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Workshops take place 4-6 times per year and feature a variety of speakers and facilitators. The content is tailored to meet the needs of the network and feedback from each workshop shapes the content for the next.

Delegates in a seminar room

Upcoming Workshops and seminars

Career Transitions: Navigating from academia to beyond (and back!)

24 April 2024, 3-5pm (online) 

In this online workshop you will hear from Oxford Alumni who have navigated transitions across academia, industry, government, and the clinic – and back again! Discover personal narratives from former fellows and postdocs and Oxford academics as they share their experiences transitioning from academia to diverse professional realms. Gain valuable insights into their decision-making process, strategic planning, and lessons learned along their career journeys so far. You will also hear about the benefits that career coaching can bring to your career planning.

  • Moving into Industry - Liam Brown - Associate Principal Scientist, AstraZeneca
  • Developing relationships to bolster collaboration - Charlotte Green - Head of Business Development- Drug Discovery Unit, University of Dundee
  • Shaping science policy - Lorna Daniels - Senior Policy Advisor- R&D Strategy and Capability, Government Office for Science
  • How coaching can help your career transitions – Tony Bradshaw, Biosocius
  • Consulting as a career - Claudia Guida - Senior Manager, Regulatory Science, Kinesys Consulting Ltd
  • Starting your own group in a new institution - Nora Bengoa-Vergniory, Principal Investigator at Achucarro Basque Center for Neuroscience
  • Experiences of returning from industry to academia - Duncan Richards, Climax Professorship of Clinical Therapeutics and Director of Oxford Clinical Trials Research Unit, University of Oxford

Please register via this online form: https://forms.office.com/e/4TwQzny4PK 

Networking lunch with industry

23 May 2024 11.30 - 14.00, Lady Margaret Hall 

Following on from the successful  'Asks and Offers' networking event we held at Christmas 2022, we are meeting again at Lady Margaret Hall for a similar style networking event and lunch. 

We want this to be a social and productive networking event and so we have opted for a fun approach.

The event will begin with an interactive and focused networking session in the Talbot Hall (11.30 – 12.45) in which participants can discuss specific challenges they face and benefit from advice from our industry attendees.  We will finish the event with an informal networking lunch in the Monson Room (12.45 -14.00). 

Upon registration Industry attendees are asked what they can 'offer' in terms of advice and guidance, and Fellows and postdocs state their 'asks' for what you would like to seek guidance on or chat about. We then display these at the event to make it easy to network for maximum effect! 

Please register via this online form: https://forms.office.com/e/rwsFv2BhF4

How to look for jobs in industry, develop your CV, job search strategy and interview preparation. With an opportunity to gain 1:1 CV advice!  

27 June 2024 10.30 – 13:00 (workshop 10.30 – 12.15 followed by networking lunch), Careers Lounge, Careers Service, Banbury Road, Oxford 

Presenters:

  • Dr Susan Black, Careers Adviser for Researchers, Research Staff Hub
  • Lee Milligan, Director - Head of Global Early Talent, Early Talent & Outreach, Novo Nordisk – Industry CVs (online presentation)

Do you plan to apply for job roles beyond academia?

CVs are read very quickly (think seconds!). Creating a strong CV that conveys your fit for industry roles is crucial for progressing to the interview stage.  Often your academic CV will not be fit for purpose as the structure and content is not tailored for the private sector. This workshop will outline the key building blocks of a CV structured for careers outside of academia.  We will share examples to help with formatting, language and translating your research skills and experience for an industry audience so that you can apply them to crafting your own winning CV.

We will also briefly cover in this workshop: guidance on job fairs (how to prepare for these in advance – i.e. CV/ research company), how to deal/interact with recruiters (sometimes you might be approached by email or on LinkedIn and not know what to do), interview process – how to prepare for interviews and finally we will touch on salary negotiations.

Want to hear about what applying to Industry is like? Hear from Lee Milligan @ Novo Nordisk

Stay for a networking lunch with attendees during which there are bookable 1:1 CV advice sessions. Book a 20min session to experience the benefit of advice tailored to your individual circumstances.

