GIS while valuable to certain areas of biology, is basically worthless to a clinical biologist. Maybe a more generalized idea would be providing a working knowledge of the technology used in the specific subdiscipline?
On Fri, Nov 12, 2010 at 8:30 AM, Christopher Heckscher <[email protected]> wrote: > I recently moved into academia after spending 15 years working for non-profit > and state government. I have been on many search committees for both > permanent positions and seasonal positions. So, I may have a somewhat unique > perspective on this question. Without a doubt, in order of importance, the > four skills considered most are: > > 1) Excellent writing skills (not necessarily technical writing) > 2) Working knowledge and experience in GIS > 3) Field experience (not just an occasional lab but rigorous outdoor > experience) even if the current position in question is not primarily field > oriented. > 4) Proficiency in basic statistics (i.e., able to interpret results presented > in papers even if the precise statistical methods are unknown) > > Number 3 has become increasingly more difficult to find. For students with > only a BS, that experience is obtained through seasonal field jobs after > graduation. In fact, I can't recall a single situation where we hired a > permanent employee at an entry level position that came directly from an > undergraduate degree program without some type of professional field > experience outside of academia. Even graduate students often must obtain > field experience via seasonal jobs before landing a permanent position. I > think that shows our universities are generally doing a poor job preparing > students for careers in ecology outside of academia. Also, it's far more > likely to find a student that can explain ecological processes on African > savannas than a student that can describe local ecosystems and natural > communities. > > Two more comments: Ecological modeling is of very little or no interest yet > many recent graduates I have interviewed emphasize that experience. Finally, > the degree or concentration area is the least important (e. g., wildlife > biology vs. ecology vs. environmental science vs. natural resource > management). The specific degree program is of little interest - or > inconsequential -- if the student possesses skills 1 - 4 above. > > Of course, this is my personal experience and I'm sure others might disagree > with my list. > > > Christopher Heckscher > Delaware State University > > > ________________________________________ > From: Ecological Society of America: grants, jobs, news > [[email protected]] On Behalf Of Aimee Phillippi > [[email protected]] > Sent: Friday, November 12, 2010 7:14 AM > To: [email protected] > Subject: Re: [ECOLOG-L] what makes a biology program good? > > Being at a school that is currently revising its biology program, I'm > interested in folks' opinions on this. I'm especially interested in > perspectives on Malcolm's first list item. Specifically, what coursework > and/or curricular experiences have people seen that best prepare students for > moving into "good" biology-related jobs. > ________________________________________ > From: Ecological Society of America: grants, jobs, news > [[email protected]] On Behalf Of malcolm McCallum > [[email protected]] > Sent: Thursday, November 11, 2010 10:16 PM > To: [email protected] > Subject: Re: [ECOLOG-L] what makes a biology program good? > > I didn't really have anything specific in mind regarding what you > listed. In fact, though most general bio programs are divided up in > tracts of the programs you listed. I guess I wasn't really looking at > specialized programs when I posed the question but graduate or > undergraduate, generalized or specialized should not really matter all > that much. > > I hear all of the time people say "That school has a good program" or > "that school's program is weak." > But really, what makes it good vs weak? > > I felt it basically boiled down to the following, but wanted to see if > others had different or refined views: > > 1) Coursework is sufficiently rigorous for students to move on into > good jobs or postgraduate study. > 2) students leaving the program succeed in later pursuits. > 3) faculty are trained in the subjects they teach > 4) courses have sufficient facilities and resources to be effective > 5) courses from other disciplines (chemistry/physics/math, &c) provide > suffienct depth for biologists. > > This is just off the top of my head and pretty open-ended. > > Malcolm > -- Malcolm L. McCallum Managing Editor, Herpetological Conservation and Biology "Peer pressure is designed to contain anyone with a sense of drive" - Allan Nation 1880's: "There's lots of good fish in the sea" W.S. Gilbert 1990's: Many fish stocks depleted due to overfishing, habitat loss, and pollution. 2000: Marine reserves, ecosystem restoration, and pollution reduction MAY help restore populations. 2022: Soylent Green is People! Confidentiality Notice: This e-mail message, including any attachments, is for the sole use of the intended recipient(s) and may contain confidential and privileged information. Any unauthorized review, use, disclosure or distribution is prohibited. If you are not the intended recipient, please contact the sender by reply e-mail and destroy all copies of the original message.
