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Career Development Seminars—Informational Sessions at the
SOT Annual Meeting
Monday, March 17
The Future of Toxicology—Roundtable Session
12:00 Noon–1:20 PM, Room 602
Chairperson(s): Boris Zhivotovsky, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden and Ivan Rusyn, University of North Carolina Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC.
Endorsded by:
Education Committee
Mechanisms Specialty Section
Toxicology benefits greatly from recent advances in biomedical sciences and technology that provide new opportunities to facilitate our understanding of the chemical and biological mechanisms of toxicity. However, the discipline is facing something of an identity crisis. Toxicology as a scientific discipline has traditionally combined fundamental and applied research. Unfortunately, during the past decade the balance has shifted in favor of applied research. This roundtable will consider the future directions in toxicological research and highlight some of the examples of how fundamental science can be used successfully to address applied issues of toxicological relevance. For example, cell death research can serve as an important link between basic science and toxicology and as an area of cross-fertilization between disciplines. Cell death is the result of toxicity, and analysis of signaling pathways is essential for verification of the targets and mechanisms of toxins action. Furthermore, novel molecular, biochemical, genetic and genomics approaches are increasingly used to understand the mechanisms of environmental toxicants. New data which combines knowledge of the toxicity mechanisms, gene expression profiling and the information on the genetic diversity in the mammals makes it possible to determine what genetic variants correlate with susceptibility or resistance to toxicity and disease, thus potentially helping to identify a susceptible population for each exposure. In addition, uncovering the mechanisms by which agents cause adverse effects allows for a more refined assessment of dose-response, and therefore better predictions regarding thresholds for toxicity. Such information is critical for medical practice, drug development and setting environmental and occupational exposure limits. Finally, the public expects that the time frame from fundamental toxicological research to practical application must shorten commensurable with the urgency to deliver adequate risk assessment on issues relevant to public health and safety. Hence, tight interactions between fundamental and applied research is the future of toxicology.
Putting Your Best Foot Forward: Job Interviewing Session for Early-Career Scientists—Roundtable Session4:30 PM–5:50 PM, Room 605
Chairperson(s): Kristen Mitchell, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX and Nick Radio, U.S. EPA, Research Triangle Park, NC.
Endorsed by:
Career Resource and Development Committee
Postdoctoral Assembly
Student Advisory Council
You’ve finished graduate school and maybe completed one or two stints as a postdoctoral fellow. You may know how to conduct research, write manuscripts and present seminars, but do you know what it takes to land that first job? This interactive workshop is designed to provide novice job seekers with timely and valuable information about how to successfully navigate the hiring process. Listen as hiring managers from government and industry discuss what they look for when reviewing job applications and get the straight facts about what can make or break a job interview. Find out what to say and how to present yourself during the interview so that hiring managers know that YOU are the person for the job. Furthermore, listen to the firsthand experience of an early-career scientist who recently landed an academic position. Watch and learn as experts and audience members participate in skits and mock interviews. Join us for a dynamic, informative and interactive workshop designed to put you in the driver’s seat of your career development!
Tuesday, March 18
Professional Career Development as a Toxicologist—Informational Session
9:00 AM–11:45 AM, Room 602
Chairperson(s): Vishal Vaidya, Brigham & Women, Boston, MA and
B. Bhaskar Gollapudi, Dow Chemical Company, Midland, MI.
Endorsed by:
Career Resource and Development Committee
Education Committee
Postdoctoral Assembly
Student Advisory Council
The overall objective of the symposium is to foster career development of a toxicologist by providing education and knowledge about different facets of a toxicology career. The goals of this session are: 1. To provide insights into various facets of a successful career in toxicology. 2. To highlight qualities necessary to develop these career characteristics. 3. To provide a path forward towards developing a career as an academic, industrial or entrepreneurial toxicologist. This session will have three parallel components. Firstly, it will be targeted towards the career development of early career toxicologists including graduate students, postdoctoral fellows and young investigators who are at the crossroads of deciding a suitable path forward in toxicological sciences. The presentation will give an in-depth perspective about career as an industrial toxicologist, toxicologist in drug development, academic toxicologist, clinical toxicologist, forensic toxicologist, ecotoxicologist, regulatory toxicologist, or occupational toxicologist. The second component is targeted towards educating the toxicologists about developing adequate skill set necessary to manage a laboratory in academics or in industry and secondly towards applying for potential funding opportunities to support the laboratory. The third component is geared towards an entrepreneurial toxicologist desiring to start a company at any stage of his/her career. This presentation will lay out different steps involved from having the initial idea to starting a company, including approaching the venture capitalist, strategy design, implementation and execution, etc.
