Preparing for an Academic Career Workshop 2016

July 18 - July 20, 2016
Earth Educators' Rendezvous, Madison, WI

This workshop is designed specifically for graduate students, post-doctoral fellows, and others who are interested in pursuing academic careers in the geosciences.* Faculty members and administrators will provide guidance and information that will help participants to be stronger candidates for academic positions and to succeed in academic jobs. Session topics focus on becoming both a successful teacher and researcher.

"This was an extremely well run workshop and should prove invaluable to my academic career. The workshop answered questions for me that I didn't even know I had yet. It definitely got me thinking about my future path with more clarity and confidence. It is just what I needed at this particular point in my career where I've been feeling slightly adrift trying to finish my dissertation research. Many thanks!"

"I think the idea of being a university/college teacher seems much more "doable" now and less daunting."

"Overall I feel like my experiences here were broadening and enriching. While some of the material wasn't new to me, I don't feel like anything was a waste of my time and I felt like I came away with some fantastic information that will be very useful to me in my career. It was helpful to meet with people from a broad range of backgrounds and with different experiences and expectations - both participants and leaders. The atmosphere was casual enough to let us relax and get to know each other, but serious enough to make us feel like we were doing something worthwhile."

*If you are in the process of applying for tenure-track or other permanent faculty positions, we encourage you to apply to the Early Career Geoscience Faculty workshop, with a note that you are in the process of applying for such positions. And, register for the Rendezvous and the Preparing for an Academic Career workshop pending the outcome of the search, and being aware of the registration deadlines for registration for the Earth Educators' Rendezvous. The Early Career Geoscience Faculty workshop is designed for those who have a tenure-track or equivalent faculty position.

This year, the workshop will be offered in a new format as one of the workshops at the Earth Educators' Rendezvous. This format will allow participants to design an experience that capitalizes on our strong workshop content, while also drawing on additional opportunities to network, present your own findings, and discuss a broad range of topics as well as select afternoon workshops that are of highest interest to you. More detailed information is available on the Rendezvous website:

Workshop Conveners

  • Ankur Desai, University of Wisconsin-Madison
  • Lisa Gilbert, Williams College
  • Lynsey LeMay, Thomas Nelson Community College
  • Erika Marin-Spiotta, University of Wisconsin-Madison
  • David Reed, University of Wisconsin-Madison

Note: We have also developed a set of online resources for those who are preparing for an academic career in the geosciences. These web pages focus on the job search process, preparing to teach, and moving your research forward. You do not have to attend the workshop to view these pages.