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AST 185C
Syllabus
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Syllabus

AST 185C - FALL 2006
Dinerstein, Wed. 2-3 PM, RLM 15.216A (Edmonds Lounge)

Philosophy of this course: AST 185C is a professional development seminar designed for incoming graduate students in the UT Astronomy Ph.D. program. It consists mainly of informal sessions consisting of information, advice, and discussion. The main activity is attendance and participation. We will try to address issues are important to your progress and success in our graduate program and in astronomy as a profession, but don't generally come up in conventional courses. It complements the non-field-specific offerings of UT's Graduate School, which includes regular courses, as well as one-day workshops on topics such as grant proposal writing, applying for academic jobs, etc.

Topics: One goal of this course is to give you a thorough overview of research activities at UT Austin in the areas of stellar, interstellar, extragalactic, planetary, and theoretical astrophysics. This overview may be particularly useful if you have not yet picked a research area and advisor, but even if you do know what your area of specialization will be, it is still a good thing to know what else is going on in the department. We will also discuss issues such as: What does it really take to succeed in graduate school and beyond? What are the prospects of finding a job in astronomy, what kind of jobs are available, and how does one prepare for various career paths? These questions will be addressed by a variety of guests with various backgrounds and experiences.

What is expected of you in this class? To attend regularly, except in case of illness or conflicting activities such as an observing run. A couple of sessions may require a little bit of preparation (e.g. one round of short oral presentations, and possibly a brief survey or reading for other sessions).

Books, Resources: A few relevant books are: 1. "A Ph.D. is Not Enough! A Guide to Survival in Science," Peter J. Feibelman (1993); 2. "To Boldly Go: A Practical Career Guide for Scientists," Peter S. Fiske (1996); and 3. "Building a Successful Career in Scientific Research: A Guide for PhD Students and Postdocs," Phil Dee (a pseudonym; 2006). These and other materials are on a shelf in Peridier Library labelled "Careers." There is also a lot of material on the Web, including the Career Services site of the AAS, http://www.aas.org/career/index.htm, and the on-line career advice website of the AAAS's Science magazine, http://sciencecareers.sciencemag.org/.


Topics for discussion in Ast 185C (not necessarily in this order):
  1. Introduction to research at Texas:
    • research facilities at McDonald Observatory (and elsewhere)
    • research activities at Texas, reviewed by research area
  2. Survival and success in the UT Astronomy program:
    • the official program (A to Z)
    • perspectives from several graduate students who are further along in the program
  3. Survival and success in an astronomy career:
    • statistics on the current job market in astronomy & how UT grads have fared
    • how to get yourself and your work known, job hunting strategies & advice from post docs
    • grantsmanship, professional norms, & ethical issues
    • non-academic careers, e.g. "industry," soft-money, and observatory or mission support
  4. Professional and communication skills
    • we'll do short practice oral presentations (before you have to do it in a seminar or class)
    • and discuss what goes on in the peer review process for journal articles & grant proposals






 





28 August 2006
Astronomy Program · The University of Texas at Austin · Austin, Texas 78712
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