Gender and Career

 

Grants

Google Anita Borg Fellowship (12/8/03)

The Google 2004 Anita Borg Scholarships
 
  For additional info see http://groups.google.com/anitaborg/
 
  Google is pleased to announce two $10,000 scholarships for female
  students in the computer sciences during the 2004-2005 academic year.
  One will be awarded to an undergraduate student and one to a
  graduate (master's level) degree candidate. Selection will be based on
 
  the strength of academic background, responses to short essay
  questions, letters of recommendation and financial need. Complete
  applications must be received by Friday, January 30, 2004. Finalists
  will be notified by March 1, 2004 and recipients will be announced on
  Monday, March 22, 2004.
 
  Eligibility Requirements
 
  Undergraduate Scholarship ($10,000)
  * Students must be entering their senior year in the 2004 academic
  year and majoring in computer science, computer engineering or related
  field
  * Must be enrolled in full-time study
  * Cumulative GPA of at least 3.5 on a 4.0 scale or 4.4 on a 5.0 scale
  * Must be attending university in the US
 
  Graduate Scholarship ($10,000)
  * First year master's level students in computer science, computer
  engineering or related field.
  * Must be enrolled in full-time study
  * Cumulative GPA of at least 3.5 on a 4.0 scale or 4.4 on a 5.0 scale
  * Must be attending university in the US
 
  How to Apply
  Please send a complete application packet with the following:
  * Transcripts: A copy of your current academic record
  * Recommendation Letters: Two referral letters from professors or
  academic advisors
  * Resume including current email, school address and phone number,
  permanent address and phone number, major and expected date of
  graduation.
 
  * Responses to the following essay questions (no more than half a
   page each):
  1. Describe a class programming project where you felt you did
  an exceptional job. Describe the overall project, key technical
  challenges and how you addressed them. If this was a team effort,
  describe your contribution.
  2. Describe a programming project you completed outside of
  class for fun. Describe the problem, technical challenges and your
  solutions. If you have not completed such a project, describe a program
 
  you would like to write, the problem it would solve, and the approach
  you would use.
  3. Describe a special talent, ability or quality you possess
  and how it has helped you in your accomplishments.
  4. Describe how you are currently funding your education.
 
  Send your completed application to:
  The Google 2004 Anita Borg Scholarship
  Google, Inc.
  1600 Amphitheatre Parkway
  Mountain View, CA 94043
  ------------------------------------------------------------
  Dr. Anita Borg (1949-2003)
 
  Anita Borg sought to revolutionize the way we think about technology
  and
  devoted much of her adult life to dismantling barriers that keep women
 
  and minorities from entering computing and technology fields. Anita
  received a Ph.D. in computer science from New York University and in
  1987, she started an email list called Systers that today has 3,000
  members from all over the world.
 
  In 1994, Anita co-founded the Grace Hopper Celebration of Women in
  Computing Conference and 3 years later, founded the Institute for Women
 
  and Technology, which launched programs and partnerships including the
 
  Virtual Development Center and the Senior Women's Summit.
 
  In 1999 President Clinton appointed Anita to the Commission on the
  Advancement of Women and Minorities in Science, Engineering, and
  Technology. In 2002, she received the Heinz Award for Technology, the
  Economy, and Employment.
 

Pasteur Fellowship (12/2/03)


 

YOUR NEW YEAR’S RESUME CHECKUP 2/16/04

 

Like millions of people coast to coast, you have probably resolved to start 2004 with renewed job-search enthusiasm.  If it has been a while since you brushed up your old resume, you’ll want to begin your job search with a New Year’s resume check up. 

 

These five questions will help you focus your resume for even better results in the new year. 

1.  Has your career objective changed since your last job search?

 More specifically, are you attempting to change your industry or profession?  If so, your resume requires a new marketing message based on your transferable skills.  This will help potential employers see you outside of the context of your current industry or profession.

 

Remember, a resume is more than just an historical document; it is the print ad of your job-search campaign.  For peak effectiveness, your resume should be based on the buying motives of your new target audience.  Communicating your transferable skills is an excellent way to tap into employer buying motives.

 

2.  Does your current resume reflect your professional growth—or are still using the same resume format that got you your first job out of college?   As you grow professionally, you’ll need a resume that reflects your level of professionalism.  The more sophisticated “hybrid” format allows you to showcase your best accomplishments based on the strategic “selling points” of your career. 

 

3.  Does your resume feature accomplishments from top to bottom?

The best way to capture employer’s attention and create a strong first impression is with measurable accomplishments.  Accomplishments are most significant when they demonstrate your contribution to an employer’s bottom line.  If your resume focuses more on what you did than on how well you did it, it’s time to rewrite those “features” into “benefits.”

 

4.  Was your last job search prior to 2001?

That may seem like an odd question, but if this is your first entrance into the job market since before 2001, you’re in for a shock.  The job market of the late ‘90s was fantastically in favor of job seekers; resumes were less important in attracting employer attention.  Today’s job market, however, is fiercely competitive, and a polished, professional resume is critical to winning an employer’s notice.  If your last job search was a “walk in the park,” look objectively at your resume.  Does it have what it takes to compete against an avalanche of candidate responses or will it likely get lost at the bottom of the resume pile?

 

5.  Most important—are you getting responses from your resume?

Here’s the real proof.  Your resume has only one job:  to get you interviews.  If that isn’t happening, don’t just blame the job market—improve your message.  Think of your job search as a professional marketing campaign in a saturated market.  The tougher the competition, the more vitally important it is to have a resume with a strong marketing message that sets you above the crowd.

