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Message from the Director

Photo of Dr. Espenshade

Welcome to the Biomedical Careers Initiative! We created BCI as a resource for PhD trainees. Our goal is to help students recognize the wide variety of careers open to them upon graduation and to provide resources for career training and networking. Many resources are located on the website, but BCI also runs an Internship Program, hosts career seminars, and networking workshops.

Graduate training is fundamentally different from previous educational experiences in which you completed prescribed coursework and then moved to the next task, knowing that success would lead to defined next steps. In graduate school, the path is less well defined and you must become independent. With the help of faculty, mentors, and peers, you are responsible for directing your education and research.

The same applies to your career. No longer is there a defined next step, and what you do upon graduation is up to you. I encourage you to think early about what careers interest you and to learn more about them. The MyIDP website is a good starting place where you examine your skills and interests, and learn about potential career matches. Your mentors are also valuable resources. Setting goals and designing a plan to meet them are the keys to success. I recommend that you complete an Individual Development Plan with input from your mentor(s) to keep you on track and generate an active discussion about your career plans.

BCI has an outstanding staff, and we are constantly updating the website, so please send us your suggestions for how we can improve.

Peter Espenshade, PhD
Director, Biomedical Careers Initiative
Center for Innovation in Graduate Biomedical Education
Professor of Cell Biology
Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine

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