OPA, PDA and Other UGA Events

Click here for the UGA Postdoc Newsletter Archive.

Regular Events:

Monthly Postdoc Social Hour: On every last Friday of the month. We usually start at 6 p.m. but we change the venue from month to month and also do special events every now and then so please check your UGA email for updates from the Postdoctoral Association and the postdoc listserv.

PDA Board Meetings: The PDA board meets once a month to discuss topics important to the UGA Postdoctoral community. PDA board meetings are open to all PDA members. These meetings will take place on the last Thursday of every month from 2-3 PM via Zoom. If you have any comments, suggestions or important topics, you would like us to include in the agenda, please let us know and we will do so. If you would like to join one of the meetings to present an idea yourself, please get in touch with us and we will let you know the exact date, time and venue of our next meeting.  You can email the Postdoc Association at pdassoc@uga.edu.

Upcoming Events:

Past Events:

• National Postdoc Appreciation Week: September 18-22, 2023:  We served a Pasta Feast on September 19th from 12-1 PM in the Coverdell Rotunda for National Postdoc Appreciation Week.
• Grant Writing Workshop: The offices of Proposal Enhancement and Postdoctoral Affairs hosted a virtual Grant Writing workshop. This workshop was hosted on Zoom on September 14th, 2023 from 2-3:30 PM. This event was hosted by Jake Maas. Link to the recorded session can be found here and the slides from the presentation are linked here.
• Industry Job Search Sessions: In these interactive sessions, we addressed preparing for the industry job search(s) by continuing our conversation on resumes and written documents as well as interview skills. This was a two part series. This sessions were located in the multipurpose room in the Career Center (Located on the 2nd floor) in Clark Howell Hall on September 11th, from 9-10 AM on August 30th and September 11th, 2023. Due to the interactive nature of these sessions, this event was solely in-person. Both sessions were in collaboration with the Assistant Director of Graduate Student Services and Faculty Engagement, Dr. Megan Brock.
• Postdoc Academy: Building Success for a Successful Career: This series was a 7-week course that allowed postdocs to follow along with materials at their own pace while learning information to boost success in their field and chosen career path. In addition to the self-guided course, Dr. Shelley Hooks, director of the Office of Postdoctoral Affairs, lead a virtual community discussion group to allow more in-depth discussion of these topics with other UGA postdocs taking the course. The discussion group met Tuesdays at 9:00 AM. 
• 5/26/2023 – PDA May Cookout: The PDA hosted an end of semester cookout/BBQ on the deck at the back of Center for Applied Genetic Technologies.
• 3/24/2023 – UGA Life Sciences Career Day: UGA Life Sciences Career Day was an all-day event full agenda that featured 30 participants from a wide range of companies, government agencies and non-profit organizations. In addition to the speakers, panels and workshops were held for informal networking and connecting with professionals from the life sciences sector. This event was located at the Vet Med Teaching Hospital.
• 2/1 thru 3/15, 2023 – Postdoc Academy: Succeeding as a Postdoc (online/virtual) and OPA’s Postdoc Academy Discussion Group (in-person): The Postdoc Academy is a comprehensive online and in-person program built on the National Postdoctoral Association core competencies to support skill development throughout postdoc training, from orientation to next career step. This program consists of FREE online courses built specifically for postdocs. The content uses inclusive, active-learning approaches to serve as a resource for the postdoc audience directly, as well as postdoc offices and associations. The Office of Postdoctoral Affairs hosted a discussion group called “Postdoc Academy Discussion Group”. This series meet weekly on Wednesdays beginning on 2/1/2023 through 3/15/2023 from 9-10 AM in Coverdell Room 339. This was a professional development series.
• 12/8/2023 – Postdoc Winter Holiday Celebration. Hosted by UGA Postdoc Association and Office of Postdoc Affairs.  Postdocs gathered in the Coverdell Lobby to share treats, traditions and/or decorations that they look forward to this time of year.
• 12/15/2023 – Virtual Coffee with the Pros: NIH K01 (Mentored Research Scientist Development) Awards (9am – 10:15am): Three K01 awardees shared their insights into the process of developing a K01 application and their experience carrying out their proposed research, followed by a free-form discussion/Q&A. Our panelists were Dr. Danielle Lambert, Epidemiology & Biostatistics; Dr. Jarrod Mousa, Infectious Diseases; and Dr. Emily Noble, Nutritional Sciences. Registration was provided through the link below: https://ugeorgia.ca1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_ezmBDZg0co2dysK. To view the recording of the discussion, click this link.
• Series III: CV Development Strategies for Potential Permanent Resident Applications
  Sponsored by PDA, Facilitated by Robin Catmur-Smith on November 18, 2022, from 11 AM-12PM, Vet Med in room 1070 0311. Slides from this presentation can be found here. Audio recording for this seminar is also available here. Passcode for audio is 3Ei@B^0s. Note that ‘0’ is zero.
• Tuesdays in November, excluding 11/22 – Mentoring Professional Development for Postdocs
  Sponsored by OPA with Erin Dolan, at the Vet Med building in Conference Room 2007(222) from 1-2:30 PM. These sessions were discussing topics around being a mentor and personal development.
• Series II – Paths to Permanent Resident Status for Academics seminar that focused on permanent resident status for academics. This event was sponsored by PDA and was facilitated by Robin Catmur-Smith. This event took place on October 17,2022 in Vet Med 1070 0311. The link to the slides used for this session can be found here.
