Stem Career Dynamics: A Comprehensive Guide to Getting a Job in Science and Technology

If you are looking for a job in science, technology, engineering, or medical (STEM) fields, this book will make your search more efficient, productive, and ultimately successful.

There are many scattered sources of guidance on aspects of seeking a STEM job. This book compiles the best ideas and approaches in one place, especially for finding jobs in the academic sector, where succeeding can be an opaque process with no clear standards or guidelines.

STEM workers often face job markets saturated with apparently ideally qualified candidates. How can you distinguish yourself in this crush of competition? One way is to present and highlight your scientific skills in a way that sets you apart. This book shows you how to do that.

But scientific expertise is not enough. You also need managerial, supervisory, and leadership skills, as well as interpersonal skills such as giving and receiving feedback, negotiating, team building, and mentoring. People like that also have high emotional intelligence and are empathic, introspective, and self-controlled.

Developing these extrascientific skills was the focus of Carl Cohen's previous, highly successful book Lab Dynamics: Management and Leadership Skills for Scientists (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press). If you have those skills, this book will show you how to make that apparent in a way that can make the difference between getting a job offer and getting ignored.

After reading this book, you will be ready to take control of your career by:

• Creating a network of contacts to generate opportunities
• Understanding what employers are looking for
• Presenting yourself as the solution to their needs
• Negotiating your best possible offer
• Making decisions based on data

Using the tools and techniques presented here, you will learn how to put your best foot forward and get the STEM job you want, even in the most competitive job markets.