GSBS Individual Development Plan (IDP)
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Overview
The IDP is a planning tool designed to help students identify scientific progress, determine professional development needs, and meet career-planning objectives. The GSBS IDP was designed for GSBS students and includes reflection on graduate training expectations, self-assessment and goal-setting exercises, and follow-up discussions with a research advisor and the Office of Career Development. Collectively, this process is designed to aid students in setting short-term training and professional development goals that enhance career readiness for students upon graduation.
The GSBS IDP is an annual academic milestone requirement for all GSBS PhD students.
Goals of the IDP:
- cultivates a sense of ownership over training, career planning and professional development
- allows for reflection and self-evaluation on training progress and career-readiness
- identifies areas for improving performance and developing new skills
- facilitates communication and transparent expectations between the student and research mentor
To learn more about how the GSBS IDP process, see this one page summary.
Feedback from the GSBS community is critical in ensuring this is a useful tool for our community. Please click here to answer a brief survey about your IDP experience: https://uthtmc.az1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_0fauk0NNzSyuYyp
Questions about the IDP process: Contact gsbs.careerdevelopment@uth.tmc.edu
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IDP Form
Use the GSBS IDP guide and worksheet that correlates to your specific stage of training:
First year: Guide and Worksheet (Word Document)
Second year: Guide and Worksheet (Word Document)
Third year: Guide and Worksheet (Word Document)
Fourth year and beyond: Guide and Worksheet (Word Document)
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For Graduate Students
GSBS expects that all PhD students will complete their IDPs on an annual basis. Students will complete a training year-specific form that guides them through self-reflection and assessment, goal-setting, and a facilitated discussion of training and career-related goals. The first IDP is completed during GSBS orientation with the Office of Career Development. In subsequent years, GSBS students will review their IDP from the previous year, reflect on progress, and revise their IDPs using the recommended form. Students are expected to complete and discuss their IDPs with their research mentors (or another faculty member) on an annual basis. In year 3, all GSBS students will be required to complete their IDP and participate in a confidential one-on-one career advising meeting with the Office of Career Development.
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For Mentors
An IDP enables both students and their mentors to best chart a path for an individual student’s development needs. Importantly, it recognizes that we are all unique and have a different mix of strengths, developmental goals, and career ambitions. Therefore, this process is highly tailored to help graduate students:
- assess their skills, interests and values;
- determine a plan for meeting academic and professional goals; and
- communicate with their mentor(s) about evolving goals and related skills.
The mentor’s responsibility
It is the responsibility of the graduate student to engage in the IDP process. However, having conversations with a mentor or mentoring team is an essential step in implementing and completing the IDP process.
If a graduate student has indicated you as a mentor in the IDP reporting system, you may be asked to engage in this process at some of all of the various points:
- After conducting the self-assessment as they begin to develop goals
- After defining their goals
- For advice about various career paths
While it is up to the graduate student to develop IDPs, it is also important for you to encourage them to interact with you regarding the IDP. They may choose to share certain parts of the IDP with you and keep other parts (such as the skills assessment, or personal goals) private.
IDP mentor resources
The following links will help facilitate your role as an IDP mentor:
- Research Mentor Training
The GSBS provides mentorship training to improve research mentorship relationships, assessment tools and resources relevant for mentors and mentees.
- Questions about the process
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For Principal Investigators and Program Directors of NIH Grants
Coming soon.
Questions about the IDP process: Contact gsbs.careerdevelopment@uth.tmc.edu
Workshop and Events
Many opportunities exist for students to participate in workshops and events that highlight the skills and approaches needed to develop a career plan. These opportunities include the BioCareers seminars provided by the GSBS Student Affairs Committee, and a myriad of events sponsored throughout the Texas Medical Center and beyond.
Please check the GSBS Essential for the listing of upcoming career development events.
Please check the LEAD Calendar for upcoming events. Complete this form to submit an event to the LEAD calendar.
Opportunities
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Mentoring and Volunteer
Mentoring opportunities:
Beginning at orientation, and continuing throughout your research training, there are many opportunities for you to broaden your career options. However, we already have one of the best resources for you in our alumni! To this end, we have written to GSBS Alumni to ask for their assistance with an initiative on electronic mentoring (e-mentoring). The goal of this program is to provide Alumni mentorship to our students in preparation for the next step in your career whether it is in the academic, non-academic, clinical or industrial sectors. This interaction could take place by phone, electronically, or in person. Below is a link to the Alumni e-Mentorship database. Check back often as we continue to update this resource with information from Alumni who are interested in helping you!
