Career Development Series
If you are interested in joining us as a guest speaker, or have ideas regarding this series, please contact Dr. Erin Lake and/or enter your ideas via this sheet.
A Visit with CBARWednesday October 19 | 1:00-1:50pm | Bldg 2, Rm 426
Join The Center for Biostatistics and AIDS Research (CBAR) statisticians and programmers for a lunch panel presentation and discussion on topics ranging from current CBAR research and ongoing clinical trials (some of the largest in the world), to individual experiences and real-time job search advice. Hear what it’s like to work in a collaborative research environment on current HIV / infectious disease trials and observational studies. Be sure to come with questions about CBAR’s current and upcoming openings for both PhD and Master’s level positions. Panelists will address the following as well as general topics relevant to the job search and interview process in our field:
* What IS CBAR?* What is it like to be a statistician or programmer at CBAR?* What cutting edge research is ongoing across several of CBAR’s major networks (which include the AIDS Clinical Trial Group (ACTG) and the Infant Maternal Pediatric Adolescent AIDS Clinical Trials (IMPAACT))* What training, career progression, and mentoring practices exist at CBAR which make it unique?* What job opportunities are currently open at CBAR?* What is CBAR looking for in job candidates and during interviews?* What coursework in our department is helpful to have completed? * What advice would alumni of our department now working at CBAR have to offer?…and more!
What Color is Your ‘Biostatistics’ Parachute?Wednesday, October 26 | 1:00-2:00pm EST | Room 426 (in-person)RSVP here for pizza only if you plan to attend.Come one come all! (The array of student interests and questions at this event will drive both the presentation and discussion.)Whether you are a doctoral or master’s student, have you wondered what opportunities and next steps a degree from our department might afford you? Join Dr. Erin Lake (’01) for a broad outline and overview of the vast array of career opportunities made accessible by a degree in biostatistics, CBQG, or health data science, as well as comparisons between these sectors. We’ll delve into a diagram of career options across academia, industry, the private and government sectors, consulting, non-profits and beyond. What is it like to work on a team in Pharma…or for a CRO—and what is a CRO? What range of roles is there in academia, and what types of funding? Are there non-faculty research roles and what are those like? Where can one find a consulting role as a statistician? What is the role of a data scientist in pharma or biotech? What might be a role for a statistician in government? What is a health-tech role? We’ll discuss the larger picture, but also delve into details of what each sector might focus on from a statistical or data science perspective. Depending on student interest we may delve into details around the CV/resume, job application, interview, presentation or coding challenge.This will be part presentation by Dr. Lake as well as opportunity for informal sharing by students, as our students have such varied and rich experiences from which to contribute insight and advice (however this is not required to join the conversation!)
Other Events:
- Harvard Biotech Club Career Fair (This event is open to ALL students and postdocs, and will be held this Friday Oct 21 from 11am – 5pm in the New Research Building, Harvard Medical School. RSVP here if you plan to attend.)
- Consulting Week for those looking for both internships and permanent roles in consulting (this week and next with visits from McKinsey (tech), Bain, Exponent, S2N Health, Analysis Group) sponsored by the OCPD at HSPH – details can be found on their Canvas site.
Ongoing Career Development Resources:
* HSPH and GSAS international students may visit the Harvard International Office (HIO) to attend HIO office hours for information relevant to internships or employment.
* SM and PhD students can access the Office of Career and Professional Development, subscribe to receive their weekly Sunday eNewsletter, visit drop-in hours, and view upcoming events and other resources via their dedicated canvas site. Career Liaisons in this office help with career and CV/resume/cover letter counseling for our SM and PhD students.
* PhD students (and for certain events, SM students) can find many resources via the Office of Career Services (OCS) at GSAS, subscribe to their mailing list and follow their events calendar! This office offers career and CV/resume/cover letter counseling for our PhD students, as well as many online resources (including resume help) for SM students.
* All members of the department may connect to the Department of Biostatistics/Alumnae section of the LinkedIn network.
* Visit the department Slack channels (see earlier email from Elizabeth Solinga with link) for internship and job opportunities. The Slack channels are updated regularly and serve as a bank of announcements and opportunities that the department receives on an ongoing basis (such announcements are not generally sent out by email).
* All students can find interesting reads and keep up with the field via sources including but not limited to ASA’s publications such as Amstat News, STATtrak, and the popular This is Statistics site.
* Students in the department should try to maintain a current CV/resume (depending on your degree program and job application needs), and can find initial help to get started with this by making appointments through the offices noted above.
