Professional Development
We have collected an extensive list of opportunities and resources to support the professional and academic development of our undergraduate and graduate students.
Opportunities
Opportunities for Undergraduates
Opportunities at various academic stages:
- Freshman Year - "Self-Discover"
- Sophomore Year - "Expand Your Career Horizons"
- Junior Year - "Test Options"
- Senior Year - "A Time to Make Decisions"
- Transfer students
- Veteran students
- Students with disabilities
- AB540 students
- International students
- Cultural and Identity-based groups
Opportunities to develop specific job search skills:
- Career planning
- Develop a resume and cover letter and attend a resume-writing workshop
- Talk with ICC Staff about narrowing career interests
- Explore job search strategies
- Pathways To Science
- Internship opportunities
- Workshops, company info sessions, career fairs
- Informational interview or job shadow experience
Opportunities for conducting undergraduate research:
- Attend the annual Undergraduate Research Conference
- UC Davis Equity in STEM and Entrepreneurship Mentor Matching Program - Graduate Student Organization that matches undergraduates with graduate student mentors based on their interests
- Ecology and Population Biology Student Diversity Committee - lists students on the committee who are happy to answer questions
- The McNair Scholars Program at UC Davis
- Mentorship for Underrepresented STEM Enthusiasts - connects underrepresented students to STEM professionals, particularly those who also share underrepresented identities. STEM professionals can provide support, advice, and encouragement.
- MURALS - 1-year program helping students find a research mentor and conduct a project
- Científico Latino - Graduate School Mentorship Initiative and webinars
- EEB Mentor Match - designed to help students in minoritized groups gain admission to, and fellowships for, graduate school
- Educational Enrichment and Outreach Programs (EEOP) programs:
Thinking about graduate school?
Opportunities for Graduates
Funding and Fellowship Opportunities:
- College of Biological Sciences Graduate DEIJ Leader Fellowship: This prestigious fellowship provides financial and institutional support to outstanding graduate students who are working enhance Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Justice in the College of Biological Sciences community.
- College of Biological Sciences DEIJ Initiative Grant: This grant provides funding for graduate student-led events and programs that promote Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Justice in the College of Biological Sciences and the UC Davis community more broadly.
- UC Davis Internal Fellowship Opportunities: UC Davis uses a variety of internal fellowship funds to support academic graduate students. Internal fellowships can provide financial support in the form of a stipend (or "living allowance"), Tuition & Fee, Nonresident Supplemental Tuition (NRST), research, travel or any combination of these.
- UCLA Graduate and Postdoctoral Extramural Support (GRAPES) Database: Search for awards from among 625 scholarships, grants, fellowships, and postdoctoral awards. Free-to-search for applicants to any graduate program, to graduate students working on a master’s thesis or doctoral dissertation, and to postdoc scholars.
- Pathways to Science: Searchable database of extramural fellowships and funding. Appropriate for all career stages.
- National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship Program (NSF GRFP): Fellowship offers three-years of stipend support and additional national (Graduate Research Internship Program - GRIP) and international (Graduate Research Opportunities Worldwide - GROW) research and internship opportunities.
- Ford Foundation Fellowships: The Ford Foundation seeks to increase the diversity of the nation’s college and university faculties by increasing their ethnic and racial diversity, maximize the educational benefits of diversity, and increase the number of professors who can and will use diversity as a resource for enriching the education of all students. Predoctoral, dissertation, and postdoctoral fellowships available.
Professional Development:
- GradPathways Institute for Professional Development: The GradPathways Institute provides innovative programming based on 8 core competencies. These include: Success and Socialization; Writing and Publishing; Presentation Skills; Teaching and Mentoring; Leadership and Management; Professionalism and Ethics; Career Management; and Wellness and Life Balance.
- GradPathways Professors for the Future Fellowship: Professors for the Future (PFTF) is a year-long competitive fellowship program designed to recognize and develop the leadership skills of outstanding graduate students and postdoctoral scholars who have demonstrated their commitment to professionalism, integrity, and academic service.