The Individual Development Plan (IDP): Creation and Sustainability Rachel Begley, Director Office of Postdoctoral Affairs

Discussion Topics Why is an IDP important? Postdoc/Student & Mentor Responsibilities Taking Control of Your Career Next Steps-Developing Your IDP

I D P What is an IDP? ndividual evelopment lan provides a framework to identify and pursue professional development and career objectives. Rachel

What can an idp do for you? Help you to identify both short-term and long- term goals that can push you towards action Serve as a communication tool between postdoc/student, faculty mentor, and others Function as a visual representation/reminder of how you will spend your time achieving your goals Serve as a display of milestones along the way that can be acknowledged and celebrated Rachel

Why is filling out an IDP important to you? Job market is challenging right now Good News: there are a lot of career options for PhDs and postdocs The IDP helps you to identify your skills, interests, and career path The most successful postdocs & PIs have a plan

AN IDP Tells your PI that you do not plan on working for them forever Or does it, what will your self assessment tell you? Your PI will not plan your future for you If you they don’t know what your plan is, how can they help you get there? Generally people want to help and do the right thing if they are made aware Lays the groundwork for you to break away Lessens surprises and anxiety Let’s you know when funding is potentially ending Provides template for your future position

If you don’t have a destination and a route mapped out, then you can take any direction to get there 12,000 miles 12,000 miles

2,300 miles I-80 to I-70 to I-15 2300 miles

National Consensus Growing national consensus, from the NIH, NSF, AAMC, NIGMS, FASEB and other organizations, is that on-going training for (soft) skills is essential to a research-oriented scientific career.1 A nationwide study of 7600 postdoctoral researchers found that postdocs who developed training plans with their advisers at the start of their appointments reported greater satisfaction, published more papers, and experienced fewer conflicts with those advisers. 2 1 Nancy Schwartz, NPA Introduces Core Competencies, The POSTDOCket, Summer 2010 2 Davis G. (2005). “Doctors Without Orders.” American Scientist, 93 (3), supplement 1-13 Rachel

National Postdoctoral Association (NPA) Core Competencies The NPA has established six core competencies to offer guidance to individual postdoctoral scholars who must seek out relevant training experiences, in collaboration with mentors, institutions, and other advisors who provide this training. Source: The NPA Postdoctoral Core Competencies Toolkit: www.nationalpostdoc.org

The Six Core Competencies 1. Discipline-specific conceptual knowledge 2. Research skill development 3. Communication skills 4. Professionalism 5. Leadership and management skills 6. Responsible conduct of research Source: The NPA Postdoctoral Core Competencies Toolkit: www.nationalpostdoc.org

The Core Competencies are meant to serve primarily as: A basis for self-evaluation by postdocs A basis for developing training opportunities that can be evaluated by mentors, institutions, and other advisors May be incorporated into a framework for evaluation and feedback using the IDP Source: The NPA Postdoctoral Core Competencies Toolkit: www.nationalpostdoc.org

Postdoc/Student and Mentor Responsibilities

Postdoc/Student Responsibilities Take charge of your own professional development; actively seek opportunities outside the laboratory (e.g. professional development seminars and workshops in oral communication, scientific writing, and teaching)  Seek regular feedback on your performance Work towards progressive responsibility and management of your research project as it matures

Mentor Responsibilities Review IDP and provide feedback Regular reviews of progress Provide networking opportunities (colleagues, conferences, etc.) Provide guidance

Taking Control of Your Career: Filling out an IDP

myIDP http://myidp.sciencecareers.org myIDP is a unique, web-based career-planning tool tailored to meet the needs of PhD students and postdocs in the sciences Exercises to help you examine your skills, interests, and values A list of 20 scientific career paths with a prediction of which ones best fit your skills and interests A tool for setting strategic goals for the coming year, with optional reminders to keep you on track Articles and resources to guide you through the process Free!

myIDP http://myidp.sciencecareers.org

myIDP Process Step 1: Self Assessment Skills: The myIDP skills assessment has seven categories (based on the NPA Core Competencies): scientific knowledge research skills communication leadership and management professionalism responsible conduct of research career development Source: http://myidp.sciencecareers.org Rachel

myIDP Process Step 1: Self Assessment Interests: This assessment is intended to help you define the scientific tasks that you enjoy doing and would like to include as integral elements of your career.   It might also highlight tasks that you would like to avoid. Values: This assessment is intended to help you answer: What is most important to me? What rewards or outcomes do I want from my work? Source: http://myidp.sciencecareers.org

Source: http://myidp.sciencecareers.org myIDP Process Step 2: Career Exploration Learn about career options for PhD level scientists, and compare your skills, interests and values to each option. Consider Career Fit Read About Careers Attend Events Talk to People Choose a Career Path Source: http://myidp.sciencecareers.org Rachel

Source: http://myidp.sciencecareers.org myIDP Process Step 3: Set Goals Create a plan for this year Once you have completed the career exploration and selected two long-term career goals to aim for, the next step is to create a plan to get yourself there. In this section, you will set three types of short-term goals: Career advancement goals to help you move forward in your career Skills development goals to improve upon skill and knowledge areas in which you may be deficient Project completion goals to help you stay on top of the various projects you are working on Source: http://myidp.sciencecareers.org Rachel

Reaching Your Goals Goals need to be meaningful to you SMART (Specific, Measurable, Action Oriented, Realistic, Timeframe) Develop your skills Keep yourself accountable Write your goals/put them into myIDP Assess your plan

Source: http://myidp.sciencecareers.org myIDP Process Step 4: Implement Plan Identify your Mentoring Team: Why is this important? Mentors can provide both personal and professional guidance throughout your career, helping you to reflect on your skills, interests, and values; refine your career and professional development goals; and stay motivated and focused on achieving those goals. Source: http://myidp.sciencecareers.org Rachel

Source: http://myidp.sciencecareers.org myIDP Process Step 4: Implement Plan myIDP Summary: You can print out the entire IDP or individual sections of the IDP Share parts of your IDP with your research supervisor when you meet to discuss your progress Print out the calendar Print skills Submit the plan to your institution Completion Certificate: The certificate is an auto generated checklist which indicates your current progress in completing each section of myIDP Source: http://myidp.sciencecareers.org Rachel

Now it’s time to take action! The plan is just the beginning of the career development process and serves as the road map. Put your plan into action Revise and modify the plan as necessary. The plan is not cast in concrete; it will need to be modified as circumstances and goals change. The challenge of implementation is to remain flexible and open to change.

On-campus programs & opportunities CWRU Postgraduate Audit Program (10% tuition for Postdocs) http://postdoc.case.edu/current/benefits.html Fellowship Courses for Graduate Students (no tuition charge) http://gradstudies.case.edu/new/profdev.html Responsible Conduct of Research – Information & Training (free): http://gradstudies.case.edu/rcr/index.html Research Seminar Series (free) https://research.case.edu/Education/Onlinecalendar.cfm Weatherhead Executive Education Programs (50% discount for Postdocs) http://weatherhead.case.edu/executive-education/programs/schedule Research ShowCASE (free) https://research.case.edu/ShowCASE/Index.cfm Career Opportunities for Trainees Series (COTS) (free) som-GEO@case.edu CWRU Career Center http://students.case.edu/careers/

Resources The NPA Postdoctoral Core Competencies Toolkit www.nationalpostdoc.org/competencies myIDP: http://myidp.sciencecareers.org Contact Information Rachel Begley, Director Office of Postdoctoral Affairs Tomlinson Hall 215 reb23@case.edu

You can always change a plan, but only if you have one. --Randy Pausch