Grad students focus on the next degree: J.O.B.

Photo by Frank Dahlmeyer.

Graduate students in a new course, Chemistry 300, are learning practical skills this semester that they will need as they enter the job market.

Taught by Daniel J. Eustace, a retired PhD chemist and manager who has worked at Exxon-Mobil and Polaroid, Chem 300 may be the first semester-length course to teach graduate students in the sciences how to write a resume, dress for success, and succeed in their first year on the job.

Eustace has nine years of experience running short courses and workshops for the American Chemical Society (ACS) on job skills for chemists.

"I want to help you get to the professional level - this is what motivates me. I'm excited about it," he told the dozen-or-so students at their first class.

Almost all of the students are foreign-born, and their concerns about interviewing are often cultural - such as, when is it appropriate to shake hands - at the beginning of the interview, the end, or both?

In this culture, Eustace warns them, approaching too close to an interviewer would be considered uncomfortable.

"This is exactly how you want to appear - professional, and not distracting," he says, pointing to student Muge Acik, who is wearing a black pantsuit for a mock class interview - "no dangly earrings - no scent," he adds.

But the course is not limited to interviewing skills. The students are learning about career choices, patents and intellectual property issues, ethical behavior, problem-solving, how to conduct a job search, and how to behave in their first year on the job and get promoted.

Communications techniques that Eustace teaches include e-mailing, telephone skills, writing for publications, listening, and making small talk with colleagues.

Eustace's aim is to get students who have spent years studying highly technical subjects to think about their options after graduate school.

"What are your values? What is important to you?" he asks them.

"Always have a back-up strategy. Always plan," he says.

Eustace urges the students to participate actively and to network with each other. The class has a weblog where they can post writing assignments, share ideas, and find job search leads.

His aim is to prepare people for the mindset of life after graduate school, Eustace says, and he defines his role as a discussion leader and program coordinator.

"I want them to gain confidence."

To learn more about the class, listen to this podcast: click here.