 

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Deborah Walker, CCMC

Resume Writer ~ Career Coach

For more in-depth information on resumes, job-search strategy and interview skills, check out the article archive at my website: www.AlphaAdvantage.com

Email: Deb@AlphaAdvantage.com

Toll-free phone: 888-828-0814

go_prev_btn_s.gif (144 bytes)


Three Critical Elements of a Successful Job Search (2/16/04)

 

Any marketing guru will tell you, the success of a product launch depends on the quality of its advertising message, its exposure to a targeted audience and the skill of its sales presenters. If any one of those critical elements is missing, revenues fall short of corporate goals.  Likewise, a successful job search requires:

*  A clear marketing message (resume and cover letter)

*  Ample exposure to targeted employers

*  Polished interview skills to secure the job offer.

Fall short on either of the three, and an extended, lengthy job search is the result.

 

The first step to a successful job search is a resume that communicates a strong marketing message.  Just like a print ad entices the reader toward purchase, your resume has one job: to entice employers to call you for an interview. 

 

How does one transform a boring, historical document into a marketing message that sells?   

*  Focus on benefits rather than features.

*  Use accomplishments to illustrate marketable skills.

*  Appeal to management buying motivations with examples of bottom-line impacting results.

 

Once you’ve transformed your work history into a marketing message, you’ll want to give it as much quality exposure as possible.  Marketing professionals use various media to get their message out.   New athletic shoes may be promoted through print ad, television and online medium.  Likewise, get maximum exposure of your job-search marketing message, with several strategies, both proactive and reactive.

 

One of the most common complaints I hear from job seekers is that they get no response from their resume.  When asked how they use their resume, it’s usually 100% in response to posted job listings.  Securing an interview from a job posting is like trying to catch a fish in a pond that is ringed elbow-to-elbow fishermen.  To make matters worse, there’s a sign posted at the pond that reads, “Due to budgetary cuts, the pond wasn’t stocked this year.”

 

To get maximum exposure and more interviews you’ll want to include some of the following strategies:

*  Networking with professionals who may provide job lead information.

*  Conducting your own target-market campaign to selected employers.

*  Resume distribution to a large, yet select group of qualified headhunters.

 

All the exposure in the world will not get you closer to your next career position if your interview skills are not sharper than your competition.   Just like a sales person whose rent money depends on his/her ability to outsell the competition, so must the job seeker hone his/her interview skills in order to win the offer.  Second choice still means “unemployed.”

 

Some job-seekers cringe at the thought of conducting a job interview as a sales presentation.  Natural-born sales people are rare.  The most effective and highly paid sales professionals had to learn and practice their skills.    Job seekers of any background and personality style can adapt sales skills to perfect their interview skills.  Minimally, those skills should include:

*  Pre-interview research of the prospective employer.

*  Anticipation of and answers to relevant questions.

*  Questions to uncover unstated concerns.

*  Closing skills that lead to the next stage or the offer.

 

Job seekers in a lengthy job search may benefit from analyzing which of the three critical elements is not working for them.  Start by asking these questions:

*  Is my resume-send-out to interview ratio low?   Maybe it’s a resume problem.

*  Am I finding enough job leads?  Maybe it’s time to implement proactive strategies for better exposure.

*  Do I consistently end up “second choice” in job interviews?  Probably time to sharpen the interview skills.

 

Making sure your skills are their sharpest in all three critical elements of the job search will help you gain your career objective in the shortest amount of time with the least amount of stress

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Deborah Walker, CCMC

Resume Writer ~ Career Coach

For more in-depth information on resumes, job-search strategy and interview skills, check out the article archive at my website: www.AlphaAdvantage.com

Email: Deb@AlphaAdvantage.com

Toll-free phone: 888-828-0814

go_prev_btn_s.gif (144 bytes)


Don’t Sabotage Your Job Search with Faults Assumptions (2/16/04)

 

Most job seekers understand that the job market has changed radically over the last few years.  Sadly, however, many still hold to job-search assumptions that do not apply to our current market conditions.  If you believe any of the following five statements, you could be dragging your job search out longer than necessary.  Cut your job search time by knowing the truth about the job market and learning how to combat these assumptions. 

 

1.       “My last job search was a snap. I’m sure this time won’t be any different.”

 

Chances are, your last job search was in the mid to late 1990’s when the job market favored job seekers.  Even up to 2001, jobseekers (and even employers) lived under a rosy glow of unrealistic optimism.  In the last few years, however, most job seekers have noticed a drastic drop in the market demand for their career skills.  Persons who were once courted by recruiters and headhunters from top firms wonder why they are no longer receiving calls with enticing opportunities.  For many job seekers, frustration and lack of confidence have replaced optimism.

 

Action:  The job seeker of 2004 will avoid discouragement by developing a strategic action plan that involves a high degree of proactive and systematic effort.

 

2.       “Employers and recruiters take the time to read entire resumes.”

This is couldn’t be farther from the truth.  The reality is if the best information isn’t in the top four to five inches of your resume, it’s doubtful anyone will notice.  Try this out for yourself.  Open up your current resume on your computer.  Do you see the entire first page?  Probably not.  Most likely when your resume is opened, the reader will see the top four to five inches.  You must sell the reader in those first few inches or he/she is not going to bother scrolling down to read more.  With the volume of resumes that employers and recruiters receive, who has the time to hunt out the good material on a resume?

 

Action:  If your current resume isn’t making best use of the top four to five inches, consider using a hybrid format that will allow you to place your best assets up on top where you’ll be noticed and called.

 

3.       “I don’t want to limit my potential job opportunities, so I’ll write one resume to apply for all kinds of jobs.”

 

I learned early in my recruiting days that employers turn down perfectly qualified candidates because the resume’s focus is too general.   A one-size-fits-all resume gives the impression that the job seeker is uncertain of his career goal.  An employer once told me that if a candidate is interested in two completely different positions, he must not be very good at either.

 

Action:  The most effective resumes leave no doubt as to the job seeker’s career objective.   If you have more than one career objective, you need more than one resume.

 

4.       “I’m not going to bother with cover letters.  No one really reads them anyway.”

 

The truth is the quality of your cover letter often will determine whether your resume gets read at all.  The worst offense, however, is to send a cover letter that sounds as “cookie-cutter” as junk mail. 