Please register via this online form: https://forms.office.com/e/6qyEf2SLpC

 

 PAST events, Workshops aNd Seminars

CAREER OPPORTUNITIES IN CLINICAL TRIALS

7 November 2023, 2.30-4.00pm, Richard Doll Building

In this talk you will hear about career opportunities in clinical trials, with particular focus on what might be available to post-doctoral researchers. The talk will cover:

  • Understanding the sequence of the clinical trial process and the associated job opportunities 
  • The value of a postdoc's skillset in clinical trials
  • How can postdocs enter clinical trials?
  • How researchers and scientists can engage in clinical trials in academia, NHS, industry and beyond 

You will hear from:

Sarah Pearson - OCTO Trial Management Director, University of Oxford

Christine Harvey - Senior Manager, IQVIA

IFPN LUNCH AND NETWORKING

26 September 2023, 12.30-2pm, Worcester College

Join us in the beautiful surroundings of Worcester College, Oxford for an end-of-summer networking lunch. This is an opportunity to meet post-doctoral researchers from a variety of disciplines from across the medical sciences, and representatives from a range of life science companies.

HOW TO DO CONSULTING AS A POST-DOC IN MEDICAL SCIENCES

5 July 2023, 11am-12pm, online

Are you interested to learn more about what the world of consulting is like for post-doctoral researchers in the life sciences?

This online session will provide infromation on how to identify and arrange consulting opportunities as a post-doctoral researcher as well as what it is like to do consulting in parallel to academic work and to be employed full-time in the consulting industry.

You will hear from:

Prof Peter Jezzard, Nuffield Department of Clinical Neurosciences

Dr Claudia Guida, former post-doc at the University of Oxford and now Senior Manager at Kynesis Consulting

Jaci Barnett, Head of Consulting Services at Oxford University Innovation

MOVING BEYOND ACADEMIA: CREATING A CV FOR JOBS IN THE LIFE SCIENCES INDUSTRY

21 June 2023, 09.30am-1.00pm, Careers Service

Your research career has equipped you with experience and employability skills of great value to sectors beyond academia - but how do we translate these into strong job applications? This in-person workshop will explore tools for identifying your professional skills, and outline how to present these in language employers in industry and wider sectors want to hear. 

You will have the chance to adapt and construct your own CV as part of the interactive workshop led by the Careers Service, and explore examples shared from a range of sectors including Pharma, Biotech, start-ups and wider professional roles.

This session will focus on applications for positions beyond academia only.

Session objectives:

  • Use tools and exercises for identifying your existing skills and experience
  • Demonstrate how to translate research experience into language for job applications outside of academia, focusing on CVs
  • Begin producing a draft CV suitable for roles beyond academia

Christmas lunch and networking

9 December 2022, 11.30am-1.30pm, Lady Margaret Hall

We want this to be a slightly different and highly productive networking event and so we have opted for a fun approach. 

The event will begin with an interactive and focused networking session in which participants can discuss specific challenges they face and benefit from advice in regard to working in industry. We will finish the event with an informal networking lunch.

Upon registration, we will ask each industry attendee to provide information on what they are able to offer early career researchers (ECRs) in terms of advice in relation to working in industry, and also how their respective sector can benefit from skills which ECRs can provide. We will also ask ECRs to submit their ‘asks’ and ‘offers’ and we will then share all profiles prior to the event in order to allow people time to identify with whom they would like to speak. 

introduction to project management

10 November 2022, 9am-5pm, in-person (Big Data Institute)

The focus of the day will be to provide a practical ‘project management toolbox' that you can use in your daily work. During the course you will have the opportunity to manage a project. You will be able to apply the techniques you learn to a project that you bring along. Topics covered: project initiation, managing stakeholders and risk, time estimation, planning.

LEARNING OUTCOMES

By the end of this session you will understand more about:

  • The importance of planning,
  • The tools to make project management succeed,
  • How to estimate the time a project will take realistically,
  • The skills you need to be a good project manager.

The training will be delivered by Dr Justin Hutchence, Researcher Training and Development Manager, University of Oxford.

Linkedin: how to use it effectively to expand your career options

31 October 2022, 12-2pm, in-person (Said Business School)

It is important to engage with industry whether you want an academic or industry career. Doing so will ensure your research as an academic is impactful and knowledge of industry will help you secure the right role if you choose an industry career. This seminar will take you through the best way to engage with the community utilising LinkedIn. You will:

  • Build sector knowledge and understand how to source job opportunities
  • Enhance your profile and connections in the sector
  • Create a high-quality CV and prepare well for an interview
  • Start to understand yourself and the opportunities for your best contribution
  • Provide an opportunity to reflect on the sort of career that would best suit you

The training will be provided by Dr. Tony Bradshaw. Tony operates in the medical biotechnology space specifically in biologics, vaccines and cell and gene therapy development and manufacturing.

