Overview and Logistics

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Participants discuss geoscience careers

Provenance: Karen Layou, J Sargeant Reynolds Community College
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The Virginia Geologic Field Conference (VGFC) is an annual gathering of professional, academic, and amateur geoscientists that highlights recent geological research in the Commonwealth, and gets us where we want to be—out with the rocks! This year's trip, based out of Petersburg, is entitled, "Geology of the Southside Piedmont", and will be led by Brent Owens and Chuck Bailey of the College of William and Mary. The dates for the trip are Friday, October 26 and Saturday, October 27. As in past years, there will be the Friday night business meeting with the all-day field trip following on Saturday.

Continuing on last year's success, the Virginia Change Agents are organizing career mentoring sessions with geology students from 2-year and 4-year colleges and universities. These career mentoring sessions will occur on Friday afternoon from 3-5pm, prior to the VGFC Friday night business meeting. We will begin with a "Geoscientist Speed Dating" session where students will interact in small groups with several of our geoscience professionals. These mini-sessions will allow students to ask the professionals questions about their educational background and general job experiences. We will then move into a resume building workshop where students will brainstorm ways to highlight their applicable skills for geoscience careers with the guidance of the geoscience professionals.

Workshop Goals

• To provide students an opportunity to learn more about geoscience career options, preparing resumes, and honing interview skills.
• To provide faculty a chance to discuss how best to prepare their students for geoscience jobs with geoscience professionals.
• To foster an interactive network of geoscientists across academia and the workforce.

Date and times

Friday, October 26

3:00 - 5:00pm - Career mentoring workshop

6:00 - 8:00pm - VGFC opening reception and business meeting

Saturday, October 27

7:30am - 6:00 pm - VGFC field trip

Expectations

Students who attend the Friday workshop are highly encouraged to bring a few copies of their resume or c.v. they may have written for job, internship, or scholarship applications. Students should also consider what types of questions they might like to ask panelists about their job experiences or educational backgrounds. Faculty are also encouraged to think about questions for panelists regarding how they might better prepare their students for the geoscience workforce.

Cost

This workshop is free to participants, thanks to funding from the National Science Foundation. The Friday career mentoring workshop is FREE to all two-year and four-year college students, geoscience faculty, and geoscience professionals. The Saturday VGFC field trip costs $75 for academic and professional geologists, and $25 for all students if paying by check ($80/$30 if paying electronically).

Registration

Go here to register for the 2018 Virginia Geologic Field Conference by October 20, 2018.

Participants will also need to complete this registration during the event for the Change Agents project.

Facilities, Directions, and Parking

The Friday workshop will be held in the conference room at the Holiday Inn Express & Suites Petersburg/Dinwiddie. Other VGFC Friday night activities will be in the same conference room. The Saturday VGFC field trip will leave from this hotel. Full details are provided here: 2018 Virginia Geologic Field Conference

Food

Light refreshments will be provided.