 

Your cover letters will create a stronger first impression if you remember the buying motives of each of these major categories of recipients:

·           Executive decision makers are most interested in your ability to help them achieve their corporate bottom-line objectives.

·           HR screeners look for the best qualifications match.

·           Third-party recruiters need strong selling points to help present you to their corporate clients.

 

Action:  If you keep in mind the buying motives of your cover letter recipient, you’ll win their attention more often than not.

 

5.       “If I can just get my foot in the door, my interview skills will get me an offer.”

 

That may have been true back when you had less interview competition.  But today, employers have the advantage of choosing from the best talent available, because so much of the best talent IS available.  Since you’ll probably be interviewing against candidates at least as strong as yourself, you’ll need to distinguish yourself through superior interview preparation.  

 

Action:  Remember that the best way to prepare for an interview is to think of an interview in three parts:

 

·           Ask questions to uncover the interviewer’s hidden buying motives.

·           Answer questions based on the interviewer’s buying motives.

·           Ask closing questions to win the job offer.

 

(To read a full-length article on the three essential interview skills visit my article archive at www.AlphaAdvantage.com.  Follow the articles link to “Win Your Next Position with Three Essential Interview Skills”.)

 

Once you are free of false assumptions, you’re less likely to fall victim to many of the disappointments, frustrations and anxieties associated with an extended job search.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Deborah Walker, CCMC

Resume Writer ~ Career Coach

For more in-depth information on resumes, job-search strategy and interview skills, check out the article archive at my website: www.AlphaAdvantage.com

Email: Deb@AlphaAdvantage.com

Toll-free phone: 888-828-0814

go_prev_btn_s.gif (144 bytes)


Are You a Job Search Hermit? (12/2/03)

 

If you’re experiencing an extended job search, chances are you’ve been through several hills and valleys: days of optimism followed by days of discouragement.

 

One symptom of this job search discouragement is the tendency to avoid other people.  This is what I call the “hermit” phase, where proactive search efforts are set aside in favor of hunkering down in front of the computer, spending fruitless hours going through online job sites.  As dull as this activity is, it at least it prevents the job seeker from hearing rejection. 

 

The problem is that avoiding people only prolongs the period of discouragement.  The longer one remains in “hermit” mode, the longer the job search drags on—and the downward cycle continues. 

 

The fact is, the more people you interact with, the more you’ll hear about positions in the “hidden” job market.  Everyone, whether employed or unemployed, is connected to some form of information grapevine.  The more people you meet with during the week, the better your chances of learning about positions that haven’t even hit the job boards or classified ads yet.  The shortest route to any hiring manager’s door is through the recommendation of others.

 

Think back over the last couple weeks.  If you’ve had less than six opportunities to mix with people outside of your home, it’s probably time to force yourself into networking situations.

 

If you’re stuck on where to start getting out again, your local newspaper is a good place to start looking.  Most likely, your paper’s business section publishes business events or professional workshops on a daily or weekly basis.  Scour these listings to identify which events could most likely put you eye-to-eye with good networking sources.

 

If you’re not yet connected with a professional association, this is a great time to search out active, local groups where you’ll meet people who can introduce you to influential hiring managers.  Look for associations whose leaders are well connected with your target industry.

 

For casual, low-stress networking, health clubs or fitness centers are a great way to meet potential networking contacts.  Chances are you could use the exercise anyway!  Choose early morning or late evening times for your workout, when you’re most likely to meet employed members.  A game of handball could lead to a discussion on upcoming job opportunities.

 

If you attend a church, synagogue or house of worship, this would be a great time to get involved with your organization’s activities.  Working alongside your fellow members will not only lift your spirits as you participate in worthwhile activities, but you’ll also build trusting friendships with those eager to pass along helpful job leads.

 

Another great network-building source is volunteer work.  Whatever your personal or professional passions are, there are nonprofit organizations that would value your knowledge, expertise and ambition.  If you approach volunteer opportunities with a “serve first” attitude, you will naturally attract individuals willing to help further your career ambitions as well.

 

If you make it part of your job-search priorities to stay connected with people on a regular basis, you’ll find the days of discouragement are fewer while the potential career opportunities multiply.

 

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Deborah Walker, CCMC

Resume Writer ~ Career Coach

You’ll find more of Ms. Walker’s career and job-search articles at

www.AlphaAdvantage.com

Email her at Deb@AlphaAdvantage.com

Phone: 888-828-0814

go_prev_btn_s.gif (144 bytes)


Top 10 Interview Bloopers...and How to Avoid Them (12/2/03)

 

We’ve all heard stories of job candidates who looked great on paper but who were absolute disasters in person.  With fewer and fewer interview opportunities available in this competitive market, it’s essential to make the best possible first impression.  You can learn from the mistakes of others and avoid the top 10 worst interview blunders.

 

Poor handshake.

The three-second handshake that starts the interview is your first opportunity to create a great impression.  But all too often an interview is blown right from the start by an ineffective handshake. Once you’ve delivered a poor handshake, it’s nearly impossible to recover your efforts to build rapport.  Here are some examples:

*  The Limp Hand:    Gives the impression of disinterest or weakness

*  The Tips of the Fingers :  Shows lack of ability to engage.

*  The Arm Pump:   Sincerity is questionable, much like an over-agressive salesman.

 

Even if you’re a seasoned professional, don’t assume you have avoided these pitfalls.  Your handshake may be telling more about you than you know.  Ask for honest critiques from several friends who aren’t afraid to tell you the truth.

 

Talking too much.  

In my recruiting days, I abhorred over-talkative candidates.   So did most of my client employers.  Over-talking takes several forms

:*  Taking too long to answer direct questions.  The impression:   This candidate just can’t get to the point.

*  Nervous talkers.   The impression:  This candidate is covering up something or is outright lying.

 

To avoid either of these forms of over-talking, practice answering questions in a direct manner.  Avoid nervous talking by preparing for your interview with role-play

 

.Saying negative things about your current or past employers/managers.

