#NORDP2017 starts Monday, May 8 in Denver, CO. Keep checking back here at the blog and on our Twitter feed (@NORDP_official) for live conference updates. Register here: http://www.nordp.org/conferences.
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Who: Jessica Sheehe, Ph.D. candidate
Where: University of Vermont
Number of years in research development: 1
Length of NORDP membership: 1
Number of NORDP conferences attended: 2017 will be my first one!
My interest in RD started when I was writing my grant proposal for becoming a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Vermont. I was surprised at how much I enjoyed the process and the challenge of not just articulating my research, but also “selling” my ideas to my thesis committee. I already had four years of writing consultation experience from working at writing centers at my undergraduate and graduate universities. I realized that I wanted to combine my science and writing consultation skill
s in some way, but didn’t know how to do that or, shockingly, that RD was a field.
Around the same time, I happened to see a presentation by the Grant Proposal Manager at UVM and sent her an email requesting to chat
so I could learn more about what she does and how she made her way to that position. She was a wealth of knowledge and suggested I attend a NORDP-NE regional meeting in August of 2016. I felt very welcomed at the meeting. It was small–people easily recognized a new face, and therefore I was approached quite frequently. When I excitedly told my friends and family about the conference I described it as “a group of people who speak both my science and writing center lingo.” It solidified my decision to become an RD professional, particularly to help faculty articulate their research in a concise, clear, and compelling manner. Since attending the regional meeting, I have sought out additional proposal and manuscript development opportunities. I currently work with postdoctoral researchers, graduate students, and, more recently, with an Assistant Professor I anticipate completing my Ph.D. research this summer and am actively applying for RD positions.
I am excited to meet new people at the upcoming NORDP National Meeting in May and to learn as much as I can about the RD field as a whole. My recommendation for other attendees (and myself) is to overcome any inhibitions they might have and just talk to people. The relationships I have built with people, both personal and professional, have been invaluable in achieving my goals and moving into this new career trajectory.
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We hope to see you at the 2017 NORDP Research Development Conference, which will be held May 8-10 in Denver, CO. For more information about the conference program or to register, visit http://www.nordp.org/conferences. Follow @NORDP_official on Twitter for all the latest #NORDP2017 updates.
If you’d like to be featured in a Conference Cameo, let us know at rdconf@nordp.org.
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