Tag: mentor

How to Interview Potential Research Mentors

I know what you’re thinking, “Mentors interview ME, not the other way around!”  Well I have something important to tell you: all interviews are two-way streets.  You need to show yourself off AND make sure that your potential mentor would be a good fit for you.  I believe most students ‘fail’ in their research projects

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How to Reach Out to Potential Research Mentors

You’ve decided that you’d like to try out research.  Great! It could be a lot of fun. You’ve thought about how to choose a research mentor.  You know some options for contacting a mentor. Now you need to actually draft an email. When I used to teach an undergraduate Introduction to Clinical Research class, this

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Why Are You Afraid to Ask for a Letter of Recommendation or Help?

A theme we have encountered before is individuals unable or unwilling to ask mentors for letters of recommendation or for help with their professional progression.  This is evidently true for so many applicants because I STILL get applications that are just Not Good. The applications clearly haven’t been vetted by a mentor. Why in the

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Learn to Write an Email Asking for a Recommendation

As we’ve discussed before, people seem to have some anxiety around asking a potential mentor for a letter of recommendation.  I used to teach a undergraduate seminar course in clinical research, and one of the assignments was for the students to write an email asking for a letter of recommendation.  I was surprised at the

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How to Successfully Seek Assistance

Do you have a hard time asking for help?  Talking to people? There are a lot of veterinary professionals out there who have a hard time with both of these.  Veterinarians are notoriously self-reliant and independent. Imagine the early days with the lone vet out there on house calls- you didn’t have a cell phone

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The need for this blog

This blog will be about employment and professional progression in academic veterinary medicine. From undergrads applying to vet school, veterinary students applying to internship, residency applicants, and faculty applicants. We will talk about cover letters, CVs, interviews, how to strategize to position yourself for the next step, who to talk to and when, and all other things related to the business of veterinary academia.