GAUSS Career Blog

Career Information and Announcements

2013/10/03
by Katrin Wodzicki
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How To Illustrate One’s Individual Profile

In a former post, I stressed the importance of clarity about your individual profile of expertise, skills and personal characteristics. It might have raised the question whether or how to illustrate such a profile in your CV. In Germany, at least listing technical and language skills is very common. Although listing soft and personal skills is not that common, I think that it helps you to give a potential employer a better impression of you. Thus, I point to some articles dealing therewith in English-speaking countries:

Sarah Blackford discusses on her blog when and how to use personal profiles in CVs.

Moreover, an article on CAREEREALISM is about “5 Key Areas To Target When Branding Your Resume“.

Finally, two further CAREEREALISM articles might be helpful in your job hunting process, namely “Top 10 Ways To Get A Job Interview” and “Top 10 resume Tips“.

As always my offer for Göttingen postdocs: If you need further advise or want a second opinion on your CV, do not hesitate to contact me!

2013/10/01
by Katrin Wodzicki
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Special Edition “Biotechnologie 2013” online (German only)

The GoingPublic Magazine published the special edition “Biotechnologie 2013”. This publication is especially interesting for those of you who consider a career in this branch. Moreover, you find on the GoingPublic website profiles of German biotech firms.

And don’t forget about the BIOTECHNICA 2013 in Hannover next week. I recently wrote about how to make use of such trade fairs in the job hunting process.

2013/09/26
by Katrin Wodzicki
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Next Workshops: Save The Dates!

Here is an update on already planned workshops until February 2014. Registration will be open about 6-8 weeks before each workshop, when detailed information about the workshop content and the trainer will be send to you if you are registered here.

 

** Project management for young scientists. Taking off as a project pilot **

Trainer: Dr. Simon Golin

Date: 26 November 2013, 9:30-17:30 o’clock

 

** Fundraising for young scientists. How to open doors and avoid pitfalls in research funding **

Trainer: Andreas Schulte

Date: 6 December 2013, 8:30-16:30 o’clock

 

** Job hunting and application skills: How to apply with a PhD degree **

Trainer: Barbara Hoffbauer

Date: 9 December 2013, 13-17 o’clock, and 10 December 2013, 9-17 o’clock

Retrospective view on the last workshop of this kind you find here!

 

** Grant writing for postdocs **

Trainer: Dr. Christina Schütte

Date: 6-7 February 2014, full day each, time to be announced

Preparatory work will be necessary for this workshop! Postdocs who are working on a grant proposal or have concrete plans to write a grant proposal will be considered preferably.

 

Although I can already put someone down for a workshop, the final registration is not possible until the detailed announcement.

More workshops are requested or in the planning process. Moreover, I’m always interested in suggestions regarding further topics.

2013/09/24
by Katrin Wodzicki
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How To Catch Recruiter’s Eye

In the first workshops on career planning and job hunting, highlighting one’s own profile was stressed as important again and again. Why is it so important to work out one’s individual profile? Here I want to use the key-and-lock metaphor I once heard: The job profile an organization is looking for is like a lock. That means the job profile describes a very specific profile of expertise, skills and personal characteristics an organization is missing and thus searching for. Organizations look for the perfect key fitting or rather filling this lock with the described expertise, skills and personal characteristics. Only in the case of an (almost) perfect fit, both the organization and the hired person are satisfied.

Of course, it might be that not all organizations are good in describing what they are really looking for. Thereon, you have no influence. However, you can influence your clarity about your individual profile. In the first instance, clarity about what you have to offer and what you are looking for in a job helps you to identify job postings which might fit to your profile. The online tool “My Individual Development Plan” that might help you in doing this I introduced here.

When being invited to an interview, clarity about your profile helps not only the organization to judge you; it also helps you to judge the organization and the position it is offering in more detail. It allows you to ask the right questions: Is this really the job announced or I expect? How is it to work in this organization? Ask everything which helps you to judge your fitting.

To further encourage your analysis of your individual profile, I collected links to some articles dealing with related topics: Continue Reading →

2013/09/17
by Katrin Wodzicki
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THIS WEEK: Working in scientific editing at the EMBO Journal – Career Seminar with Andrea Leibfried at the MPI for biophysical chemistry

Announcement of the host, Dragomir Milovanovic, on behalf of the PhD/PostDoc Community:

‘Behind the scenes’ at The EMBO Journal: the editorial process

Andrea Leibfried, PhD, Editor, The EMBO Journal

The peer reviewed research paper remains the main conduit for the exchange of research discoveries. With the diversification and growth of global research, publishing in selected journals and citation metrics are increasingly employed as surrogates for quality in research assessment. Consequently, the pressure to publish in a handful of journals has increased, putting the peer review system under strain.

My talk will shortly summarize EMBO’s organizational aim and activities and I will provide an overview of the four journals published by EMBO as an academic organization (The EMBO Journal/EMBOreports/MSB/EMBO Mol Medicine).

Importantly, the Editorial Process as run at The EMBO Journal will be explained, thus outlining function and daily routines of scientific editors. Finally, I will present a number of policies that EMBO has implemented under its ‘transparent peer review’ scheme and that ensure a fast, fair and informed editorial process.

When? Thursday, 19 September, at 16:30 o’clock

Where? MPI for biophysical chemistry, large seminar room in the central building

2013/09/17
by Katrin Wodzicki
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Mentoring Program for a Career in Science Management (in German only)

As I wrote recently, mentoring is an effective instrument if you have already a career goal in mind. Here is your chance if you consider a career in science management!

The university of Göttingen offers a new mentoring program for postdoctoral researchers and PhD students who take into consideration a career in science management (Wege ins Wissenschaftsmanagement, WeWiMento). The program will start in November 2013. It consists of a one-t-one mentoring by an experience science manager, qualification through workshop and in networking event, and a 4-weeks sitting in on classes in facilities of the university.

Application deadline: 30 September 2013

More information: www.uni-goettingen.de/wewimento