“Where do you see yourself in five years?  In 10, 25 or 30 years?  What skills will you need in order to position yourself for where you want to be?  What networks will you have to form or connect with – some in your discipline and some outside your discipline?  Who will you need to hook up with?  What ‘language’ will you have to acquire in order to navigate spaces across fields?  Who do you need to meet?  Who is going to introduce you?”

These are some of the questions that Dr. Shirley Malcom asked participants to answer for themselves during her keynote address at the 4^th Annual Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Institute on Postdoctoral Preparation in September.  The institute was sponsored by the Howard University Graduate School and the University of Texas at El Paso Alliance for Graduate Education and the Professoriate (AGEP) program, in cooperation with the National Postdoctoral Association. Dr. Malcom, head of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, said the questions would help students focus on what they will need to consider in order to get the most out of their postdoctorate experiences.

             She stated there are usually only a few “degrees of separation” between individuals seeking postdoctorates and  the appropriate interaction for a successful postdoctorate experience.  Dr. Malcom stated that individuals need to decide what they want most from a postdoctorate, and that if they know ahead of time the answer to this question, they can take advantage of opportunities that might be offered to them.

            For example, there are certain things one might need to consider as part of this process, like how one will manage one’s personal life.. children, marriage, etc. What support will be needed from one’s community, whether professionally, spiritually, or personally.

She also admonished students to guard against being inundated with committees in their institutions unless these committees will provide knowledge of institutional infrastructure and other internal processes, i.e., budget, nominations, or committees that are involved with the future directions of the institutions.

The annual postdoctorate institute is designed to prepare advanced science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) doctoral students for postdoctoral opportunities and to enhance their future postdoctoral experience. Topics center on various types of postdoctorate opportunities, funding postdoctorates from agencies and foundations, qualifications for postdoctorates, gender issues and differences in the academy, and the experiences of individuals with current postdoctorates.

             In addition to Howard presenters, representatives from The University of Texas at El Paso, Procter & Gamble, University of Florida, Colorado Diversity Initiative, National Science Foundation, National Institutes of Health, the National Postdoctoral Association, the American Association for the Advancement of Science, Morehouse College, Morgan State University, the American Council on Education, the Center for Careers in Science and Technology, the American Institute of Physics, Brown University, George Mason University, and WESTAT, Inc. also gave presentations.

             Student participants were from Howard, The University of Texas at El Paso, University of Colorado, Georgia Tech, Rice Universities, University of Iowa, Polytechnic University, New Jersey Institute of Technology, Syracuse University, Michigan State University, the City University of New York, University of Missouri, University of Mississippi Medical Center, University of Maryland, Johns Hopkins University, and the University California – Los Angeles.

            In 1998, the Howard University Graduate School and The University of Texas at El Paso joined to form HUTEP-Alliance for Graduate Education and the Professoriate (AGEP) to increase underrepresented minority student doctoral enrollment, graduation, and preparation of students for faculty careers in STEM. The unique partnership and strengths of both institutions -- Howard, a predominantly African-American institution, and UTEP, a predominantly Hispanic institution, combine to extend the doctoral offerings at both institutions.