INTRO TO R for biologists

5 and 7 October 2022, 10am-2pm, in-person (Richard Doll Building)

This interactive training course was aimed at Medical Sciences post-doctoral researchers with minimal or no programming experience who want to create reproducible workflows for biological data analysis in R.

COURSE AIM

This course was aimed at those with minimal or no programming experience to create reproducible workflows for biological data analysis in R. By the end of this module, participants would be able to perform end-to-end analysis of your own data including statistics and visualisation.

PRESENTATION SKILLS: SHORT TALK, LASTING IMPRESSION

21 June 2022, 3-5pm, online

Through this interactive session participants will examine and practise the skills required to give a memorable talk. We’ll give an overview of the key presentation skills for both in person and online delivery. Researchers will be guided through the key stages of preparing and gaining confidence to present using a mix of examples, group discussions and practical work to leave researchers more confident and composed than ever before.

Researchers will emerge confident and energised ready to deliver a prize-winning presentation. Following the session researchers will have a better understanding of the story their presentation should tell; how to create their own style using body language, pace, voice and tone and the delivery tools they can use to maximise the impact of their talk.

The session is led by Dr Jamie Gallagher an international award-winning presenter who has helped thousands of researchers around the world to share their work in the most interesting and engaging ways possible. Not only a trainer Jamie has spoken on TV, Radio and Stage around the world and his workshops are designed from both evidence-informed theory and his own practical experience.

INTRODUCTION TO SINGLE CELL RNA SEQUENCING DATA ANALYSIS

16 June 2022, 1-2pm, Pre-session of computational set-up - online

17 June 2022, 10am-1pm, Hands-on session - in person (Big Data Institute)

This hands-on session on data analysis will start from Cellranger output or transcript count matrices of a dataset with multiple samples of two or more experimental/phenotype conditions to cover the identification of differential cell-composition and gene expression.

At the end of the course the attendant will be able to:

  1. To assess scRNAseq mapping QC metrics to distinguish cell barcodes from debris-barcodes.
  2. To normalize and remove batch effects to identify cell clusters across several samples.
  3. To statistically compared tissue composition differences between conditions.
  4. To identify celltype-specific differential expressed genes between conditions.

The session is led by Dr Cesar Medina Prada. Cesar is a Bioinformatician keen on leveraging systems biology to discover the cellular basis of human diseases. Currently, as a Postdoctoral Researcher in the Samson lab at the Kennedy Institute of Rheumatology of the University of Oxford, he studies the synovial cellular dynamics during the establishment of arthritis. Cesar was part of the trainer team that delivered the first hands-on workshop on single-cell genomics data analysis of the Human Cell Atlas LATAM community.

COMMUNICATE WITH IMPACT

4 May 2022, 9am - 5pm, in person (Said Business School)

Learn to recognise the differences in communication needs and expectations of technical vs. non-technical professionals. You will learn how to speak clearly and vividly about your research and why it matters, in ways that can engage varied audiences, including industrial partners.

The session will focus on strategies to communicate a compelling message to a range of audiences from the public, industry and to scientists in other disciplines. You will learn impactful communication tools and techniques used in academia, business and the dramatic arts and then apply the tools to your own research, crafting compelling communications for a range of audiences.

You will leave the workshop with more impactful communications for you research and a toolset to refine and enhance your communication strategy moving forward. The tools and skills will help you create compelling and persuasive research proposals and funding applications, deliver engaging presentations, have productive conversations with industry partners and investors and effectively engage with a wide range of community stakeholders.

What the workshop will cover/learning outcomes:

  • How to speak clearly and vividly about their research and why it matters
  • Strategies to communicate a compelling message to a range of audiences
  • Impactful communication tools and techniques used in academia, business and the dramatic arts
  • Translating your research to create a compelling message

The workshop is being delivered by Skillfluence.

