Support SEARCH: Career Symposium for Scientists

The third Scientists Exploring non-Academic caReer CHoices (SEARCH) Symposium, to be held on April 4th, 2020 in Lawrence, Kansas, is a collaborative effort between graduate students from the Molecular Biosciences, Chemistry, and Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Departments at the University of Kansas. This collaboration was born from a common desire of students in these departments to learn about career opportunities for PhDs outside of traditional academia. A key focus of the 2020 SEARCH Symposium is to highlight the diversity of STEM professionals, taking into consideration the diversity of our trainees.

The three goals of the SEARCH Symposium are to:

1. Inform trainees of the diversity of science careers by hosting scientists in a variety of occupations including policy, biotechnology/industry, science writing, outreach/education and government/law.
2. Prepare trainees for non-academic careers by discussing professional skills that students can develop while in graduate school or during postdoctoral training.
3. Foster connections between trainees and local scientists through a networking event featuring companies seeking advanced-degree job applicants.

To accomplish these goals, we need your help!  The SEARCH organizers are inviting over a dozen scientists to come share their experiences and advice during an all-day symposium at KU. Over 150 participants from the greater Kansas City area will have the opportunity to attend the symposium at no cost. According to the 2018 SEARCH survey, 41% of the audience said that they attended the symposium due to the lack of non-academic resources in the area, which reflects the need for this symposium. Your donations will enable us to invite speakers from around the country to come share their experiences and perspectives, inspiring our trainees to consider the vast array of career opportunities available to PhD scientists. Additionally, you will be supporting our effort to keep attendance at this symposium free, so that all who are interested are able to attend.

Help support this fantastic opportunity for graduate students to develop transferable skills and build connections between KU and KS/MO area bioscience companies! All named donors will be acknowledged at the symposium. Check out our website and follow us on Facebook or Twitter for more information about past symposia and our plans for 2020.