The fastest way to talk yourself out of a new job is to say negative things.  Even if your last boss was Attila the Hun, never, never state your ill feelings about him/her.  No matter how reasonable your complaints, YOU will come out the loser if you show that you disrespect your boss.  When faced with the challenge of talking about former employers, make sure you are prepared with a positive spin on your experiences. 

 

Showing up late or too early.

The first lesson in job-search etiquette is to show up on time for interviews.  A lot of job seekers don’t realize, however, that showing up too early often creates a poor first impression as well.  Arriving more than ten minutes early for an interview is a dead giveaway that the job seeker has too much time on their hands, much like the last one picked for the softball team.  Don’t diminish your candidate desirability by appearing desperate.  Act as if your time were as valuable as theirs.  Always arrive on time, but never more than ten minutes early.

 

Treating the receptionist rudely.

Since the first person you meet on an interview is usually a receptionist, this is also the first impression you’ll make.  Don’t mistake low rank for low input.  Often, that receptionist’s job is to usher you into your interview.  The receptionist has the power to pave your way positively or negatively before you even set eyes on the interviewer. 

 

Asking about benefits, vacation time or salary.

What if a car salesman asked to see your credit report before allowing you to test drive the cars?  That would be ridiculous and you’d walk away in disgust.  The effect is about the same when a job seeker asks about benefits or other employee perks during the first interview.  Wait until you’ve won the employer over before beginning that discussion.

 

 Not preparing for the interview.

Nothing communicates disinterest like a candidate who hasn’t bothered to do pre-interview research.  On the flip side, the quickest way to a good impression is to demonstrate your interest with a few well thought out questions that reflect your knowledge of their organization.

 

Verbal ticks.

An ill-at-ease candidate seldom makes a good impression.   The first signs of nervousness are verbal ticks.  We all have them from time to time—umm, like, you know.  Ignore the butterflies in your stomach and put up a front of calm confidence by avoiding verbal ticks. 

 

One of the best ways to reduce or eliminate them is through role play.  Practice sharing your best success stories ahead of time, and you’ll feel more relaxed during the real interview. 

 

Not enough/too much eye contact

Either situation can create a negative effect:  Avoid eye contact and you’ll seem shifty or untruthful; offer too much eye contact, and you’ll wear the interviewer out.  If you sometimes have trouble with eye-contact balance, work this out ahead of time in an interview practice session with a friend. 

 

Failure to match communication styles.

It’s almost impossible to make a good first impression if you can’t communicate effectively with an interviewer.  But you can easily change that situation by mirroring the way the interviewer treats you.  For instance

:*  If the interviewer seems all business, don’t attempt to loosen him/her up with a joke or story.  Be succinct and businesslike

.*  If the interviewer is personable, try discussing his/her interests.  Often the items on display in the office can be a clue. 

*  If asked a direct question, answer directly.  Then follow up by asking if more information is needed. 

 

When you allow the interviewer to set the tone of conversation, this can vastly improve your chances of making a favorable impression.  You can put the interviewer at ease—and make yourself seem more like them—by mirroring their communication style. 

 

Just as a strong resume wins you an opportunity to interview, strong interview skills will win you consideration for the job.  You already know that you won’t earn an interview unless your resume sets you apart as a candidate of choice.  Likewise, you should know that polishing your interview skills can mean the difference between getting the job offer—and being a runner-up. 

 

Start your job search with a resume that creates a stellar first impression, then back those facts up with your extraordinary interview skills.  You will have made yourself a better candidate by avoiding these ten interview pitfalls.  And no one will have to talk about you as the candidate who “almost” got the job.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Deborah Walker, CCMC

Resume Writer ~ Career Coach

For more in-depth information on resumes, job-search strategy and interview skills, check out the article archive at my website: www.AlphaAdvantage.com

Email: Deb@AlphaAdvantage.com

Toll-free phone: 888-828-0814

go_prev_btn_s.gif (144 bytes)


Resume Help (10/12/03)

In our September meeting, we had a resume panel.  Click here to see the slides on putting together a resume and how to build a "killer" resume. Special thanks to Ms. Gina Castillo,  Ms. Marianne Rohde and  Toby Freedman, Ph.D. for providing these presentations..

go_prev_btn_s.gif (144 bytes)


Women in Science Push Higher on the Y Axis of Success (8/15/03)

By NATALIE ANGIER

For years, it seemed, women in science were like Alice Through the Looking Glass, racing frantically alongside that tedious Red Queen only to be told, sorry, m'dear, "it takes all the running you can do to keep in the same place."

Despite the large numbers of women who have been swelling the entry and middle ranks of science since the 1960's and 1970's, and earning science Ph.D.'s in ratios that approached and even surpassed those of young men, only a relative thimbleful of women have reached the upper tiers of their profession - becoming tenured professors, running large laboratories, giving keynote addresses at major scientific meetings or winning big awards.

Year after year, the prestigious National Academy of Sciences announced its roster of new members, conferring on 60 to 72 scientists an honor considered second only to a Nobel Prize; and year after year, the number of women so consecrated barely budged, averaging 5 to 10 percent of the total. As the Red Queen would say, "Have a biscuit?"

This year, however, Alice boarded that leaping Looking Glass train and bounded over brook, rook, white rabbits and old habits. When the National Academy released its register of new members last week, scientists and scorekeepers were agog. Of the six dozen American inductees, 17, or nearly a quarter, are women. Equally notable, 4 of the 18 new foreign associates are women, and that category is often entirely female-free.

Dr. Linda Bartoshuk, a professor in the departments of surgery and psychology at Yale renowned for her research on taste perception, was lying on a gurney recovering from minor surgery when she got a call from a student telling her she had been elected to the academy.

"I was so groggy from the Valium that I assumed it was all a dream," Dr. Bartoshuk said. Doubly so, she added, "when I heard how many other women were on the list, too."

"It still has an air of unreality to me," she said.

