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The theme of my recent talk on science policy fellowships focused on finding the right fit for YOU
A key part of this is doing the work to define your #scipol WHY. Why do you want to do this fellowship? Why is this necessary for your career pivot?
A key part of this is doing the work to define your #scipol WHY. Why do you want to do this fellowship? Why is this necessary for your career pivot?
This sort of exploration is an ongoing process- there are key activities you can do to get to your ultimate #scipol WHY. You've probably been doing some already:
- informational interviews
- exploring online resources+webinars
- reading widely
- attending @AAASmeetings each year
- informational interviews
- exploring online resources+webinars
- reading widely
- attending @AAASmeetings each year
But a large part of this career exploration should be self-reflection. Start by keeping a career journal 
https://twitter.com/Steph_Guerra/status/1219624141499895808?s=20
https://twitter.com/Steph_Guerra/status/1219624141499895808?s=20
And ask yourself the following questions:
- Who do I admire?
- What do I read/do in my free time?
- What field do you currently work in and do you want a change or something similar/applied?
- What gets me out of bed in the AM? (It's okay if it's not the bench
)
- Who do I admire?
- What do I read/do in my free time?
- What field do you currently work in and do you want a change or something similar/applied?
- What gets me out of bed in the AM? (It's okay if it's not the bench
)
After this self-reflection, you can start to define your #scipol WHY.
Be specific BUT
Stay flexible
NOT: " I want to transition to a career in #scipol" or "I want to make an impact"
Be specific BUT
Stay flexible
NOT: " I want to transition to a career in #scipol" or "I want to make an impact"
Good examples of specific but flexible WHYs:
“I want to be on the frontline of healthcare reform”
“I want to build international research collaborations”
“I want to set strategy for agency-wide initiatives”
"I want to increase diversity in the STEM workforce"
“I want to be on the frontline of healthcare reform”
“I want to build international research collaborations”
“I want to set strategy for agency-wide initiatives”
"I want to increase diversity in the STEM workforce"
Your goals as you move into #scipol don't have to be super detailed, it's okay to want to do a lot of things.
But your description should show thoughtfulness and *intention*
A good WHY at this stage of your career can be accomplished in many ways at many places
But your description should show thoughtfulness and *intention*
A good WHY at this stage of your career can be accomplished in many ways at many places
In order to avoid the trap of being too specific in your WHY and coming off as inflexible (a possible turn-off for some fellowships) think about describing your WHY how you would describe your field of research rather than your specific thesis project
Instead of: "I want to develop cancer treatments that target oncogenes + epigenetic readers"
Say: "I want to work on creative ways to combat devastating diseases"
The second part describes your interest w/specificity but leaves lots of room for different ways to go about it.
Say: "I want to work on creative ways to combat devastating diseases"
The second part describes your interest w/specificity but leaves lots of room for different ways to go about it.
And lastly, your #scipol WHY is a constantly moving target
My initial why:
“I want to be on the frontline of healthcare reform”...I needed health policy experience to get to that goal
But, spoiler alert, this goal might be changing in unexpected ways! New input -> new output
My initial why:
“I want to be on the frontline of healthcare reform”...I needed health policy experience to get to that goal
But, spoiler alert, this goal might be changing in unexpected ways! New input -> new output
If you want to 
or 
me saying these things, check out the recording via my awesome host, the student group @SciPolPack ! https://twitter.com/SciPolPack/status/1274687517770633216?s=20
or me saying these things, check out the recording via my awesome host, the student group @SciPolPack ! https://twitter.com/SciPolPack/status/1274687517770633216?s=20
