• A plan for your (career) development.
• Individualized to your strengths/goals/setting.
• A living document.
• Provides a structure in which to assess/learn/plan.
• Has goals at multiple levels (long-term/big and short-term/specific).

Other names: personal/self-/career/professional development plan

Gerd Altmann/Pixabay

Magnet.me/Unsplash

Reading

• You Need a Game Plan (1)
• Career development: A plan for action

• AAAS myIDP - STEM focused
• Imagine PhD - Arts/Humanities focused
• U Wisconsin - comprehensive resources
• U Nebraska - nice template
• NIEHS/NIH - good resources and forms
• National Park Service - focus on employee-supervisor setting

Gerd Altmann/Pixabay

Many others - if you find a good one, please share

1. Start/Overview
2. Assess yourself
3. Learn what’s out there
4. Plan and formulate goals
5. Implement your IDP (with mentors)
6. Track, revisit and update
   

   Gerd Altmann/Pixabay

• Free and online at: https://myidp.sciencecareers.org/
• Create an account.
• Sign up and look around.
• Enter your basic information.

Gerd Altmann/Pixabay

• Go through the Assessment section
• Read the linked articles
  • So You Think You Have Skills (2)
  • Interests (3)
  • What Do You Care About? (4)
  • Making Sense of Your Self-Assessment (5)

No source/Pixabay

• Do the 3 assessment exercises
  • Use the full range (1-5)
  • Consider comparing yourself to some type of standards, e.g. random person on street = 1 and experts on that topic/skill = 5

Gerd Altmann/Pixabay

Do all of part II before we discuss it.

• Go through the Career Exploration section
• Read the linked articles
  • Making Evidence-Based Career Decisions (6)
  • Opportunities Come Through People (7)
  • Getting the Inside Scoop on Science Careers (8)
  • Narrowing the Choices: What Career Path is Right for You? (9)

No source/Pixabay

• For careers that interest you, check the linked resources
• Look for additional resources online

Gerd Altmann/Pixabay

• As possible, learn about careers by engaging with others
  • Speakers that come to UGA
  • Conferences/meetings
  • Online meetups
  • Any other opportunity

Jennifer Regnier/Pixabay

• Do an Informational Interview.

Jennifer Regnier/Pixabay

Do all of part III before we discuss it.

• Go through the Create Plan section
• Read the linked articles
  • Goal-Setting Strategies for Scientific and Career Success (10)

No source/Pixabay

• Write down plans and goals as explained.
• Use the SMART approach.

gabrielle_cc/Pixabay

Do all of part IV this before we discuss it.

• Go through the Implement Plan section
• Read the linked articles
  • Getting the Mentoring You Need (11)
  • I Have a Plan … Now What? (12)

No source/Pixabay

• Identify mentors
  • Often good to ask them if they agree to be mentors
  • Mentors can cover large or small portions of your IDP
  • You should carefully evaluate what your mentors say, but you don’ have to do it
  • Mentors can be at various career stages, more senior/equal/junior to yourself
  • 2-4 mentors is a good number

Coffee Bean/Pixabay

• Engage your mentors
  • Get your mentor(s) to do the skills assessment for you
  • Share your IDP (or parts of it) with your mentor(s)
• Use your IDP
  • Print it, follow it

Clark Tibbs/Unsplash

Do all of part V before we discuss it.

• Revisit your IDP regularly
• Track your progress
• Update as needed
• Schedule recurrent (regular or irregular) meetings with your mentors
• Discuss with mentors how to use your IDP

Gerd Altmann/Pixabay

The amount you’ll get out of doing this IDP is proportional to the amount of time and effort you are willing to commit.

Maryam62/Pixabay

Reserve a dedicated amount of time each week this semester to work on the IDP.

Nile/Pixabay

If you are able, team up with someone else in the class and run things by each other, check in weekly (accountability/sounding board buddy). If possible, involve your advisor/mentors.

Peggy und Marco Lachmann-Anke/Pixabay

Come prepared to class and use the in-class sessions to get more out of your IDP.

picjumbo_com/Pixabay