Wednesday, March 19
Toxicology Training Needs: New Faces and New Tools for the 21st Century—Roundtable Session
7:30 AM–8:50 AM, Room 608
Chairperson(s): William Slikker, National Center for Toxicological Research, Jefferson, AR and John Bucher, U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, Rockville, MD.
Endorsed by:
Academy of Toxicological Sciences
Career Resource and Development Committee
Postdoctoral Assembly
Student Advisory Council
There is growing concern within the discipline of toxicology with regard to the projected retirement of experienced toxicologists and the toxicology training pipeline from both a numbers and depth of training perspective. This problem is only becoming more acute due to budgetary constraints, regulatory and policy shifts and the advent of new chemical and biological challenges resulting from innovative and technology driven product development. Toxicologists are being asked to address safety issues for novel nanotechnology products, plant-made pharmaceuticals and industrials, combination therapeutics and concerns related to potential chemical and biological terror agents in a timely and cost effective manner. To address these issues, the next generation of toxicologists will need new tools and cutting edge training, and they must be produced in sufficient numbers to effectively replace the current cadre of toxicologists as they retire. A necessary first step in assuring the availability of qualified toxicologists is to begin a dialogue among the various potential employers on projected current and future needs in toxicology and what type of training experience would be most advantageous as the discipline moves into the 21st century. There is also a need to develop a clear picture of the number of new toxicologists that will be needed over the next 10 years. This session will focus on the number of toxicologists and the required skill sets needed as discussed by representatives from the industry, academic, research, consulting and government sectors and will be a positive step forward by addressing these needs at a meeting where most of the concerned toxicologists and many of those responsible for training and hiring toxicologists will be in attendance.
Mentoring 101—How to Mentor, How to be Mentored—Informational Session
12:00 Noon–1:20 PM, Room 615
Chairperson(s): Carol Auletta, Huntingdon Life Sciences, East Millstone, NJ and Rae Benedict, University of Maryland, Solomons, MD.
Endorsed by:
Career Resource and Development Committee
Education Committee
Student Advisory Council
Women in Toxicology Special Interest Group
A mentor is a teacher or trusted counselor who may play a large role in how satisfied a student or colleague is with his/her studies or career. Some individuals are natural mentors and excel at this activity. However, for many, mentoring skills need to be developed. This session will explore this issue and address such questions as: What makes a successful mentor? How does a mentor exhibit the empathy, understanding and trustworthiness required to form a positive connection? How does a mentor acquire those characteristics? Does a mentor know how to listen to goals, help the mentee to clarify and understand them and provide appropriate resources or contacts to facilitate career advancement? This session is intended for both those scientists seeking to improve their mentoring skills and those who want to learn more about the potential benefits of receiving mentoring. The ideas fostered through this session will positively impact the expanding mentoring activity of the Society by providing basic advice on mentoring relationships.
NIEHS Outstanding New Environmental Scientists (ONES) Awardees—Informational Session
4:30 PM–5:50 PM, Room 6C
Chairperson(s): James Mastin, NIEHS, Research Triangle Park, NC and Carole Shreffler, NIEHS, Research Triangle Park, NC.
Endorsed by:
Inhalation and Respiratory Specialty Section
Concerned with assuring the quality of biomedical research, the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences launched an initiative to support the future generation of exceptionally talented and creative new scientists. For NIEHS, this involves helping to develop a cadre of talented early-career scientists who will further the understanding of the impact of environmental exposures on human health through disciplines such as toxicology, epidemiology, and clinical research, as well as multi-disciplinary translational research. To identify outstanding scientists at the formative stages of their career and assist them in launching an innovative research program with a defined impact in the environmental health sciences, NIEHS has established the ONES program to fund R01 research grants intended for researchers who have not received their first R01 research grant. It is designed to be highly competitive, each school only being allowed to submit one application, with a limited number awarded each year. These R01s are distinguished from other R01 research grants in that they provide funding for developing necessary resources and for career development activities in addition to funding for research expenses. Research programs supported by this announcement seek to promote career advancement for new scientists who intend to make a long-term career commitment to research in the mainstream of the environmental health sciences, and bring innovative, ground-breaking research initiatives and thinking to bear on the problems of how environmental exposures affect human biology, human pathophysiology and human disease. The first round of awardees included researchers investigating the effects of air pollution on pulmonary and cardiovascular disease, the mechanisms of arsenic carcinogenesis, mechanisms of repair of environmentally induced DNA damage, and sensory neuron signaling in response to environmental exposures. This session will provide attendees the opportunity to hear the exciting, innovative research being conducted by these talented new researchers and introduce the recipients of the second round of ONES awardees.
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General Information
