National Initiatives & Best Practices
We are part of national initiatives which lead best practices and advocate for career diversity in graduate education and postdoctoral training!
Accelerate to Industry (A2i)
A2i is a bold, new approach to workforce training for graduate students and postdocs. The Program is funded through a National Science Foundation Innovations in Graduate Education (IGE) grant. If you want to learn more about this initiative, please visit NC State's A2i page.
As of May 2023, University of Maryland, College Park has officially joined the Accelerate to Industry (A2i) Program founded by the North Carolina State University Graduate School. As one of 36 academic partner, UMD Graduate School leverages this innovative network to support graduate students and postdocs at UMD to prepare for industry careers. With A2i, graduate students and postdocs can explore employment opportunities with industry companies; develop the business, leadership, and communication skills that companies seek.
As an academic partner, graduate students and postdocs at UMD have access to professional development opportunities hosted by NC State and local here at UMD. See past programming at https://gradschool.umd.edu/industry-A2i.
Professional Development Hub (pd|hub)
In May 2024, we are delighted to join 20 teams across the U.S. as the second cohort of Implementation Sites for the pd|hub Collection: Foundations of Career Exploration for PhD Scientists. We will adapt and implement evidence-based approaches to enhance our campus’s professional development for our doctoral students and postdoctoral scholars. As an implementation site, UMD team has 4 members: Dr. Yi Hao (team lead, Program Director at the Graduate School), Dr. Daniel Serrano (Senior Faculty Specialist, CNMS-IPST), Dr. Joo Yun Jun (Grants Development Specialist, BSOS-Neuroscience Program), and Dr. Nick Slaughter (Assistant Program Director, ENGR Graduate Studies and Affairs). Read the announcement here.
As a team, we will be implementing the Storytelling Framework for Career Exploration on campus through various avenues. In this “Tell Me About Yourself” model, career explorers deepen their exploration of self and of future opportunities through the process of discovering and telling stories. By identifying and exchanging stories, participants articulate transferable skills, practice verbal communication to improve informational interviewing experiences, and expand their imagination of what’s possible by listening to the stories of others.