• Series I – U.S. Visas for Academics: International Graduate and Post-doctoral Perspectives was a seminar that focused on U.S. Visas for academics with an emphasis on international graduate and post-doctoral perspectives. This event was sponsored by the PDA and was facilitated by Robin Catmur-Smith. This event took place on September 23, 2022, in CoverdellS175. The link to the slides used for this session can be found here.
• Industry Panel: Transitioning from Academia to Industry was a panel that focused on the transition period from academia to industry jobs. This event took place on September 19, 2022, on Zoom. This event was sponsored by the PDA.
• National Postdoc Appreciation Week Pizza Lunch was a pizza lunch sponsored by the OPA to celebrate National Postdoc Appreciation Week. This event took place on September 20, 2022, in Coverdell at the Rotunda.
• “Preparing Academic Job Applications” was a workshop on July 18, 2022, that was designed to get academic job ready. Participants were encouraged to bring their CVs and any draft documents to receive feedback and better prepare for jobs in academia.
• “Coffee Social” was a catch up event on June 23, 2022, designed for postdocs to network and build community with one another.
• “Interested in Faculty Role: Key Aspects When Applying for Faculty Positions” was a panel event on May 19, 2022, focused on experiences around applying for academic jobs and well as an opportunity to ask questions about the panelists experiences and recommendations for when applying to jobs in academia.
• The online course titled “The Postdoc Academy: Succeeding as a Postdoc” began April 26, 2022, on edX. This 6-week course was designed to help you create a rewarding experience that would launch you into your chosen career path. Each week of the course was 1-2 hours, but could be completed at any point during that week. Registration was located here: https://www.edx.org/course/the-postdoc-academy-succeeding-as-a-postdoc
• National Postdoc Appreciation Week, September 21-25, 2020.  The Office of Postdoctoral Affairs is pleased to offer and advertise the following to celebrate UGA’s postdocs this year:
  • Office of Postdoc Affairs will reimburse the cost of registration for UGA postdocs to attend Life Sciences Industry Day.
  • Office of Postdoc Affairs reimbursed UGA postdocs 50% ($50 maximum) of an annual membership fee for a national/international academic or professional society membership fee paid in the past year.
  • The National Postdoctoral Association (NPA) is holding the first virtual National Postdoc Appreciation Week (NPAW) celebration.  Events include a keynote facilitated by the NPA with speakers, John Beacom, Ph.D., and Christine Pfund, Ph.D., discussing best practices for mentorship; virtual networking; workshops hosted by the National Research Mentoring Network, and The Postdoc Academy; and other curated events. All, including postdocs and PIs, are welcome to join.
• FDA-GMP Networking Happy Hour for Graduate Students and Postdoctoral Trainees. 5:15-6:45 pm, Wednesday, March 11, 2020. Hill Atrium – Georgia Center for Continuing Education (Athens, GA). Join us for an evening of networking with graduate students, postdoctoral trainees, and industry professionals at the 44th Annual International GMP Conference at the Georgia Center for Continuing Education and Hotel. This is a FREE networking event offered by the UGA Graduate School, the Office of Postdoctoral Affairs, and the College of Pharmacy.
• UGA Postdoc Association – Coffee and Bagels: Wednesday, February 12, 2020. 9:00 am to 10:00 am, Coverdell Building Lobby.
• The Postdoc Academy: Succeeding as a Postdoc – UGA’s Local Learning Community: An exciting professional development opportunity that has been designed specifically for postdocs. The online sessions (self-paced, on your own schedule) will begin the week of January 13, 2020 for 6 weeks. UGA’s local learning community will meet once each week for discussion and questions beginning the week of January 20, 2020. Check the email sent to the Postdoc listserv for full details of registration.
• Office of Proposal Enhancement Fall 2019 and Spring 2010 Events.
• PDA Fall Travel Award Competition: Deadline October 8, 2019.
• Life Sciences Industry Day 2019: Monday, September 23, 9:00 am to 7:00 pm, The Georgia Center. Co-sponsored by the Office of Postdoc Affairs.  Life Sciences Industry Day 2019 is a professional development event for graduate students (postdocs also welcome!) in the life sciences and related fields.
• National Postdoc Appreciation Week (NPAW) – September 16-20, 2019
  • CV Critique: Monday, September 16, 10:00 am to 12:00 pm, Room S141 Coverdell Building.
  • Pizza Lunch: Wednesday, September 18, 12:00 pm to 1:30 pm, Coverdell Rotunda.
  • Breakfast: Friday, September 20, 8:30 am to 10:00 am, Coverdell Rotunda.
• August 5, 2019 – Career Bootcamp for Postdocs and PhD Students. 9:00 am – 4:00 pm. Correll Hall. The $15 registration fee will be fully reimbursed by OPA after you attend the complete workshop.
• July 12, 2019 – Former NIH NICHHD (National Institute of Child Health and Human Development) Program Officer Susan Newcomer will talk about “How to write an NIH research grant” on Friday, July 12th at 10am in 206 Aderhold Hall.
• June 28, 2019 – Complimentary Breakfast for Postdocs. 9:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m.  The Postdoctoral Association would like to celebrate the transition of our Executive Committee by greeting the leaving members and welcoming the new ones by offering to our community complimentary breakfast: coffee and bagels. This will take place on Friday June 28th, at Coverdell lobby in Athens campus.  So please, come by and grab your breakfast between 9 and 10 am.
• May 4, 2019 – Postdocs Day in the Park. 11.00a.m. to 3.00 p.m.       The UGA Postdoctoral Association is happy to invite you all to the annual PDA – Day in the Park on Saturday, May 4th (May the fourth be with you!) from 11.00a.m. to 3.00 p.m. We have reserved the picnic shelter 1 at Sandy Creek Park.
• May 1, 2019 – Deadline for application to PDA Board positions. (The deadline was extended to May 10, 2019.)
  