INSIGHTS INTO NOVO NORDISK: EXPLORING THE DEVELOPMENT OF AN ACADEMIC INDUSTRY HYBRID

Monday 31 January 2021

This seminar provided an overview of Novo Nordisk and NNRCO, and the importance of developing industry and academic relationships. Novo Nordisk post-docs and scientists based in Oxford and Denmark shared their career stories and we heard talks from the Novo Nordisk talent recruitment team who shared information on the varying roles within industry and what they are looking for.

Session 1: Novo Nordisk- collaborating with academia

Session 2: Transitioning from academia to industry at Novo Nordisk

Session 3: Talent recruitment team - what roles are available and what are industry looking for? 

Novo Nordisk is a global healthcare company aiming to defeat diabetes and its associated co-morbidities (obesity, cardiovascular, liver and renal disease, as well as rare blood and rare endocrine diseases.

In 2013 Novo Nordisk and University of Oxford established a prestigious fellowship programme, which in 2017 was followed up with a Strategic Alliance as well as the development of an academic hybrid institution at the University campus. Novo Nordisk Research Centre Oxford (NNRCO) is designed to be a fusion of the best of academia, biotech and big pharma in order to realize cutting-edge biology and start a target’s journey from bench to bedside.

Alongside embedding research laboratories within the university, Novo Nordisk and the University of Oxford continue to support the international fellowship programme, to further develop the relationship between academic and industry. 

For more information on the fellowship programme and NNRCO:

CAREER INSIGHTS INTO PHARMA, BIOTECH AND THE IN-BETWEEN

Tuesday 26 October, 2021

From start-ups to big pharma to CROs, the private sector can offer a variety of career opportunities for scientists. Deciding on what type of company you are best suited for, based on your professional interests, career goals, work ethic, personality, etc. can feel overwhelming. This workshop highlighted the experiences of scientists working in different types of biomedical companies (e.g. based on company size, type, research focus, country, etc) and provided practical tips to secure a fulfilling job in industry.

This seminar helped attendees:

  • Build sector knowledge on working in biotech, pharma and CROs
  • Learn about what it’s like operating in small, medium and large-sized companies
  • Explore how working culture can vary across different companies and countries
  • Figure out next steps in landing a scientist role in the private sector
  • Appreciate the diversity of R&D companies in “industry” and how to find your best fit

Making the most of it! How to map your development and make the most of your Postdoc / Fellowships (July 2021)

In this workshop we took time to think about how you can start to map out your journey to get to where you want to be in a few years time. 

  • Build sector knowledge and understand how to source job opportunities
  • Enhance your profile and connections in the sector
  • Create a high-quality CV and get tips on having a good interview
  • An introduction to starting to understand yourself and the opportunities for your best contribution
  • Provide an opportunity to reflect on the sort of career that would best suit you
  • Hear from current Fellows about their experiences so far working with industry and the benefits of career coaching
  • Learn more about the reach of the Industry Fellows and Postdocs Network

Speakers

Tony Bradshaw, Director of Biosocius, an organisation focused on engaging, connecting and realising the potential of people in the biotechnology sector

Realising your potential 

  • Introduction to mapping your personal development
  • Personality & Ambition
  • Planning ahead – academia, industry
  • Industry Landscape
  • Q & A / Discussion

 Charlotte Bell – Business Partnerships Manager             

  • The Industry Fellows and Postdoc’s network – who can you reach?

 Kate Lines - Oxford-BMS Fellow

  • Visiting and Working with Industry

 Matthias Friedrich – Oxford-Janssen Fellow and formerly UCB Fellow

  • Fellowship experiences at Oxford

Bioinformatics - Bulk RNA-SEQ Data Analysis (June 2021)

During the pandemic the work of many wet lab scientists was forced to stop, as people were not allowed in the lab. This has induced many researchers to dive into the coding and data analysis world and train themselves using online tutorials and courses.

This workshop was tailored to those researchers who wanted to improve and refresh their data analysis skills and was run by Dr. Frank Wessely from Cardiff University.

This bioinformatics training workshop was attended by biologists interested in learning how to use the popular R/Bioconductor environment to perform bulk RNA-seq data analysis.

In the introductory part, participants were given an overview on functional genomic approaches. This was followed by a guided and interactive session designed to introduce the main data analysis tools (a few outside the R environment), data types and workflows of RNA-seq analysis, including quality control of raw sequencing reads, mapping of reads to a genome/transcriptome, robust statistical testing to identify differentially expressed genes.

