Careers

Careers

Navigating Career Services at Duke University

This information serves as a resource for NSOE PhD students to begin their career search and navigate career services at Duke University. Relevant career services and professional development opportunities available at Duke University are highlighted. A PDF version can be downloaded here: Navigating Career Resources for NSOE PhD Students


The Graduate School: https://gradschool.duke.edu/professional-development

Many opportunities are available! Check out Programs, Events, Career Resources, etc. Examples of excellent programs and opportunities include: Bass Instructional Fellowships, Certificate in College Teaching, Emerging Leaders Institute, Preparing Future Faculty, Professional Development Grants, etc.

Listserv: Weekly newsletter on professional development events grad-profdev@duke.edu. As a graduate student, you should already be receiving newsletters. If for some reason you are not on this listserv, please contact the Graduate School: https://gradschool.duke.edu/contact


Duke University Career Center Graduate Student Services: https://studentaffairs.duke.edu/career/graduate-students

The Duke University Career Center works with all current NSOE PhD students and alumni up to four years after graduation. They provide a number of services and resources including counseling, application, document guides and feedback, mock interviews, workshops, and employer recruiting. They regularly work with students considering both academic and non-academic career paths and welcome students at any stage of their graduate studies (especially first- and second-years who want to start working on career topics).

The Career Center hosts the online platform, called CareerConnections: https://studentaffairs.duke.edu/careerconnections, through which students can make appointments, see and register for upcoming events, and apply for jobs and internships. You can also manage your email subscriptions through your profile in CareerConnections. After logging in, choose “My Account” then “My Profile” and then edit “Additional Information”. You can adjust your email list participation there.

  • Career counseling: Career services staff can schedule 45-minute appointments to talk in-depth about exploring different careers, how to gain experience, effective networking, searching and applying for jobs/internships, practicing for interviews, and negotiating offers. You can also go to ‘drop in advising’ for 15-minute feedback on application documents or quick answers to your questions. Make an appointment on CareerConnections by logging in and choosing “Make an appointment” from the left-side navigation. For those at the Marine Lab or working outside of Durham, appointments can be in person, virtual (such as Skype), or over the phone. If you want to arrange a virtual or phone appointment, be sure to communicate that to the Career Center as you are claiming your appointment on CareerConnections.
  • Listervs: The two following bi-weekly listervs are available:
  1. STEM Career Insider for PhDs pursuing STEM fields.
  2. Humanities/Social Sciences for PhDs pursuing policy & social science.

It takes 1 minute to skim the table of contents listed at the top and great workshops are often advertised here. Frequent topics include resume, cover letter, interviewing, networking, job search, preparing for a career fair, and examples of different kinds of jobs graduate students may be considering.

NSOE PhD students should already be receiving one of these newsletters (be sure to check your junk email folder). If you are not receiving it or you wish to receive the STEM or Humanities/Social Sciences newsletter instead of or in addition to the one you currently receive, please email <dave.mcdonald@duke.edu>.


Nicholas School Career Center:

  • Career counseling is available with specific attention to environmentally oriented careers, both within and outside of academia. Deb Wojcik, PhD, can schedule 30-minute appointments to meet with PhD students. She can assist with the job search process and connecting PhDs with NSOE alumni and other environmentally oriented professionals. To make an appointment, please email Deb at <deb.wojcik@duke.edu>.

Post-doctoral opportunities related to environmental sciences and policy


Thompson Writing Studio: http://twp.duke.edu/twp-writing-studio

Meet online or in person for 50 minutes with a writing consultant at the Thompson Writing Studio to get feedback on any writing materials, including documents associated with career applications, such as teaching and diversity statements. Make an appointment ahead of time here: http://twp.duke.edu/twp-writing-studio/appointments

The Thompson Writing Program also hires newly minted PhDs every year as a Lecturing Fellow (non-tenure track) to develop freshmen writing courses. PhDs in STEM disciplines or the quantitative social sciences are especially encouraged to apply. Contracts are for an initial three years, with an opportunity to extend an additional two years after successful review. Salaries are competitive with a string benefits package. For more information: http://twp.duke.edu/fellowships/twp-lecturing-fellowship


Graduate and Professional Student Council (GPSC): http://gpsc.duke.edu

GPSC sends out weekly emails, which contain upcoming information about career-relevant programming on campus.

Listserv: https://lists.duke.edu/sympa/subscribe/gpsc-news


Duke Events Calendar: http://calendar.duke.edu/events/

Several professional development events are posted on the Duke Events Calendar. Check the following categories: Leadership, Student, Workshop/Short Course, etc.


Connect with Duke Alumni with New Networking Tool

Meeting professionals from your industries of interest can be tricky sometimes. There may not be frequent networking events in the area. And LinkedIn, while a powerful career research tool, can have mixed results for turning an online contact to a real-world conversation.

The Duke Alumni Association has created a new online network to help connect students and alumni. For students who remember DukeConnect, this is the next generation version, now with information on all alums, better search features, and the ability to join interest groups. Here’s how to use the new networking tool:

  1. Go to https://alumni.duke.edu/
  2. Click the green Register/Sign In button at the upper right
  3. Log in with your Duke NetID
  4. Once you’ve logged into the system, you can search alums by clicking on the Alumni Directory link
  5. You cannot see alums’ contact information directly, but if you click on the “contact” button at the top left of their profile, you can fill out a short form that will send a message to that alum.
  6. In your message, say why you’re interested in talking with them, including specific elements of their background that are relevant to your career paths of interest. Look them up on LinkedIn to potentially find more information on their career.
  7. Do not ask for a job or internship directly. Have a conversation and learn from their experience.

International Students & Visas:

For international students having any questions about the visa process if they are seeking employment in the United States, please contact and visit Duke Visa Services: https://visaservices.duke.edu Duke Visa Services is located next to the Career Center in Smith Warehouse, where you can work closely with Visa Services and the Career Center to discuss career opportunities. Also check out MyVisaJobs http://www.myvisajobs.com to get a sense of institutions and companies that provide visa-processing support.


Additional resources beyond Duke University: