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Basic Medical Sciences Teaching Seminar
17 February 2023 @ 1:00 pm - 2:30 pm EST
Cornerstone over Capstone: The case for structured career development opportunities early in the undergraduate Biology curriculum as a way to influence science and Biology identities.
Presented by Temerty Faculty of Medicine
Improving the rate at which individuals enter STEM careers remains a national concern. STEM fields are currently facing a crisis with respect to filling jobs with qualified workers, suggesting that STEM opportunities are available yet remain open and waiting for qualified graduates. Although researchers have previously investigated variables such as demographics and attrition rates associated with the lack of STEM graduates, there is a critical need for additional research examining the impact of additional career-related variables. Data will be presented on the success of a biology-focused career development course on promoting student science and biology identities. Additional data on student perceptions of career development and how career development earlier in their careers would have been beneficial will also be presented.
Speaker: Dr. Melissa McCartney, Assistant Professor, Department of Biological Sciences and the STEM Transformation Institute, Florida International University.
Dr. McCartney’s research focuses on developing, implementing, and evaluating novel methods of scientific pedagogical practices into biology courses, with a focus on helping students identify as scientists, especially as this relates to identifying a scientific career path and entering the STEM workforce. Her work has been supported through ~$1.8M funding from National Institutes of Health (NIH) and National Science Foundation (NSF). Prior to her position at FIU, Dr. McCartney held prominent educational initiatives positions as a Senior Project Director with the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), as an editor at Science and was a Mirzayan Science Policy Fellow at the National Academies working with the Committee on Women in Science, Engineering, and Medicine. Dr. McCartney completed a Postdoctoral Fellow in at The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and holds a PhD in Neuroscience from The George Washington University.