Professional Scientist/Researcher

Abstract

Background: While program director (PD) letters of recommendation (LOR) are subject to bias, especially against those underrepresented in medicine, these letters are one of the most important factors in fellowship selection. Bias manifests in LOR in a number of ways, including biased use of agentic and communal terms, doubt raising language, and description of career trajectory. To reduce bias, specialty organizations have recommended standardized PD LOR.

Intersectional Privilege Article Summary

The intersectional privilege of white able-bodied heterosexual men in STEM.

By Erin A. Cech

Date & Time of Journal Club: Tuesday, October 18th, 2022 at 10amPT/1pmET

National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2022.

Educational Pathways for Black Students in Science, Engineering, and Medicine: Exploring Barriers and Possible Interventions: Proceedings of a Workshop. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.

"A planning committee of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine will organize a virtual public workshop to examine the financial barriers – including educational debt burden – preventing Black people from entering or continuing education in science, engineering, and medicine (SEM). The workshop will also identify policies and practices that perpetuate those barriers and lay a foundation of knowledge for others to be better positioned to engage on these issues."

3 part workshop, 9 hours total. 

Change typically comes slowly in higher education, but these are not typical times. Most systemic change comes about precisely through exogenous shocks.

This DOE Laboratories of the Future (LOTF) workshop covered mentorship at the laboratories as a mechanism for creating successful environments and inclusive cultures across all career levels and types.

Melissa McDaniels, a CIMER co-investigator, was the first individual to be invited to participate in this workshop series in two separate academic years. 

Align expectations with your mentor, mentee, or project team with these Mentor Compact examples. 

Revist the subject through regular project meetings. 

Mentor Mapping exercise for Research Mentors and their students. 

Abstract: Physics departments are increasingly working to improve diversity in graduate programs by using more holistic strategies in their admission and retention practices. However, completion rates for traditionally underserved groups are still problematic. By understanding and accounting for faculty and student divergence on challenges faced in retention, graduate programs will be better equipped to enact change.

National Academies of Science News Release | October 30, 2019