Graduate Pathways to Success
The Graduate Pathways to Success (Pathways) program is a palette of non-credit workshops, seminars and other activities designed to complement your graduate program's academic curriculum and mentorship experience.
Our offerings cover a wide range of personal and professional development topics to support you throughout your time in graduate school and to allow you to develop some of the skills and competencies needed to thrive as professionals and to make meaningful contributions to society.
Events
Title | Description | Date | Theme |
---|---|---|---|
Leveraging your Strengths to Strategize for Success |
Quick – tell us the top five things you are good at! Can you do it? Or would it be easier to tell us the things you’re not good at? The truth is many of us spend more time focused on (and trying to fix) what we’re not good at, instead of discovering, appreciating, and cultivating our strengths. |
20 April 2021 - 11:00am | Career Exploration |
Overcoming Perfectionism |
We live in a culture that emphasizes being perfect as a virtue in everything from body image to relationships to career achievements. The problem is that life and being human, in spite of our best efforts, is messier than this. Having high standards is one thing, but taking a perfectionistic approach to life can actually get in the way of your success. |
22 April 2021 - 9:00am | Academic Support and Success, Health and Wellness |
Business Writing |
No matter what field you’re working in, written communication is a critical part of your day-to-day duties. Regardless of your comfort or skill level, you can benefit from learning techniques to entice your readers and achieve your goals. This course will help all professionals hone their writing skills using proven techniques and processes. |
28 April 2021 - 9:00am | Professional Effectiveness, Writing and Communication |
Skills of Communication |
Skills of Communication is a full-day session featuring the tools and tips of better verbal communication. |
4 May 2021 - 9:00am | Professional Effectiveness, Writing and Communication |
Roadmap to Resilience in Graduate School and Beyond |
Have you ever wondered how to tap into your resilience during challenging times? Imagine a situation where you face a critique of your writing from a supervisor, do not get the grant you were counting on, or have to shift your academic focus because of the realities of the job market. With scenarios such as these in mind, this interactive session will: |
5 May 2021 - 1:00pm | Academic Support and Success, Health and Wellness |
Networking Skills |
You’ve all heard the saying “you are only as good as your network,” but have you ever wondered how to get one? This course is designed to provide insight and interaction along with the know how to build and stabilize business relationships through effective networking. |
18 May 2021 - 9:00am | Community and Network Building, Writing and Communication |
Confident Public Speaking and Communication: A tactical approach |
This will be an interactive session where participants will be presenting in small groups and in front of the larger group. Participants will be expected to communicate through chat, video, and audio. By the end of this workshop, participants will be able to: |
19 May 2021 - 9:30am | Career Exploration, Professional Effectiveness, Writing and Communication |
Copyright for your Thesis: How to use Images and other material |
Are you in the midst of writing your thesis? Are there images or portions of published manuscripts you are planning to use in your thesis? Do you have concerns over how copyright laws could delay your thesis submission? In this session you will learn: |
20 May 2021 - 12:00pm | Academic Support and Success, Writing and Communication |
Resume and Cover Letter |
Cover Letters and Resumes are crucial elements of a job application package. This workshop will help you understand:
The live session will include opportunities for Q & A. |
26 May 2021 - 2:00pm | Career Exploration |
Business Writing |
No matter what field you’re working in, written communication is a critical part of your day-to-day duties. Regardless of your comfort or skill level, you can benefit from learning techniques to entice your readers and achieve your goals. This course will help all professionals hone their writing skills using proven techniques and processes. |
27 May 2021 - 9:00am | Professional Effectiveness, Writing and Communication |
Time Management |
This energetic, intensive one-day course will sharpen your professional time management skills and optimize your working week. Building on the Project Management Institute’s (PMI) best practices, methodologies, and productivity tactics, the workshop provides tools and techniques that can be applied to a partner industry project or employment-based role. |
1 June 2021 - 9:00am | Academic Support and Success, Health and Wellness |
Interviews |
Interviews are one of the most stressful elements in the job search process. This workshop will cover the following aspects of the interview process: |
2 June 2021 - 12:00pm | Career Exploration |
Doctoral Defence: Doctoral Examination and Virtual Defence Procedure |
This session will walk students through the doctoral examination process, and strategies for defending in a virtual environment. It includes: |
