Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor once said, "Until we get equality in education, we won't have an equal society." Though aimed at society as a whole, her words also apply to our scientific society.
Until the scientific community makes dedicated efforts to include minority scholars, science will never be an equal society. While the Supreme Court recently ruled to block attempts to end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, the fight against systemic racism is a long journey that extends far beyond this case. We must all work to ensure scientists from all walks of life are supported and welcomed into the scientific community in order to build a landscape that more accurately represents the makeup of society.
Equity, well-being and learning all compel a re-examination of qualifying exams and the transition to Ph.D. candidacy.
In 2020, we witnessed unprecedented societal challenges and calls to action impacting the entire Earth and Space Sciences (ESS) community. The global COVID-19 pandemic, which disproportionately impacted racial and ethnic minorities, coincided with an additional clarion call to address systemic racism, initiating a global movement to reexamine past and current diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) practices across all major institutions.
Personal statements — essays highlighting personal circumstances, qualities and achievements — are used extensively in science to evaluate candidates for jobs, awards and promotions. Five researchers offer tips for making yours stand out in a crowded and competitive market.
Highlights from the National Academies’ report
April 7, 2021 | Duration: 1 hr. 2 mins.
Student well-being is foundational to academic success. One recent survey of postsecondary educators found that nearly 80% believed emotional well-being is a "very" or "extremely" important factor in student success. While dealing with stress is a normal part of life, for some students, stress can adversely affect their physical, emotional and psychological health, particularly given that adolescence and early adulthood are when most mental illnesses first manifest.
IGEN Events Code of Conduct
About the Guidelines
The IGEN Meetings Code of Conduct provides overall guidance for all meeting attendees and participants who participate in any sanctioned event. However, IGEN has specific guidelines for the use of social media and photography at all IGEN or IGEN Alliance planned meetings. We ask all meeting participants to follow the guidelines outlined below.
Equity can be defined in a variety of ways. Our working definition is: reconfiguring structures and cultures in the system of graduate education to empower marginalized groups and close disparities.
Inequities in postdoctoral hiring reflect and contribute to inequities in the scientific labor force more broadly. Although their positions are usually temporary, postdoctorates comprise a substantial proportion of the STEM research workforce and conduct a large share of the work generating laboratory productivity.
"Like many students who apply to grad school, Danica Gressel wondered if she had what it takes to be successful. With help from some great mentors, faculty, and the ACS Bridge Program, she was able to put her doubts to rest and grow in confidence, professionalism, and skill."
Excerpt taken from inChemistry article [November 12, 2020]
