Diversifying Academia and Beyond: Exploring Careers in Science Policy

This winter, BioAIMS officers Anjali Shastri and Cecilia Sedano, in collaboration with the Genetics Diversity Office, organized a Career Development Trip to Washington, DC: “Diversifying Academia and Beyond,” the first of its kind at the Stanford School of Medicine. Six Biosciences PhD students (myself included) traveled to Washington, DC to meet with scientists working at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), National Science Foundation (NSF), American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), State Department, and Congressional Offices.

Anjali Shastri shares insights from our trip to Washington, DC:

Anjali Shastri is a third-year Immunology PhD student.

In a nutshell, it was amazing! We had the chance to visit a host of agencies, as well as government offices across Washington, DC. We met a diverse group of people, from a variety of science backgrounds, all of whom are making distinct contributions to science and society.

One of the most significant things we discovered was the plethora of ways in which science-related issues are being addressed and supported in our government, and how that goes about happening. There is of course the direct funding for our PIs’ grants, from agencies like the NSF and NIH, but these agencies do much more, including actively devising and implementing programs aimed at promoting science education at all levels, from elementary school through grad school, as well as supporting innovation in science, such as through the NSF’s ‘Division of Industrial Innovation and Partnerships,’ which supports students, postdocs, and PIs who have novel ideas and want to collaborate with industry to implement them. The AAAS, which focuses largely on putting out science publications (like Science), also participates in revamping the science curriculums in schools, studies the interface between science, technology and human rights, and helps institutions promote ‘research competitiveness.’ The State Department is using science for Diplomacy, working on initiatives to promote the education of women in the US and internationally in STEM fields like the Biosciences. And ultimately it is Congress that holds the purse-strings, and so determines how much of this can actually get done.  

There are many more programs and initiatives like the ones I described, and many ways that Bioscience PhDs can contribute, both from within academia, as grad students, postdocs, and PIs, as well as through pursuing careers at these institutions. I think I can speak for everyone who went on the trip in saying that it was an eye-opening experience, and we are really looking forward to sharing all that we’ve learned with BioAIMS, SBSA, and the Biosciences community.

The six of us who traveled to Washington, DC will participate in a panel discussion to share what we have learned from our experience in DC. If you'd like to know more about careers in science policy for PhDs, you won't want to miss this!

WHEN: Thursday, June 23rd at 5:30PM


WHERE: Alway M-114


WHAT: Pizza and a Panel Discussion


WHY: A unique opportunity to learn about career paths for science PhDs and how to pursue them... and free food!!

RSVP here.

“Diversifying Academia and Beyond” received generous funding from the Genetics Diversity Office and the Stanford School of Medicine.

Graduate Research Fellowships 101

Applying for fellowships is an integral part of the graduate experience. Some (but not all) Stanford Bioscience PhD programs require their first- and second-year students to apply for outside sources of funding. Whether it’s required or not, there are many good reasons to apply for research fellowships.

Winning a nationally competitive fellowship is a highly prestigious accomplishment. This recognition will follow you for the rest of your scientific career. Having your own research money can afford more flexibility in terms of choosing a graduate program, research lab and/or project. Fellowships often provide funds for lab supplies, conference fees and travel expenses. As tedious as it may seem, the application process is a good exercise in grant writing, an extremely important skill to hone as a scientist. As long as you meet all of the applicant criteria, there’s really no reason not to apply for a fellowship.

Nationally competitive fellowships awarded most frequently to Stanford Biosciences graduate students are the National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship Program (NSF GRFP, or simply NSF) and the National Defense Science and Engineering Graduate Fellowship (NDSEG). Having said that, there are countless research fellowships from which to choose. At the end of this post you will find links to fellowship databases as well as a link to a list of fellowships available to minority students.

Here is some general advice relevant to the fellowship application process:

Getting organized

-  Research fellowships, decide to which ones you’ll apply

-  Make note of deadlines

-  Generate a timeline by which materials must be submitted

-  Become an expert on the fellowship philosophies and agendas (e.g. Broader Impacts carries a lot of weight in the NSF fellowship application)

-  Develop an organization system for you applications (i.e. directories/subdirectories on your computer)

-  Don’t procrastinate!

Requesting letters of recommendation

-  Make sure you understand the recommendation letter criteria of the fellowship(s) to which you apply (e.g. how many are required?)

-  If possible, ask for recommendation letters from the same people who wrote letters on your behalf for graduate school applications

-  If you feel your current Stanford rotation advisor knows you well enough to write a recommendation letter for you, don’t hesitate to ask

-  Be very clear in communicating what’s required of recommendation letter writers for any given fellowship (how/where/when to submit letters, required forms, etc.)

-  Send a current CV/resumé to those who agree to write letters for you

-  Send polite email reminders to your letter writers one or two weeks before the submission deadline

Obtaining input from peers and colleagues

-  Read and learn from award-winning fellowship applications

-  Have your parents, friends, classmates, etc. (as many people as possible!) read your personal essays and statements

-  For more technical research proposals, have classmates, older grad students, postdocs, and/or advisors read your proposal(s)

-  Ask for advice from anybody who has been awarded a research fellowship*

*Philip Guo is a Computer Science PhD student at Stanford who has written an informative article titled Advice for applying for graduate science fellowships: NSF, NDSEG, Hertz. If your goal is to win a research fellowship, I HIGHLY recommend reading this!!!

As mentioned previously, BioAIMS is hosting a ‘How to write an NSF’ workshop next week. Students who have been awarded the NSF fellowship will share their advice and provide NSF applications of past award recipients. If that’s not enough to entice you, there will be free lunch!

Fellowship Databases

Cornell University Graduate School Fellowship Database

UCLA Graduate & Postdoctoral Extramural Support (GRAPES) Database

Columbia University Graduate School of Arts & Sciences Fellowship Database

Harvard University Graduate Guide to Grants

List of Fellowships for Minority Students

Stanford offers a number of gradate fellowships. These will be the topic of a future post. If you have any questions, feel free to leave a comment or send me an email.

BioAIMS: An Organization for Everyone

BioAIMS is the clever acronym for the Biomedical Association for the Interest of Minority Students, which welcomes all students. The mission of BioAIMS is “to address the needs and concerns of current minority graduate students in the Biosciences.” Here are some other aims of the organization:

-   to promote the recruitment and active retention of minority students for graduate studies in the biological sciences

-   to facilitate academic success through academically focused workshops*

-   to stimulate professional growth through career development sessions

-   to foster a student support network through social interactions

The 2010-2011 BioAIMS officers are pictured below: 

From left to right: Antonia Dominguez (President), Jon Lynch (Vice President), Anjali Shastri (Financial Officer), Cecilia Sedano (Secretary), Diego Ramallo (Communications Officer)

There are lots of BioAIMS events throughout the year, including a Fall Fiesta, monthly meetings, a holiday party, a winter retreat (the first ever this year!), an annual student banquet, and much more. In addition, BioAIMS coordinates science outreach programs to serve Stanford and the surrounding community.

*Attention new students: as mentioned above, BioAIMS offers a series of workshops targeting new graduate students (you!). These seminars are well worth your time AND you get free lunch out of the deal. The fall quarter workshops will cover the following topics:

-   How to write an NSF

-   How to make the most of your first year

Keep an eye out for more detailed information. Be sure to check out the BioAIMS website. If you’d like to be added to the BioAIMS mailing list, contact Diego Ramallo.

BioAIMS wants YOU!