Careers Events at the March Meeting

Several additional events promoting non-academic career paths took place at the March Meeting. The APS Future of Physics Days events, targeted primarily at undergraduate students, included a workshop "Building Your Undergraduate Physics Career." Crystal Bailey, Careers Program Manager at APS led the workshop, which gave an overview of physics employment for BS, MS, and PhD degree paths, and provided information on key professional skills such as building one's network, doing informational interviews, and writing an effective resume. The event was attended by nearly 200 undergraduate students and their faculty mentors.

APS also hosted a Careers in Physics workshop, presented by acclaimed career author and coach Peter Fiske. Fiske provided comprehensive strategies and advice for science graduates on how to take their physics job search to the next level, including tips for self-assessment, network building, resume writing, interviewing, and salary negotiation. The event was attended by over 120 undergraduates, graduate students, and postdocs.

The Forum on Education also hosted an invited session focusing on the skills needed to prepare physics graduates for 21st century careers. The session featured a report from the Joint Task Force on Undergraduate Physics Programs, which recommends that physics educators focus on giving students an understanding of physics applications in real-world settings, working well in interdisciplinary teams, and how to communicate meaningfully to a variety of audiences. The session also featured educators associated with the APS PIPELINE program, an NSF-funded effort to support innovation and entrepreneurship in physics by building and disseminating curricular approaches to teaching these important skills. For more information about innovation and entrepreneurship (PIE) education efforts in physics, please see this article, http://www.aps.org/units/fiap/newsletters/201712/pipeline.cfm, in the FIAP Winter 2017 Newsletter.

Opinions expressed represent the views of the individual authors and not the American Physical Society or author’s employers.