• April 15, 2019, 9:00 am – 11:00 am, Coverdell Building – Mini-Workshop: Grant Opportunities for Postdocs at UGA. Click here for a GoToMeeting recording of the workshop plus other handouts and materials. 
• April 19, 2019 – xPD Site Visit: The Atlanta Federal Research Bank.  This is a day-long visit to Atlanta with transportation provided by the UGA Graduate School.  Details and registration can be found here.  Contact for questions: acrain@uga.edu.
  
• March 31, 2019 – Deadline for the PDA Spring Travel Award Competition.
• March 18th, 2019; 1:00 pm to 3:00 pm. NIH Training Officer Onsite, Coverdell S175. Interested in applying for a postdoc fellowship or K award form NIH? This is a great opportunity to get more information from a NIH officer! (Non-OPA, Non-PDA event.)
• March 13th, 2019; 5:15 – 6:45 pm. Networking Event at the 49th Annual GMP Conference.The Office of Postdoctoral Affairs and the Graduate School are proud to present an exciting opportunity for you to network and mingle with FDA and pharmaceutical industry leaders at the upcoming 49th Annual GMP Conference here in Athens. Click here to see photos from the event!
• October 26, 2018: Deadline for the 2018-2019 Fall PDA Travel Award Competition.
• September 20, 2018: National Postdoc Appreciation Week (NPAW) Pizza-to-go!  National Postdoc Appreciation Week (NPAW) is September 17-21 this year and the Office of Postdoctoral Affairs is providing a pizza to-go lunch for UGA postdocs!
• September 21, 2018: “An Inside Look at NIH Policies and Opportunities” Special Talk by Larry Tabak, Principal Deputy Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH).  2:30 pm in the Coverdell Auditorium, S175.  Dr. Tabak is visiting UGA and specifically asked to meet with young investigators to discuss opportunities and policies at NIH.  Click here to view the slides and recording of the talk.
• September 17, 2018: Panel Discussion re Career development resources for UGA postdocs. 9:00 – 11:00 am, Coverdell Auditorium. In celebration of National Postdoc Appreciation Week (September 17-21), the UGA Office of Postdoctoral Affairs is hosting a panel discussion to highlight programs and offices on the UGA campus offering career development and other support to postdocs.  The event will include coffee and light breakfast before the panel discussion, and an informal meet-and-greet afterwards.  Click here for some of the resources provided by panelists.