Dr. Nancy Hopkins, a professor of molecular biology at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, who has long worked to increase the numbers and visibility of women in science, said: "I think this is wonderful, fantastic, and these people are off-the-scale in quality. It shows what a buildup there has been of excellent women waiting in the wings."

In fact, the inventory includes many women who are virtual celebrities in their fields, if such a term can be applied to the anonymous enterprise of basic research: Dr. Cornelia I. Bargmann and Dr. Cynthia J. Kenyon, both of the University of California at San Francisco and partisans of the developmentally revealing and aesthetically appealing nematode called C. elegans; Dr. Linda B. Buck, a neurobiologist at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle, who in the early 1990's made the startling discovery that a huge number of human genes are devoted to the sense of smell; Dr. Jeanne Altmann, a primatologist at Princeton, who started life teaching mathematics and was instrumental in making the field of primatology less subjective and happenstance and more rigorously quantitative; and Dr. Carol W. Greider of the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, a pioneer in the study of telomeres, the little chromosomal tips that serve as timekeepers for the cell, shrinking with age as so many things, save one's nose and waistline, seem to do.

The National Academy is a private organization, signed into being by Abraham Lincoln in 1863, with an express charter to advise Congress on scientific matters, and the less express purpose of specifying the nation's scientific elite. New members are elected by existing members through a multistage system almost chesslike in complexity, meaning that no one person or small cabal is in charge, and no "quotas" or "preferences" can be demanded.

And while the latest academy results could be a mere random fluctuation that will be countered come Roll Call 2004, a number of experts say that other signs suggest that women in science are starting to push their way higher on the Y axis of success.

In the last several years, for example, women in science have taken over as heads of Ivy League universities and world-class research institutions: Dr. Shirley Tilghman, a molecular biologist, ascended to the presidency of Princeton in 2001, and, in defiance of the "Queen Bee" stereotype, she promptly chose as her second-in-command another woman, the political scientist Amy Guttman; that same year, Dr. Susan Lindquist, a molecular geneticist and cell biologist, was appointed director of the Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research, an affiliate of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a high-powered center of the fashionable field of genomics; and Dr. Judith Rodin, a professor of psychiatry and medicine, is president of the University of Pennsylvania.

(The third woman who is an Ivy League president, Ruth J. Simmons of Brown, is a French scholar.)

Another new academy member, Dr. Wendy L. Freedman, has just been named director of the Observatories of the Carnegie Institution of Washington, in Pasadena, Calif. Just half a century ago, the great astronomer Margaret Burbidge was refused entry to Carnegie's telescope on Mount Wilson simply because her telomeres were stuck to the wrong set of chromosomes.

A full list of new academy members is online at www.nas.edu.

In a presentation at the American Association for the Advancement of Science meeting last February, researchers showed that the percentage of women serving as "science policy leaders" - defined as researchers who influence public policy, advise the government, help determine the practice and financing of science, and the like - has risen from 12 percent in the mid-1980's to nearly 20 percent today.

Even in a field like physics, long considered relatively unfriendly to women, there has been progress. According to the American Institute of Physics, 23 percent of the assistant, associate and full professors of physics were women in 1994; by last year, the figure had risen to 32 percent. In 1985, about 55 percent of all universities had zero women on the physics faculty; today, that percentage of naughts is down to 12.

The number of women employed as researchers in prominent positions varies wildly from field to field, university to university. According to a 2002 report in Chemical & Engineering News, women in chemistry must feel in their element at places like Rutgers and the University of Kansas, where the percentage of women on the chemistry faculty approaches 30, more than twice the national average. Dr. Jody W. Deming, a professor of biological oceanography at the University of Washington and a newly elected member of the academy, said that in her department "50 percent of the faculty are women."

"You couldn't ask for a better ratio," she added.

The same could not be said for other divisions of the school of oceanography, she admitted, like chemical or physical oceanography. Still, she said: "My sense is that it's getting better for women in science. I embrace the view that things take time."

As enthusiastic as many scientists are about the latest academy elections and other signs of progress, they warn against complacency. "The iceberg is beginning to break up a bit, but there's still a lot of ice there," Dr. Lindquist said. "It's very important that people not get the idea, O.K., everything's fixed now, because it's not."

Dr. Hopkins and several women who are colleagues from M.I.T. attracted international attention in 1999 when they presented evidence of disparities between the way men and women were treated in everything from the pace of promotion to lab space allotted. She praised her university for responding swiftly to the report and enacting measures to hire more women and improve the climate for women at M.I.T. generally. Other universities have begun similar investigations of who gets what and why, she added.

"But if you look historically," she said, "you see that when people pay attention, and are committed to positive change, there's a blip upward, and things get better for awhile. But then, when you stop working at it, when those passionately committed people retire or simply burn out, well, it falls back down again."

Dr. Freedman said various studies showed that women dropped out of science at every stage of their careers in greater proportions than men, for reasons that remain poorly understood. "There's no single reason you can point to, but an accumulation of many small factors," she said.

The sense of being appreciated is difficult to quantify, said Dr. Marlene Belfort, a molecular geneticist with the Wadsworth Center of the New York State Department of Health, but impossible to do without. "This can be a tough and grueling profession," said Dr Belfort, who was elected to the academy in 1999. "There are times when it's thrilling, and times when it's devastating."

Everybody needs a cheerleader, she said, "the people who will tell you, when your paper is trashed, your months of an experiment come to nothing or your grant is triaged, `Don't worry, you can do this.' " It's not just a pipette dream.

http://www.nytimes.com/2003/05/06/science/06ACAD.html?ex=1053234866&ei=1&en= d64d9d363 c2b649c



go_prev_btn_s.gif (144 bytes)


Rosalind Franklin (8/15/03)

I think many members would be interested in the following article about Rosalind Franklin published this month in Physics Today. The author, Lynne Elkins, comes to our meetings on occasion, and I have collaborated with her on history of women in science projects. She has interviewed Watson, Crick and virtually all the major players in the DNA discovery. Her analysis is very interesting.