2 June 2021 - 2:00pm | Academic Support and Success |
Getting the Most Out of your Academic Experience: Designing your Grad School Strategy |
Take the lead of your education and hone your career intentions! |
3 June 2021 - 10:00am | Academic Support and Success, Career Exploration |
Project Management (2 Days) |
Developed by a team of masterful project managers and adult instructors, Project Management 2020 delivers a balance of “core” project management knowledge and skills. These are blended with practical learning on key interpersonal skills essential to successfully achieving project goals. |
7 June 2021 - 9:00am | Academic Support and Success, Professional Effectiveness |
Job Negotiation |
Negotiation is a common part of the hiring process, and many applicants find this part intimidating. This workshop will cover:
This session also includes an interactive part to practice job negotiation with your peers. |
23 June 2021 - 12:00pm | Career Exploration |
Academic CV |
Your CV is one of the most important components of your profile as an academic and researcher. If you have questions about organization, structure, or how to use the CV to highlight your accomplishments, you may benefit from this workshop. |
7 July 2021 - 12:00pm | Academic Support and Success, Career Exploration |
Resources
Title | Description | Theme |
---|---|---|
Individual Development Plan, Sciences |
My IDP is a unique, web-based career-planning tool tailored to meet the needs of PhD students and postdocs in the sciences. This website was developed by AAAS/Science, the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB), and experts from several universities (see authors on their site). |
Academic Support and Success, Career Exploration |
Individual Development Plan, Humanities and Social Sciences |
ImaginePhD is a free online career exploration and planning tool for PhD students and postdoctoral scholars in the humanities and social sciences. The ImaginePhD project is powered by the Graduate Career Consortium (https://gradcareerconsortium.org/; GCC). |
Academic Support and Success, Career Exploration |
Individual Development Plan, Health |
The Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) has developed an online Individual Development Plan (IDP) and resources. The IDP is a tool that supports graduate students and PDFs in actively preparing for the career(s) of their choice by exploring career paths, establishing career goals, and identifying skill gaps, culminating in an action plan to achieve their career goal(s). |
Academic Support and Success, Career Exploration |
Statistics Webinar Series |
This 6-part statistics webinar series is annually presented by the Applied Statistics and Data Science Group. Slides and descriptions of each session are provided. |
Academic Support and Success, Research Skills |
Leaders Dialogue Series: On Making a Difference for Good |
The Leaders’ Dialogue series is an opportunity to get to know individuals who have made a difference for good in the world, and hear their thoughts on questions such as ‘What motivates you?’, ‘What does ‘success’ mean to you?’, ‘What have you learned about leadership?’, and ‘What’s wrong/right with the world?’ |
Professional Effectiveness |
Writing with Integrity |
A short video in which Drs Susan Porter and Beth Haverkamp discuss the importance of writing with integrity (the importance of writing and contributing new knowledge and scholarship with integrity; avoiding plagiarism) |
Academic Support and Success, Writing and Communication |
Video Guides to Writing and Research |
A series of videos to introduce students to the fundamentals of academic writing and research: “Writing in Situations”, An interview with Dr. Anthony Paré plus |
Academic Support and Success, Writing and Communication |
Scholarships and awards_Presentation materials |
Applying for graduate scholarships or awards? Past presentation materials and webinar recordings provide you with guidance. You may also find the tips and best practices helpful. |
Academic Support and Success |
Planning for your Doctoral Exam |
To help prepare you for a smooth examination process, the doctoral exams team provides tools and resources including a checklist, sample workplan, and past presentation materials and recordings to help you map out a timeline for your final doctoral examination. |
Academic Support and Success |
Thesis Preparation and Submission |
Finishing your thesis or dissertation? G+PS provides sample templates, checklists, past presentation materials and recordings, as well as information on how to submit your thesis for review and final submission. |
Academic Support and Success |
InterSECT Job Simulations |
InterSECT is an online platform that allows PhD-level scientists and humanists, regardless of professional stage, to explore future career options. Our goal is to provide true-to-life job simulation exercises that help individuals consider the following questions: What are my professional interests and skills? |
Career Exploration |
GPS Workshop Materials, Recordings |
Materials, handouts, and recordings from many past Graduate Pathways to Success sessions, including our career and statistics series, are posted online here (cwl login required) |
Academic Support and Success, Career Exploration, Research Skills |