Graduate Workshops
CaPS offers specialized services for graduate students and post-doctoral fellows. Workshops and Events are available throughout the year on a regular basis to help you explore career options in the industry, government, non-profit, and volunteer sectors.
For a full listing of workshops, and to RSVP, please log into myFuture -> Events.
The 2024 Grad and Postdoc Career Series includes workshops to help you build potential career paths beyond the tenure track.
Exploring your Professional Path After Grad School
April 17 2024 - 10:30-12:00 (virtual) - RSVP
May 22 2024 - 5:00-6:30 (virtual) - RSVP
What’s your next step? This interactive workshop for graduate students will teach you the skills to review position types and work environments within the context of your career. Together, we will help you reflect on your professional identity and preferences, practice deciphering job postings, and identify next steps in your career exploration.
In this workshop you will have the opportunity to…
- Define your personal values, skills, and/or interests
- Practice deciphering job postings
- Identify the next step in your professional development
- Combine the above strategies to make impactful career choices efficiently
Facilitators: April Babey (Program Officer, myPath), Agata Rybałkiewicz (Graduate Career Advisor, CaPS), and Chantelle Thauvette (Graduate Career Advisor, CaPS)
Industry and Non-Academic Job Search
April 23 2024 - 3:00-4:00 (in person) - RSVP
May 29 2024 - 10:30-11:30 (virtual) - RSVP
Are you on the job market? Whether you’re curious about Industry jobs or actively applying for a full-time role post-graduation, this workshop shares tips to optimize your job search strategy. Bring your questions about hiring processes, the non-academic job market, and job search.
By attending this session, you will:
- Learn about typical hiring processes for industry and non-academic jobs
- Identify ways to find publicized job postings as well as other opportunities
Facilitation Skills for Graduate Students & Postdocs
April 24 2024 - 2:00-4:30 (in person) - RSVP
Successfully leading and guiding groups (including student discussions) requires a range of fairly sophisticated communication skills. Most of us are not trained facilitators: we employ strategies discovered largely through trial and error. The best leaders are learners!
This interactive session aims to build key communication (facilitation and presentation) and leadership skills. Additionally, gain enhanced awareness of group dynamics, facilitation tools (main responsibilities, group norms, debriefing models, types of facilitation and ways to facilitate), and strategies to constructively engage others.
Networking for Introverts
April 25 2024 - 12:00-1:30 (virtual) - RSVP
You've heard it before: networking is key to advancing your career. But what if you are tapped out, dread talking to new people, and don’t have any contacts in the industry you’re hoping to join? Designed by and with introverts in mind, this interactive workshop will explore the many ways to build your networking muscles without leaving your house.
By attending this workshop, you will be able to:
- Identify tools for networking online (e.g., LinkedIn)
- Use tips and scripts to reach out to new people for one-on-one conversations
- Approach networking with less anxiety
Networking for Extroverts
April 30 2024 - 10:30-12:00 (in person) - RSVP
Whether you're gearing up to attend a networking event at your next conference or striking up conversations with industry contacts, this interactive workshop will help you build the skills you need to network professionally.
By attending this workshop, you will be able to:
- Develop an “Elevator Pitch” you can use when introducing yourself professionally
- Identify people to connect with and/or networks to join
- Practice asking open-ended questions in networking conversations
Researching Yourself: Cultivating a Leadership Mindset
April 26 2024 - 10:00-12:00 (in person) - RSVP
How important is it for you as a student to be intentional about your leadership mindset? We all bring our own mental models of beliefs, values, and perspectives to our work and studies. But what is the level of impact of this with how we lead and interact with others?
This interactive workshop will explore current trends related to cultivating a leadership mindset. Our goal will be to identify meaningful steps you can take in developing personal leadership skills and strategies to help you become the best leader you can be and have greater impact. We will work with you to help you realize your goals, develop new skills and reflect on how to achieve your objectives.
Industry and Non-Academic CVs
May 14 2024 - 3:00-4:30 (in person) - RSVP
May 30 2024 - 12:00-1:30 (virtual) - RSVP
Grad students go on to work in a wide range of industries beyond academia. An industry or non-academic CV (also known as a resume outside Quebec) highlights your transferrable skills and experience in ways that will be legible to employers outside higher education.
In this workshop, we will:
- Share best practices in writing CVs/resumes for Industry jobs
- Discuss differences between academic CVs and industry CVs/resumes
- Analyze sample industry CVs/resumes
Technical Interviews
May 17 2024 - 10:30-11:30 (in person) - RSVP
Are you looking for an internship or a full-time position in tech fields like data analysis and software development? Do you know what to expect and how to prepare for technical interviews?
CaPS advisors will share tips to help boost your confidence before your technical interview. The 1-hour workshop will include a brief Q&A.
In this workshop, we will:
- Introduce the different types of technical interviews and platforms used
- Share strategies for preparing and practicing for technical interviews
Negotiating Job Offers
May 24 2024 - 11:00-12:00 (in person) - RSVP
Empower the final stages of your job search by learning more about the negotiation process. We will discuss the importance of evaluating job offers, the benefits of negotiating, and strategies to best prepare for these conversations.
By attending this workshop, you will be able to:
- Assess a job offer, identifying important aspects to consider
- Practice drafting a counter-offer
SKILLSETS offers professional development workshops for graduate students. This suite of workshops is designed to complement the research training with general transitional/professional skill development opportunities recommended for training High Quality Personnel. For a list of coming workshops, visit: Upcoming Events
Academic Career Series is designed for PhD students.
Academic Career Series Resources
- Building Your Teaching Portfolio - Developing a Teaching Portfolio (PDF)
- Building Your Teaching Portfolio Presentation - Teaching Portfolio Resources
- Academic CV & Job Cover Letter Preparation Slides (Dept. of Integrated Studies in Education)
- Developing a Teaching Portfolio Slides
- Salary Negotiations: Because You're Worth It (Desautels Faculty of Management)
- Academic C.V. and Cover Letter Preparation Slides (Dept. of Integrated Studies in Education)
- Developing a Teaching Portfolio Slides
- Resources for Preparing the Teaching Portfolio
- Hints for PhD Defenses (the Medicine perspective)
- Networking at Conferences - A Few Thoughts
- The Paradox of Writing in Doctoral Education: Student Experiences
- Strategies for a Successful PhD Oral Defence
- Some Modest Advice for Graduate Students
Past Panel and Presentation Topics
Individual career panels and workshops designed for graduate students and postdoctoral fellows.
Register for upcoming events on myFuture > Events
Graduate Career Series Resources
- Career Resources – Knowledge Translation
- Academic Job Search 101 - Career Resources
- World Bank Group - Student Recruitment Session
- Mitacs Suite of Programs and Prospecting 101
- Scientific Careers at Health Canada
- Leveraging LinkedIn to Win: Be-IN-Valuable!
- 30 Linked-Express Link-Bits
- Tip Sheet - Boolean Search Tips
- LinkedIn Character Limits
Past Panel and Presentation Topics
- 2021 - Industry Insider: A Look at Careers (Jan - Feb)
- 2020 - Industry Insider: A Look at Careers (Nov - Dec)
- 2020 - Industry Insider (Aug-Sep)
- 2019 - Grad Hive for International Graduate Students - 2019
- 2018 - Cegep Panel
- 2018 - Knowledge Broker Panel
- 2018 - Social Service Panel
- GCS Panel and Presentation Topics - 2014
- GCS Panel and Presentation Topics - 2013
- GCS Panel and Presentation Topics - 2012
- GCS Panel and Presentation Topics - 2011
- GCS Panel and Presentation Topics - 2010