1. Research!
• The Hidden Benefits of Research
• What Grad Schools Look for in PhD
applicants
• Jobs/Careers

2. The Hidden Benefits: Conferences!
• Present your research to other students
and faculty from around the country &
world.
• Hone your professional skills.
– Public Speaking
– Networking
• “Meet & Greet” recruiters from top
research universities.
• Travel !!!

3. AMBRCS: Annual Biomedical Research Conference for Minority Students

4. SACNAS: Advancing Hispanics/ Chicanos and Native Americans in Science

5. The Hidden Benefits: Summer
Research Away from UCLA
• Research with faculty “full-time” to see what
graduate level research feels like.
• Travel, lodgings and expenses are usually
covered.
• Stipends can run $2000-$6000!!!
• Make new & awesome friends with similar goals
and interests.
• Gives your résumé’ a boost.
• Hassle-free way to determine if your “PhD
bound”.

6. Are you PhD Bound?
• Do you love (not like) research?
• Are you hungry to tackle scientific problems more
complex than research you’ve experienced as an
undergrad?
• Are you a problem solver? Do you think “outside the
box”?
• Can you handle searching for answers to questions that
are seemingly endless?
• Are you intellectually self-motivated and independent?
-& it doesn’t
hurt to be a
little
competitive too.

7. If your PhD Bound….
• You’ll need…
(1) A high undergraduate
GPA
(2) A competitive GRE score
(3) Lots of research
experience
(4) Strong letters of
recommendation (~3).
• As with applying to
college…
–
–
Doing spectacular in all 4
realms = Your choice of
any great graduate school.
But if your lacking in one
area, its possible to
compensate but by being
extraordinary in the other
3.

8. Once You Have You PhD…
The Professoriate
• Post-Doctoral Training ~2-4yrs.
– Pure Research w/ limited
teaching obligations to broaden
your expertise.
– High publishing pressure
•
Assistant Professor ~5yrs.
–
–
–
–
•
Hone teaching
Publish papers ~3 per year
Department involvement
Bring in $$$.
Tenured Faculty ~Forever!!
– Includes your own lab, grad
students & teaching
appointments
– Pressure to published greatly
diminished…
Pure & Applied Research
• Purely Applied
– Research for government
agencies (NIH, NSF).
• Industry
– (Biomedical + Engineering).
• Museum research
– broad fields (entomology,
invertebrates etc.).
• Research Centers
– (WWF, WCS, Institute of
Zoology Max Planck
Institute).

9. Thanks for Listening!

10. Thanks for Listening!