Volunteer opportunities for GSBS Students:
To volunteer for:
- Becoming a mentor
- Organizing career development events
- Leading small support groups on various subjects
- Teaching at our Skills Café
Please contact gsbs.careerdevelopment@uth.tmc.edu.
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TA's, Internships & Jobs
If you are a GSBS student and interested in completing an internship, please visit item 6 in our Stipend Policy and contact gsbs.careerdevelopment@uth.tmc.edu.
If you are an employer or sponsor and would like to submit a posting please contact gsbs.careerdevelopment@uth.tmc.edu.
Student internships
TMC Biodesign is a one-year innovation fellowship program that brings together highly talented individuals from engineering, medicine, business, design, computer science and research to create digital health and medical device solutions. Innovation Fellows are supported with the leading experts and resources of the largest medical center in the world. APPLY.
JLABS @ TMC is a 30,000-square-foot JLABS incubator that can accommodate up to 50 life science startups. The JLABS @ TMC facility includes a combination of shared and private lab and office spaces, and features value-added solutions including operational support, education and business services. APPLY
Fannin Innovation Studio’s Internship Program provide MDs and PhDs in the Texas Medical Center institutions with hands-on leadership experience in early-stage life sciences business development and commercialization.
NASA has established a cooperative agreement with Baylor College of Medicine Translational Research Institute to offer postdoctoral fellow opportunities. LEARN MORE
Postgraduate jobs and fellowships
To see the list of other internship, fellowship and job opportunities, please click here to visit the Job Board on our LinkedIn Career Development Group.
Resources
- Career Exploration
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Interviewing
- Interviewing Skills- NIH recommendations
- Preparing for Academic Interviews- NIH handout
- NIH “Behavioral Interview Guide” – Gives insights from employers’ perspective
- Interview Skills- FIP.ORG
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Job Search Links
- LinkedIn jobs- to find jobs, recruiters and employers globally
- AAAS ScienceCareers – to find jobs globally
- ResearchGate jobs- to find mainly research jobs globally
- Nature jobs- to find STEM related jobs globally
- NewScientist- to find science related jobs globally
- The Scientists – to find science related jobs globally
- HigherEdJobs- to find jobs in higher education
- Pharmacocareers – to find pharmacology related jobs globally
- Indeed- to find jobs globally
- GoingGlobal- To access country-specific career information and employment opportunities
- TimesHigherEducation- To find academic jobs globally
- ZipRecruiter- To find jobs globally
- Jooble- to find jobs globally
- VelvetJobs - To find jobs globally
- Adzuna - to find jobs globally (check their value my resume tool: ValueMyResume)
- Medzilla – To find jobs in the North America
- Monster.com – To find jobs in the US
- National Postdoctoral Association jobs - to find various types of jobs in the US
- FASEB - to find biomedical jobs in the US
- BioSpace - To find Life Sciences jobs in the US
- AcademicKeys- to find jobs in academia mainly in the US
- Chronicle jobs- to find faculty and research jobs in the US
- PathwaysToScience – to find postdoctoral fellowship and faculty positions in the US
- Careerbliss- to find jobs, research salaries and read reviews in the US
- JUJU- to find jobs in the US
- CyberCoders- to find jobs and recruiters mainly in the US
- AcademicJobsEU- to find academic and research jobs in Europe
- EuroAxess- to find research jobs in Europe
- EUCareers- to find jobs in European Union
- EuroPass- to create a CV and Cover Letter for European Union
- EURes- to find jobs in European job market
- AcademicPostions- to find academic and research jobs in Europe
- Academics- to find jobs in research and higher education in Europe (and particularly Germany)
- TopResearchJobs- to find research jobs in North Europe and North America
- JobSearchIntelligence- to calculate salary in the US job market
- IndeedSalary- to estimate salary globally
- Expatistan- to compare costs of living globally
- Glassdoor- to find jobs globally, and to get tips on salary estimations, reviews on potential employers and interviews
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Memberships
As a student of GSBS, we encourage you to take advantage of student memberships available through the institution. Professional memberships provide students with many helpful resources and networking opportunities to aide in your career planning and development throughout your time at GSBS.
AWIS - Association for Women in Science
NPA – National Postdoctoral Association (membership is free if you use your institutional email address to become an “Affiliate Individual Member, Graduate Student”)
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Business Cards