Postdoc Career Success at Lund University
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PROGRAMME UPDATE (OCTOBER 2021) * *
Postdoc Career Success is a programme of career training and one-to-one mentoring to support the development of Lund University's postdocs that ran from September 2017 to September 2021.
The live instruction has now finished, but course participants can continue to access all the materials and resources for as long as they keep their login details, by signing in to the Lund programme portal.
Postdoc Career Success is a training course in English introducing essential skills and tools that you can apply immediately in your daily work.
The programme aims to help you settle quickly and effectively into your roles as you progress, and provides the motivation and support you need to structure your own career.
The course material and approach are designed to equip you to make the greatest possible contribution, to accelerate your progress and fulfil your potential, wherever your career choices take you.
The approach
The programme has a core of 15 online eclasses that offers greater flexibility than a workshop series or residential course, and caters for the diverse work preferences of postdocs across all different disciplines.
The pacing of the core content is designed to suit researchers with full-time commitments. The average time required to complete all the programme's elements thoroughly is no more than 2 hours every two weeks. The timing and on-demand format help make sure you have ample opportunity to explore and apply all the course material, tools and resources.
Postdoc Career Success retains the advantages of interactive training by combining online components with live group webinar sessions and individual mentoring. It means that participants also get the benefit of engaging directly with the trainers at PostdocTraining and other LU colleagues taking part in the programme.
Next available course cycle *
* Registrations for the Postdoc Career Success programme have closed.
The 2021 programme was the last in the current series. The University will publish details of its intentions for future career training for early career researchers on its staff pages in due course.
Thank you for your interest in our training. If you have any questions about the University's future plans please contact Heidi Nilsson at HR's Employer Support and Organisational Development Office.
What LU postdocs say
"I find myself more in control of my career prospects. That is I have set goals that I want to achieve - not goals that 'others' or 'the system' have promoted. I now have a firmer vision of what I want which makes it easier to structure work and take proactive decisions."
"I have already recommended the programme for a colleague - think it is valuable to learn how to improve and how to work efficiently. Postdoc is a short transition-phase [...] and it is important to make the most out of it - staying in academia or not! The programme gave me tools to handle stress, plan my work and execute it."
"Thank you for your great support ... I finally fought it through and got a lecturer/senior lecturer position. ... I think you are doing a really valuable job which makes a difference in people's lives."
"It really helped me to focus on my own career preferences and hopes rather than on the expectations I believe others have on me! (I) will start my position in the biotech company next week [...] I especially liked the fact that the material is not pushing for an academic career only, but rather keeps an open mind about options while addressing some of the common fears, problems and struggles that we as scientists have."
Additional benefits of the course
Postdoc Career Success is a useful complement to regular supervision arrangements and any mentoring relationships that you may already have in place. You develop a thorough knowledge of your own career options and personal development priorities as part of the programme, so discussions with mentors have clear definition and can focus on specific actions that will help you achieve the goals you have identified as priorities. Last but not least, your career plan is a concrete document you can discuss at the annual staff appraisal.
Further information: programme components
description | LUND PROGRAM | |
|---|---|---|
 Eclasses | 15 eclasses delivered fortnightly online in English over 7 months, in text and audio versions to suit researchers' preferences | All Lund members will have lifelong access to programme material, as long as they keep their login details current |
 Personal mentoring | Participants have access to one-on-one mentoring on matters of their choice with experienced PostdocTraining mentors via Skype or phone, providing personalised career coaching and professional development advice. | All Lund members are entitled to one hour in total of one-to-one mentoring to address their own choice of issues during the programme |
 Email career advice | Individual postdocs can seek advice on career-related matters and issues throughout the programme, via PostdocTraining�s email support service. | PostdocTraining provides a career Q&A service by email for all Lund members for the duration of the course |
 Career database | Ongoing access to the Career Options Masterlist, PostdocTraining's database covering dozens of career paths in academia and beyond for researchers, including case studies. | Lund members have lifelong access to this database, updated regularly, with information and case studies of career pathways for people with research backgrounds |
 News service | A monthly news service distilled from international journals, print media and the internet to give participants the most current material on research-related career issues and pathways. | Lund participants have lifelong access to this news service for as long as they choose to stay subscribed |
 Live webinars | Live online discussions facilitated by PostdocTraining on issues of shared interest to LU participants (such as grant application processes and local grant-winning models, building research teams, dealing with autonomy, work-life balance, transferrable skills, etc.). | Lund members can take part in 5 live webinars each year, and have the opportunity to suggest topics and speakers that would be of particular interest to Lund postdocs |
 Mastermind groups | PostdocTraining provides support for setting up these self-guided peer-mentoring groups, including via a survey and matching of members, and guidance on establishing and operating a group. | All Lund participants will have the opportunity to get involved in Mastermind peer groups with other Lund postdocs taking part in the programme. |
Contact PostdocTraining direct
If you would like to ask a question of the PostdocTraining team about the programme's content, its structure or the way the course material and mentoring is delivered, please use the contact form below. Just include your preferred contact method and details in the comments section so that PostdocTraining can reply to you directly.