Weekly PDA Newsletter - Jan 17, 2016

[Kathrin Graetz]

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Dear MIT Postdocs,

This January is really packed with events. Next Sunday is your chance to meet postdocs from the greater Boston area on the ice rink just five minutes away from campus. If you want to improve your career skills, there are seminars almost every day on campus during IAP. And you can even immediately fill these new skills with live at the Life Sciences Night and the European Career Fair in early February.

Best,
Kathrin
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Dr.-Ing. Kathrin Graetz
Corresponding Secretary
Postdoctoral Association of MIT (PDA)
pda.mit.edu<http://pda.mit.edu/>                        Facebook<https://www.facebook.com/groups/44093460815/>                      Twitter (@MITPDA)<https://twitter.com/MITPDA>                      LinkedIn<https://www.linkedin.com/grps/MIT-Postdoc-2506720/about?>


Next PDA meeting:   February 8, 12pm @E25-202                 register here<https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1-vT1gzgyik3JHFWaRgQwAVeVoiaoQFK7iP2MO4dtKwo/viewform>       Lunch will be provided!


This Week's Topics:


·         Upcoming PDA Events

o   Ice Skating with the BPDA

·         Postdoc Orientation Sessions

·         From the PDA PInG Initiatives

·         Other Events at MIT

o   Independent Activities Period

o   Making the Most of Your Presentation

o   Branding Yourself - Effective Communication Skills

o   Communication Science to Nonscientists

o   Converting Your CV into a 2-Page Resume for Industry

o   Improv Comedy Workshop to Improve Your Presentations

o   The Art of Behavioral Interviewing

o   Negotiating Job Offers

o   Life Sciences Night 2016

o   Destination Europe

o   MIT European Career Fair 2016

o

Upcoming PDA Events:

Ice Skating with the BPDA
Let's enjoy winter outdoors! Come join your fellow postdocs from the Greater Boston community for ICE SKATING! Enjoy FREE HOT CHOCOLATE to stay warm! Friends and family welcome, but space is limited. Skate rentals are a mere $8 for adults, $5 for children (please bring cash). Please register online before Wednesday.
Organized by the Boston Postdoctoral Associations (BPDA) from MIT, the Chan School, Children's Hospital, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Harvard Medical School, Joslin Diabetes Center, Massachusetts General Hospital, and Tufts.

Date and Time: Sunday, January 24 from 6:30 to 8pm
Location: Kendall Ice Rink (300 Athenaeum Street, Cambridge)
Register here<https://bpda-ice-skating.eventbrite.com/>


PDA Sports:    https://www.facebook.com/search/top/?q=Sport%20Activities%20for%20MIT%20Postdocs


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Postdoc Orientation Sessions:

The PDA offers Postdoc Orientation Sessions open to all postdocs at MIT. Topics covered include:
·         Data on postdoc population at MIT

  *   MIT oversight of postdocs
  *   Defining postdoc expectations
  *   Differences between fellows and associates
  *   PDA structure and initiatives
·         How to get involved
The sessions will be typically the 1st and 3rd Monday of each month at 12pm (45-60min) in E19-306. Lunch will be provided.
The dates for the next six months are as follows: Jan 25, Feb 1, Feb 22, Mar 7, Mar 21, Apr 4, Apr 25, May 2, May 16, June 6, June 20

If you are interested in participating, you can register via Atlas or using this link<http://web.mit.edu/training/course.html?course=CDT21061c>.

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>From the PDA PInG Initiatives:

Yoga Classes
on Wednesdays at 7:30pm at Marlar Lounge 37-252. Tickets and more info are available here.<https://www.eventbrite.com/e/the-mit-yoga-postdoctoral-initiative-mypi-tickets-17836512489>

Jan. 13, Jan. 20, Jan. 27, Feb. 3, Feb. 10


If you are interested in yoga classes starting February 17th on Wednesdays at 7:30 pm, Marlar Lounge (37-252), a reduced rate for postdocs and their spouses/partners is offered for a 10 class session for $80.
The classes will take place at the following 10 dates:
Feb 17 and 24, March 2, 9, 16, 23 and 30, April 6, 13 and 20

If you are interested, please reserve your spots by contacting sarahsaf at mit.edu<mailto:sarahsaf at mit.edu>



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Other Events at MIT:

Independent Activities Period (IAP) 2016
For over four decades, IAP has provided members of the MIT community (students, faculty, staff, and alums) with a unique opportunity to organize, sponsor and participate in a wide variety of activities, including how-to sessions, forums, athletic endeavors, lecture series, films, tours, recitals and contests. The topics are endless, including engineering, skill development (presentations, teaching, communication, leadership, research), patents, start-ups, data management, figure skating, dancing, music, and much more. Some sessions require pre-registration.
Date: January 4 - 29
Browse Listings here<http://web.mit.edu/iap/>

Making the Most of Your Presentation, featuring Jean-luc Doumont (sponsored by MIT GECD)
Strong oral presentation skills are a key to success for engineers, scientists, and other professionals, yet many speakers are at a loss to tackle the task. Systematic as they otherwise can be in their work, they go at it intuitively, sometimes haphazardly, with much good will but seldom good results. Based on Dr. Doumont's book Trees, maps, and theorems, about "effective communication for rational minds" this lecture proposes a systematic way to prepare and deliver presentations. Among others, it covers structure, slides, and delivery, as well as stage fright.
Date and Time: Tuesday, January 19th, 2:00 - 4:00pm
Location: Building 10-250
Registration via CareerBridge<https://www.myinterfase.com/mit/student>.

Branding Yourself - Effective Communication Skills (sponsored by MIT GECD)
Communication goes beyond verbal skills which are important to the success of any job seeker. To brand yourself as a professional, you must deliver a consistent message in a Written, Verbal, and Virtual manner. As students and postdocs begin to look for positions in engineering and science, both in academia and industry, they must be aware of how their nonverbal communication skills impact their possibility of finding employment opportunities. Learning how to maximize the use of one's verbal and nonverbal communication skills is a powerful tool to help one achieve professional success, and a critical component for the future.
Date and Time: Wednesday, January 20th, 2:00 - 3:30pm
Location: Building 4-231
Registration via CareerBridge<https://www.myinterfase.com/mit/student>.

Communication Science to Nonscientists, featuring Jean-luc Doumont (sponsored by MIT GECD)
Scientists are often perceived as living in their own impenetrable world. Jean-luc discusses the challenges of communicating with a lay audience, and presents effective strategies for overcoming the challenges. Most of these strategies apply to communicating to scientists as well. They are universal good ideas - heeding the advice becomes more critical when the audience is less specialized.
Date and Time: Thursday, January 21st, 2:00 - 4:00pm
Location: Building 10-250
Registration via CareerBridge<https://www.myinterfase.com/mit/student>.

Converting Your CV into a 2-Page Resume for Industry (sponsored by MIT GECD)
If you are considering exploring Industry positions, you will need to have a resume that effectively positions you for this path. This workshop presented by Bob Dolan will discuss the process of converting your 4-6 page CV into a 2-page resume for industry, and creating a document that effectively targets the Hiring Manager. Can your resume survive a 15 second scan and still get into the YES pile? Discussions will surround the strategies of effective messaging and how to be "on-point" with your written communication. Actual successful MIT PhD/Postdoc resumes will be provided as handouts.
Date and Time: Friday, January 22nd, 1:00 - 2:30pm
Location: Building 4-149
Registration via CareerBridge<https://www.myinterfase.com/mit/student>.

Improv Comedy Workshop to Improve Your Presentations (sponsored by MIT GECD)
This event is open to undergrad and grad students and postdocs. Have you had that awkward moment in a presentation where someone asks a really weird question? Has a student in class posed an off-the-wall idea while you are presenting? Do you fear what a committee member may ask in your thesis defense? This improv workshop will help develop skills to respond to such situations. We will be doing improv comedy exercises to develop a comfort with engaging others. Participants should expect to participate in improv comedy exercises with attendees. Fun will be had by all...we hope.
Date and Time: Tuesday, January 26th, 3:00 - 4:00pm
Location: Building E39-040
Registration via CareerBridge<https://www.myinterfase.com/mit/student>.

The Art of Behavioral Interviewing (sponsored by MIT GECD)
Learn how to develop and enhance your interviewing skills! While your technical skills will get you the interview, it is your behavioral attributes that will get you the job. This workshop delivered by Bob Dolan will cover topics such as types of interviews, sample interview questions, appropriate dress, and important tips to think about before, during and after the interview. The intended outcome is to help you prepare and develop a strategy for a successful interview. In addition, sample behavioral and academic interview questions will be provided along with tips on how to answer these tough questions.
Date and Time: Wednesday, January 27th, 1:00 - 2:45pm
Location: Building 4-149
Registration via CareerBridge<https://www.myinterfase.com/mit/student>.

