Achievement

Inspired by 2009 IGERT PI meeting panel discussion and suggestions from our own trainees, we refocused our quarter-long (10-session) seminar for first-year trainees on professional skill development. New topics included personal introductions in professional and social settings, the "elevator talk," resume and cv preparation, project and time management, and leadership styles. Students also improved their writing and editing skills through exercises in which they critiqued each others' project abstracts and progress reports, and revised their own work in response to the critiques. Continuing topics included intellectual property (patents and copyright) and entrepreneurship.