5:30pm, Corwin Pavilion
Although you develop many valuable skills through your graduate and postdoctoral training, consciously and unconsciously, at times it can be challenging to articulate what skills you have and especially how those skill sets can be applied to a non-academic workplace. In this workshop, attendees will practice identifying their skill sets and articulating the transferability of these academic experiences to non-academic contexts with the help of facilitators who are in the workforce.
Facilitator: Derek Musashe, STEM Career Counselor (UCSB Career Services)
Never one to take a straight path when there is a more scenic route available, Derek Musashe became a STEM Career Counselor at UCSB via the road less traveled. After falling in love with the brain while earning a B.S. in neuroscience at Furman University, Derek went on to investigate the molecular mechanisms of the brain’s response to injury in the lab of Mary Logan at Oregon Health & Science University. While there earning his Ph.D. in neuroscience, he became enamored with the social side of science. Scientific discovery was great, but the people making it all happen began to hold more appeal for him. Derek now blends his skills and knowledge as a scientist with his sense of humor and love of people to help prepare USCB students for the professional futures that await them.
Transferable Skills for Students in SHEF (Social Science, Humanities, Education, Fine Arts)
4:30-5:30pm, State Street Room (UCen)
This workshop will help you identify and talk about the valuable transferable skills that you develop in graduate school and how you can apply those skills in a career beyond academia. The facilitators will guide you through the process of learning how skills are different from jobs, how to craft a compelling career narrative of your skills, and how to communicate your skills to a potential employer.
Facilitator: Lana Smith-Hale, Career Counselor for Graduate Students (UCSB Career Services)
Lana Smith-Hale, LCSW, is a career counselor for graduate students at UCSB. Her background is in counseling, with extensive and varied experience in a multitude of industries. It is with this knowledge of different working environments and a deep understanding of career issues facing graduate students that Lana strives to give meaningful insights, helpful tools, and instill an understanding of how to find career satisfaction post-grad life.
SATURDAY WORKSHOP
From Point A to Point C: One Scholar’s Twisted Turn from Postdoc to an ‘Industry’ Job
10:45-11:45am, Flying A Studios
Never had any image of yourself other than an academic? Think your area of expertise seems too far from application? Not sure what might be out there for you or have no idea where to even look? If you are feeling some inertia, then you’re not alone. In this talk, former postdoc Payam Rowghanian will describe how he gradually found some answers and navigated his way through.
Facilitator: Payam Rowghanian, PhD
Payam received his PhD in physics and worked as a postdoc in a biophysics lab at UCSB for five years. Currently he works as a Deep Learning Engineer at Osaro where he develops perception software for adaptive robotic systems.