Check out the following article: http://www.physicstoday.org/vol-56/iss-3/p42.html or try: www.aip.org/pt/ to get to Lynne's article about Rosalind Franklin that appears in Physics Today in March

go_prev_btn_s.gif (144 bytes)


 

Win Your Next Job With Three Essential Interview Skills (8/1/03)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

With competition for good jobs at an all-time high, candidates who conduct their job search as a sales campaign consistently win out over those who don’t. When job seekers practice the skills of sales experts they learn to apply the strategies of a sales presentation to their job interviews.

 

To get to the top of the candidate list, you’ll need these three essential sales skills:

1. Pre-interview preparation

2. Finding and using the interviewer’s “Hot Buttons”

3. Closing on the next step of the interview process

 

1. Pre-interview preparation

Every great sales presentation starts with pre-sales preparation which includes client research, and product analysis. Job seekers prepare for interviews similarly: research on the prospective employer and a thorough catalog of their own accomplishments to illustrate their potential contribution and worth to the employer.

 

Thanks to the internet, company research is relatively easy, especially on publicly held firms. A few good sources are Yahoo, Hoovers, Wall Street Journal archives as well as company web sites. Information on privately held companies is often readily available as well. One of the easiest ways to get such information is simply enter the company name in your favorite search engine and see what pops up.

 

Minimally, you’ll want to find out company size, products or services, major competitors, branch or head quarters and any recent news items. Time allowing, it’s also very helpful to know some of the major players in their organization; a little history on them and future products, markets or growth objectives.

 

Once you’ve done the research, prepare to communicate your value through your accomplishments. Examine your career for examples of how you have solved problems, saved money, increased revenue, or created revenue opportunities for your former employers. As much as possible, dollorize or quantify your contributions. Do not depend on your ability to “wing it” through your interviews. Ask any high-producing sales profession, they will tell you that it is impossible to wing your way to success. It takes preparation and practice.

 

Once you’ve prepared for the interview, don’t forget the next essential sales skill:

 

2. Finding and using the interview “Hot Buttons”

An interviewer’s hot button is his/her unspoken concerns or wishes.

 

It’s your job as the interviewee to uncover the interviewer’s hot button. If you don’t ask, he/she probably won’t tell you. There are two magic questions that will reveal the interviewer’s hot buttons.

1. “What do you see as the greatest challenge for this position?”

2. “What qualities do you see as most important for this position?”

 

Once you’ve asked the all important questions—shut up and listen!

 

After the interviewer has revealed his/her hot buttons, use the information to frame your answers to his/her questions. You’ll connect with the interviewer much faster once you sell yourself based on his/her motivations.

 

Now that you have their attention, don’t forget the most important skill:

3. Closing on the next step of the interview process

 

The term “closing” as a sales term that means influencing one to agree to take certain action (as in signing a contract or writing a check.) A complex sale involves a number of small closes before the ultimate closing purchase. The interview process is a series of closes leading up to the final job offer.

 

If you’ve purchased a car lately you know that the sale starts with the text drive and moves forward through a series of carefully crafted questions such as “do you prefer silver or black?” “Which of you will be the primary driver?” “Shall we park this in the sale-pending area” “Do you wish to trade in your car, or shall we finance this 100%” The effective sales person knows what closing steps must take place—attempt to skip the steps and he may loose the sale altogether.

 

As a clever sales person identifies the small closing steps needed to move the sale forward, so must the job seeker understand the closes necessary to keep the interview process moving forward toward a job offer. Those steps look something like this:

 

1. The cover letter must entice the reader to read your resume.

 

2. The resume must motivate the reader to call you in for an interview.

 

3. In the first interview ask for a second interview.

* “When would you like to schedule our next meeting”

* “Is there any reason you wouldn’t consider inviting me back for second interview?”

* “Who will I meet in the second interview?”

 

4. In the second interview ask to speak with the decision maker.

* “Who, besides yourself, will make the final hiring decision?”

* “When is convenient for Mr. /Ms. Decision Maker to meet with me?”

* “Is there any other presentation materials I should bring when I visit with Mr. /Ms. Decision Maker?”

 

5. When speaking with the decision maker ask for the job offer:

* “Are there any objections that prevent you from extending an offer?

* “When would you like me to start?”

* “What challenges would you have me tackle first?”

 

Asking for the next interview or the job offer may seem bold, but try it. You’ll find yourself invited back more often and feel much more in control of the interview process.

 

Once you’ve mastered and applied the three essential sales skills for effective interviews you’ll see your job-search efforts accelerate and your confidence soar.

 

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Deborah Walker, CCMC

Resume Writer ~ Career Coach

888-828-0814 or Deb@AlphaAdvantage.com

Call for FREE resume critique

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

go_prev_btn_s.gif (144 bytes)


 

Regain Your Job-Search Optimism with Three Easy Steps (8/1/03)

 

If you’ve been in a job search for more than a few months, you already know that one of the greatest challenges is maintaining a positive attitude. Without it, going through the motions can feel as demotivating as running a race in lead boots. You begin to think “What’s the use? I’ve already sent out 50 resumes this week with nothing to show for it.”

 

If you find yourself in an emotional slump, here are three things you can do to regain a positive, optimistic outlook:

 

1. Write out a job-search action plan including these four areas:

 

* Search and respond intelligently to online and print job openings. To optimize your results take the time to customize your cover letters to each opportunity.

 

* Research potential employers to contact proactively in search of not-yet-posted job leads. Make sure your research includes contact names of key executive within the organizations. Again, customize your cover letters to illustrate your interest in their company and/or industry.

 

* Contact members of your personal network of friends, former colleagues and professional association members to let them know of your search. Continually build your network through new professional associations, job fairs, trade shows and business networking events. Involve yourself with others who will tell you of job leads in the “hidden” job market.

 

* Invest in an online resume distribution service that allows you to target your resume to employers and recruiters most likely interested in your qualifications. You’ll see quick results, allowing you to jumpstart your interview activity level.