Negotiating Job Offers (sponsored by MIT GECD)
The Negotiating Job Offers workshop presented by Bob Dolan will examine the many variables that exist during the evaluation and negotiation process of Job Offers. Knowing how, when and why you should negotiate will be reviewed. Salary vs. Total Compensation will be examined. Strategies on the negotiation process will be discussed along with "Should You Negotiate?" and "What Can" and "What Can Not" be negotiated. These strategies can be used throughout your career.
Date and Time: Thursday, January 28th, 2:00 - 3:00pm
Location: Building 4-149
Registration via CareerBridge<https://www.myinterfase.com/mit/student>.

Life Sciences Night 2016 (organized by swissnex Boston in collaboration with MIT PDA)
Join swissnex Boston for its 6th Life Sciences Night, right on time for the annual MIT European Career Fair. Meet representatives from leading life science research institutions for a networking event with presentations about research and career opportunities in Switzerland. Mingle and connect with representatives from Paul Scherrer Institute (PSI), Eidgenössische Technische Hochschule Zürich (ETH Zürich), École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), University of Basel, University of Geneva and Greater Zurich Area before and after the presentations. Join us to learn everything about research opportunities in the Life Sciences at top Swiss institutions! http://lifesciences16.eventbrite.com
Date and Time: Friday, February 5th, 6:30 - 9:00pm
Location: List Visual Arts Center at MIT - Building E15
Registration here<https://www.eventbrite.com/e/life-sciences-night-2016-tickets-20707270002>

Destination Europe
The event will take place on 5 February 2016 in Boston city center and will showcase research career and funding opportunities in Europe for researchers of any nationality, at all stages of their research careers. It will include information and discussion opportunities on European Union programs as well as national programs and initiatives in many European countries.
Participation is free but prior registration is essential.
The full Programme and Registration details are available here: https://destinationeurope-boston.teamwork.fr/en/registration

MIT European Career Fair 2016 (organized by the MIT European Club) extended registration deadline!
The European Career Fair<https://fasmail.harvard.edu/OWA/redir.aspx?C=xpExdYiBvEW7ZnMYolcx-xSNPFN2_tIIXeSvccGyxzE_mmjbg0F48AaUrBtATSrD5bEQXahJMcw.&URL=https%3a%2f%2fecf.fairsey.com%2f> (ECF) is an annual recruiting event at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology which is organized by the MIT European Club in partnership with the European Commission, the MIT International Science and Technology Initiatives, the German American Business Council,  and the German Academic Exchange Service. The Career Fair will be held on Saturday Feb 6th at the Johnson Athletic Center on MIT Campus in Cambridge.

Register and upload your resume by January 28th! Registration at https://ecf.fairsey.com/

Our mission is to connect top-tier US students and young professionals with European companies, universities and non-profit organizations and to inform about career opportunities in Europe. Participating companies are very diverse, ranging from multinational corporations to non-profit organizations in the research/ technology as well as business and consulting sector.
Full-profit companies from recent years are amongst others:
Bayer, Roche, BMW, Shell, Volkswagen, Siemens, McKinsey, Novo Nordisk, Boston Consulting Group, GE, P&G, Total, Audi, Novartis, Allianz, Munich RE, ABB, PNB Paribas, Bosch, IBM, Philips, Generali, ING, Cisco, Merck, BASF, SAP, Sennheiser, Thales Group and many more
 Our participating non-profit companies are amongst other:
The European Commission, the German Academic Exchange Service and the Max Planck Society

For more updates follow us on LinkedIn<https://www.linkedin.com/profile/view?id=AAIAAAiIQzwBEUUPf5T1hJeioSQnXMFZfMeEX9o&trk=nav_responsive_tab_profile> and Facebook<https://www.facebook.com/ECF.MIT/>.
For questions contact: support_ecf2016 at mit.edu<mailto:support_ecf2016 at mit.edu>



Free affiliate membership with the National Postdoctoral Association: http://www.nationalpostdoc.org/?page=individual_members

Other helpful sites:
postdocs.mit.edu (Office VPR)
MIT GECD Events<https://gecd.mit.edu/mit-events>
MIT Spouses&Partners Events<http://spouses.mit.edu/mit-events>
MIT Events<http://events.mit.edu/>

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