Exploring careers in data science - Insights into the use of artificial Intelligence in Biomedical & Healthcare Research (May 2021)

Are you interested in finding out how your research skills can fit into an organisation such as Microsoft, Google, IBM, GE Healthcare, GSK, and Exscientia to further life sciences discovery and the delivery of healthcare?

In this workshop we heard from some of the UK-based teams at these organisations working on initiatives to transform the future of health through scientific excellence and human-centred technologies such as artificial intelligence. We heard from Oxford academics who are actively collaborating with companies within this space.

Workshop Agenda:

Session 1 - Introduction to careers within the tech space utilising artificial intelligence

  • Session 2 - Career stories (Google, Exscientia, GSK, GE healthcare)
  • Session 3 - Artificial intelligence in academia

Exploring careers in Biopharma

In December 2020, we heard from some of the UK-based team at Bristol Myers Squibb who took us through their career stories highlighting how different functions of the business work to support the development of medicines as well as partnering with the NHS to improve patient care.

Beyond the Fellowship

At a workshop in December 2019, we heard from past fellows and postdocs who have now moved into different roles, and who gave their perspective on what it is like to work in large pharma, a spin out and a clinical academic setting. We also took time to explore out skill sets, career development and CVs. 

Speakers and facilitators included:

  • Dr Hussein Al-Mossawi  - Director, Immunology Research Organisation, UCB (former UCB Prize Fellow)
  • Dr Ashling Holland - Principal Scientist, PepGen - Transitioning from Academia into a Spin-out
  • Dr Lynn Quek - Research Fellow and Clinical Haematologist (former Celgene Fellow) – securing an MRC Senior Clinical Fellowship
  • Dr Rachel Bray - University of Oxford Careers Service - Career development planning interactive session

Why is personality important for effective team work? (Part 2, October 2019)

A deeper dive into personality and how it impacts on team work – with Tameron Chappell, Chartered Occupational Psychologist

Building from a taster at a previous workshop we explored basic aspects of personality and how individual differences can make team working a dream...or a nightmare. Everyone completed a full personality test ahead the session and we all enjoyed looking over our individual results to get the best from the workshop. Tameron talked about some of the evidence around what is actually needed for effective team work and gave us tools that are useful when working closely with others

About Tameron Chappell, Chartered Occupational Psychologist, BSc. MSc. AFBPsS. Registered Psychologist, PPABP 

Tameron is a Chartered Psychologist, a registered Occupational Psychologist with the HCPC and Associate Fellow of the British Psychological Society, an Affiliate Member of the Association for Coaching and a Principal Practitioner of the Association for Business Psychologists. She is qualified to use a wide range of psychometric instruments, is on the committee of The Psychometrics Forum and is the editor of Psyche the Newsletter of The Psychometrics Forum.

Careers insights from industry and personality in teams (part 1, June 2019)

We spent the afternoon exploring the mechanics of drug discovery as well as Pharma careers (why/ what/ where/ how/ who?) with Luke, Rowann and Suzanne. Some of the topics covered included working on new or existing targets, supporting later stage compounds in phase 3 clinical trials and working on academic/industry collaborations from the industry perspective. We then had a taster of what was to come in the next workshop on personality and its importance in teamwork. 

Speakers and facilitators included:

  • Luke Devey, Executive Director and Head of Early Discovery Biology, Immunology & Inflammation
  • Rowann Bowcutt, Senior Scientist, UCB
  • Suzanne Cole, Senior Scientist, UCB
  • Tameron Chappell, Chartered Occupational Psychologist, BSc. MSc. AFBPsS. Registered Psychologist, PPABP

From drug discovery to FDA approval in 4 hours (July 2018)

Interactive workshop with Pfizer giving Industry Fellows an opportunity to put into action the Drug Discovery & Development Process

Participants were invited to work as a team to bring a drug from pre-clinical research through to final approval from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The 3D interactive session used a computer programme to simulate the entire spectrum of R&D process based decisions, and the group of industry fellows had to work together to advance the drug candidate forward (or not) in the space of 4 hours. Read more about the workshop

Dr Nick Clarke, Head of UK Academic Partnerships, Pfizer