 

Once you have your action plan, schedule these activities just as you would if employed on the job. Plan your work and work your plan.

 

2. Choose an accountability partner and support group. These are essential to keep you motivated and on track with your action plan and schedule. An accountability partner helps you reach your activity goals. A live support group (vs. online chat group) keeps you actively involved with others who understand your situation and can lend emotional support. Caution: avoid negative groups of job seekers who will drag you down by their pessimistic outlook.

 

3. Allow yourself to enjoy simple pleasures. Spend an evening with a great book. Take a walk on a sunny afternoon. Play football with your son. Meet a friend at a coffee shop for a long chat. Often job seekers think they don’t deserve any fun until they’ve found a job. The truth is there is more time for simple pleasures while unemployed than any other time in life. Once you’ve put your job-search action plan into practice and you’ve spent your time wisely in productive activities, reward yourself a little. You deserve it!

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Deborah Walker, CCMC

Resume Writer ~ Career Coach

888-828-0814

Visit the job-search article archive at Deb@AlphaAdvantage.com

Call for FREE resume critique

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

go_prev_btn_s.gif (144 bytes)


Postdoc Network (1/26/03)

This month's Postdoc Network (PDN) highlights- All PDN articles are FREE. http://nextwave.sciencemag.org/pdn/ -Postdoc News Bytes- Stipend increases in jeopardy and a discussion about postdoc training. -Postdocs in High School Want to increase science literacy? Invite science postdocs to work with high school teachers and classes to develop science curricula and understanding. -PDN Bytes-A postdoc survey reveals that the postdoctoral experience is quite different for men and women and updates on tax policy for postdoc fellows.

Career Choices: Planned Happenstance You cannot plan chance events, but you can generate and take advantage of unexpected opportunities throughout your career.

Succeeding as a Minority Scientist: A Heart for Science The work of minority mentors can be an enormous stimulus for the next generation of minority scientists.

Interdisciplinarity and Tenure These days, universities and medical schools just love to hire young interdisciplinary scientists. But the honeymoon can be short, as many institutions fail the test of evaluating interdisciplinary research. Here's how to improve the odds of a fair tenure evaluation. http://nextwave.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/2003/01/08/8

Juggling Work and Study Going back to school after several years of work isn't easy. But this determined young technologist isn't ready to give up her dream.

January's Feature: **Going Multidisciplinary** This month Next Wave's staff has put together a series of articles that will give you a snapshot of the opportunities for early career scientists in multidisciplinary research and of what it takes. The index is FREE at http://nextwave.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/2002/12/30/3

GrantsNet: January News Advice for applying for NIH K awards; a review of FinAid, a scholarship resource; and the latest biomedical funding news. http://nextwave.sciencemag.org/awards.dtl

Unusual Ways to Catch a Recruiter's Eye Our Insider's Edge columnist reveals some of the unusual sources that recruiters exploit to find the best candidates.

The GrantDoctor A primer for foreign nationals and advice for researchers moving to another institution.

go_prev_btn_s.gif (144 bytes)


Bioview Women in Science Articles 1/16/03

BioView.com has several original articles on Women in Science that could be helpful to AWIS members.

Here are the links as provided by Holly Larsen of BioView.com:

The url to all the articles is:
http://www.biolinks.com/cgi-bin/list?category=articles&type=women&td=women


Urls for specific original articles follow:
A Commitment to Breast Cancer Research: Dr. Allison Jablonski discusses the ups and downs of an academic career
http://www.bioview.com/channels/wis/article_breastcancer.html

A Science Career with a Twist: A discussion with Dr. Mary Helen Barcellos-Hoff
http://www.bioview.com/channels/wis/article_careertwist.html

From Computers to Life Sciencehttp://www.bioview.com/channels/wis/article_computers.htmlRewriting the Story on Women's Salaries:Negotiating tips for your next interview
http://www.bioview.com/channels/wis/article_negotiate.html
go_prev_btn_s.gif (144 bytes)


MIT women faculty members were cited as top scientists 1/16/03

Seven MIT women faculty members were cited as top scientists by two well-known magazines. Check out this website: http://web.mit.edu/newsoffice/nr/2002/women.html If any of you have girls in school, or work with young girls, this might be a good article to download. We need to encourage more young women to go into science-related fields. Thank you.

go_prev_btn_s.gif (144 bytes)


 Bush administration names first woman to head CDC (7/31/02)

 

By LAURAN NEERGAARD, AP Medical Writer

 

a.


WASHINGTON (July 2, 2002 11:32 a.m. EDT) - A scientist on the front lines of the anthrax investigation has been tapped to head the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, administration officials said Tuesday.

Dr. Julie Gerberding will become the first female director of the CDC, the nation's top public health agency.

Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson is scheduled to announce the appointment Wednesday afternoon at the CDC's Atlanta headquarters, said an administration official, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Gerberding, 46, is the CDC's acting deputy director for science.

An infectious-disease specialist credited with pioneering steps to protect health care workers exposed to the AIDS virus, Gerberding was recruited to the CDC in 1998 and went on to become one of its most quoted, unflappable investigators into last fall's anthrax attacks.

"The country could not be better served," said Dr. Julius R. Krevans, chancellor emeritus at the University of California, San Francisco, where Gerberding worked before joining the CDC.

"She's somebody who has been able to withstand the pressure and take the heat and always use good science-based judgment to make decisions," said Dr. James Curran of Emory University, the CDC's former AIDS chief, who has known Gerberding for over a decade.

The new CDC director faces some immediate challenges: ensuring the agency is ready should bioterrorism strike again; regaining trust for what critics have called its early fumbling during the anthrax attacks; and learning to work with the CIA, FBI and proposed Homeland Security Department, a function new to CDC's doctors.

Gerberding "gained a lot of credibility" in Washington during the anthrax crisis, said Dr. Gail Cassell of Eli Lilly & Co., a bioterrorism adviser to the government who had lobbied the White House to appoint her.

But Cassell said one of her first steps should be "a really critical analysis of CDC and its programs," to ensure the agency is using new resources to properly balance bioterrorism preparedness and day-to-day disease fighting.

The CDC investigates outbreaks of infectious diseases and works to prevent other illnesses. Former director Jeffrey Koplan stepped down March 31, saying it was time to move on after more than three years in the job. He had defended CDC against criticism from Congress that it had too slowly reacted to the anthrax crisis, saying the agency had performed well in the face of an unprecedented bioterrorist attack.

Public health organizations had lobbied hard for Gerberding's appointment, largely because of her anthrax experience.

But Gerberding has more of a medical school background than past CDC directors, added Krevans - which could be important as the CDC works to shore up the nation's public health infrastructure.

She also is popular among HIV activists and physicians.

While at the UCSF and its teaching hospital, San Francisco General, Gerberding developed one of the first programs to give health workers stuck with HIV-tainted needles medication to prevent infection, said Dr. Tom Coates, the university's AIDS research director.

"She understands that if we're going to have effective responses to this epidemic, they need to be based in science," added Terje Anderson of the National Association of People With AIDS.

go_prev_btn_s.gif (144 bytes)


Creating a Life: Professional Women and the Quest for Children (6/16/02)

SHOW: Talk of the Nation

DATE: April 8, 2002

NEAL CONAN, host:

This is TALK OF THE NATION. I'm Neal Conan in Washington.

The past 30 years have offered women unparalleled economic opportunities, chances for meaningful professional lives that, in many cases, were simply not available to their mothers. That, in turn, created a new problem: how to balance motherhood and career. A new study finds a disturbing pattern. Many successful women are childless, and only some of them by choice. Many who waited to have children until their careers were well-established discovered they had waited too long.

Sylvia Ann Hewlett is the author of the study and of a new book called "Creating a Life: Professional Women and the Quest for Children." She writes that, `Feminism and the pill have given women more choices, but cannot change medical realities. Few women over the age of 40 will be able to conceive and bear children easily.' She advises the next generation of young women who want to have a family to reorder their priorities.

But what happens when you postpone your career? How does that affect you economically? Is it easy to get back into the work force? Given the options, will more women choose a career anyway, even if it means foregoing a family? And how are these choices redefining what it means to be a woman? Childlessness--is it a crisis or a choice? Which is it for you? And what about alternatives? Our number here in Washington is (800) 989-8255, (800) 989-TALK. Our e-mail address is totn@npr.org.

And Sylvia Ann Hewlett joins us now from our bureau in New York. Welcome to TALK OF THE NATION.

Ms. SYLVIA ANN HEWLETT (Author, "Creating a Life: Professional Women and the Quest for Children"): Good to be here.

CONAN: I understand that you started to write this book not the book that you ended up writing, but rather a very different one.

Ms. HEWLETT: You know, in a way, this book was an accidental book. Five years ago, I started off on something quite different. I was fascinated by the lives of the breakthrough generation, and in 1997, I started interviewing a whole group of these women to find out questions, like, how they had leant on feminism. Were mentors important in their lives? What were their strategies for breaking through those glass ceilings? After all, it was a remarkable generation. As you pointed out, these were the women that came of age in the '70s and broke through all those barriers and took a much deserved place in the professional world, which previously had been pretty much, you know, reserved for men.

But 15 interviews into this project, I turned around and realized the amazing fact that none of the women I was talking to had children. So I went back and did a second round of interviews and asked the obvious, which was, you know, had they wanted children, and if they had, what had gotten in the way? And I guess that's when this particular book was born. Because the majority of these women were full of regret, pain and at least some bitterness, because they knew that their male colleagues faced a very different reality. And what that triggered in me is a need to know what was really going on nationwide. And so I spent a couple of years, you know, raising the money to do a nationwide survey so I could see what professional women across the board were doing on this front. And I really looked at two generations, the breakthrough generation, which was this pioneer generation if you like...

CONAN: So that would be women now in their 50s.

Ms. HEWLETT: Well, I defined it as kind of 41 through 55.

CONAN: OK.

Ms. HEWLETT: And then I looked at younger women, 28 to 40, those who were embarking on their careers.

CONAN: And what did they say about the childlessness issue?

Ms. HEWLETT: Well, you know, let's start with some of the main findings. If you look at these professional women across the nation, and it's a representative sample, in the older age group, somewhere between a third and a half don't have kids. It depends critically on which profession they're a part of, because some are much more permissive of the balancing act than others. When you...

CONAN: For instance?

Ms. HEWLETT: Well, I mean, one of the surprises to me--and, you know, there's some very useful information here--is that if you want a career and a family, you probably shouldn't become a professor, because academia, it turns out, is very inhospitable to the balancing act. Forty-three percent of women in education at these higher levels don't have children, and the reason seems to be that the tenure clock, you know, coincides with the last stages of that biological clock, and that these careers are very kind of peripatetic in their early stages, and you might be, you know, two years at Santa Cruz and then a year at Vanderbilt and then a year at Brandeis. And it seems that particularly women in the academic fields find it very hard to sustain relationships and then have families.

Interestingly enough, doctors do rather well because there's a lot of part-time work available for doctors. But the group that do best of all are women entrepreneurs, the self-employed folks out there who, although they work long hours, have much more control over their lives. And 80 percent of self-employed women over this bar of earnings that I chose to define professional life actually are able to have both a career and children, and I found that kind of fascinating that there were these differences.

CONAN: Well, in general, childlessness is up by--well, it's doubled, right?

Ms. HEWLETT: Yes. In all income groups, yes.

CONAN: And why is that happening, do you think?

Ms. HEWLETT: Well, you know, obviously the national averages disguise a lot of variation between groups, and I think the group that is not having kids predominantly is the professional group. I define my sample as any woman earning over $55,000 a year in the younger group or 65,000 a year in the older group.