Professional Development Events

The PDFO is dedicated to providing a wide variety of quality professional development opportunities to UBC’s postdoc community.

The PDFO is proud to offer four flagship professional development programs in addition to regularly-scheduled professional development workshops:

  • Foundations of Career Planning Program: A three-part workshop program designed to introduce postdocs to the support and resources required to establish the foundations of a post-PDF career in academia or with a primary focus on industry. By the end of the
  • Postdoctoral Fellows Teaching Internship (PDTI): In collaboration with the Centre for the Integration of Research, Teaching and Learning (CIRTL), the Postdoc Teaching Internship is comprised of a three-day Instructional Skills Workshop (ISW) and opportunities to work with a mentor.
  • Fundamentals of Project Management Program (formerly called the Summer Institute in Project Management): A program designed to provide a comprehensive overview of topics in research project management, including an introduction to the principles, and key elements of scope, time, cost, quality, stakeholder and risk management for projects in research. Participants attend six two-hour sessions over a two-month period, and modules are supplemented by online readings and videos.
  • Applied Project Management Program (formerly called the Winter Institute in Advanced Project Management): A follow-up to the PDFO's Fundamentals of Project Management Program, the Applied Project Management Program covers intermediate and advanced topics in project management and leadership. Building on the learning outcomes of the Summer Institute, this pilot program will provide participants the opportunity to apply these learnings by working on a group project. Participants will also learn about essential elements of leadership and management.

Additional professional development resources that are available to UBC-appointed Postdoctoral Fellows can be found on the Professional Development Resources page.

Upcoming Workshops and Events

UBC offers and administers programs that provide professional development to PDFs. Events offered by the PDFO will open for registration approximately two weeks in advance of each session. Registration is required for all PDFO events. Participants who are successfully registered in a professional development session will receive a confirmation email from the PDFO within a week of the session.

The PDFO reserves the right to cancel, postpone, or reschedule a course due to low enrollment or other unforeseen circumstances. If this occurs registrants will be contacted via email as soon as possible.

PDFO Workshops and Seminars

Event Title Event Date Organizer
Coffee and Chat with the PDFO - BC Children's Hospital Research Institute - Postdoctoral Fellows Office
Coffee and Chat with the PDFO - Vancouver General Hospital - Postdoctoral Fellows Office
Coffee and Chat with the PDFO - UBC Point Grey Campus - Postdoctoral Fellows Office
Introduction to Canadian Taxes with the Canada Revenue Agency (Session 2 of 2) - Postdoctoral Fellows Office
Foundations of Career Planning Session #1: Starting With You: Clarifying Key Characteristics and Personalizing Your Development Plan - Postdoctoral Fellows Office
Foundations of Career Planning Session #2: Self-Branding and Compiling Professional Work Search Documents - Postdoctoral Fellows Office
Foundations of Career Planning Session #3: The Best Candidate Wins - Postdoctoral Fellows Office
Orientation for Postdoctoral Fellows - Spring 2025 - Postdoctoral Fellows Office
Fundamentals of Project Management Program - May/June 2025 - Postdoctoral Fellows Office

Other Workshops and Seminars

Event Title Event Date Organizer
Writing Workshop - Research Article Introductions: Mind the Gap - UBC Centre for Writing and Scholarly Communication
Writing Workshop - Lunch & Learn: Citations in Academic English - UBC Centre for Writing and Scholarly Communication
Open Offerings at McMaster University - Entrepreneurial Leadership Discussion Panel - McMaster University
Writing Workshop - Writing a Grant Proposal: Crafting a Compelling Research Story - UBC Centre for Writing and Scholarly Communication
Writing Workshop - Lunch & Learn: Transitions in Academic English - UBC Centre for Writing and Scholarly Communication
The Joyful Journey: Graduate Student and Postdoctoral Scholar Professional Development Series (Spring 2025) - Careers Beyond Higher Education Panel 1: Government, Non-profits & Consulting - Center for the Integration of Teaching, Research, and Learning
Writing Workshop - Research Article Conclusions: Wrapping Up and Looking Forward - UBC Centre for Writing and Scholarly Communication
The Joyful Journey: Graduate Student and Postdoctoral Scholar Professional Development Series (Spring 2025) - Careers Beyond Higher Education Panel 2: Private Industry, Consulting & Non-profits - Center for the Integration of Teaching, Research, and Learning
Knowledge Exchange and Mobilization Research to Impact Fellowship Program - UBC Knowledge Exchange Unit

Previous Events

Event Title Event Date Organizer
Horizon Europe Canada Roadshow: Vancouver - SED Canada & European Commission DG RTD
The Joyful Journey: Graduate Student and Postdoctoral Scholar Professional Development Series (Spring 2025) -Writing Your Research Statement for the Academic Job Market - Center for the Integration of Teaching, Research, and Learning
Open Offerings at McMaster University - Appetizers for the Mind (Postdoc research talks featuring the winners of the 5MRT) - McMaster University
Writing Workshop - Writing a Literature Review: Mapping the Scholarly Conversation - UBC Centre for Writing and Scholarly Communication
The Joyful Journey: Graduate Student and Postdoctoral Scholar Professional Development Series (Spring 2025) - Writing Your Diversity or Inclusion Statement for the Academic Job Market - Center for the Integration of Teaching, Research, and Learning
Introduction to Canadian Taxes with the Canada Revenue Agency (Session 1 of 2) - Postdoctoral Fellows Office
Writing Workshop - Lunch & Learn: Common Verbs in Academic English - UBC Centre for Writing and Scholarly Communication
The Joyful Journey: Graduate Student and Postdoctoral Scholar Professional Development Series (Spring 2025) - Writing Your Teaching Statement for the Academic Job Market - Center for the Integration of Teaching, Research, and Learning
Mastering the elevator pitch (Mitacs) - Mitacs Training
Writing Workshop - Abstracts: Communicating Research Findings With Brevity and Concision - UBC Centre for Writing and Scholarly Communication

Privacy Notification: Your personal information is collected under the authority of section 26(c) of the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (FIPPA). This information will be used for the purpose of planning and administering each professional development workshop and event offered by the Postdoctoral Fellows Office (PDFO). Questions about the collection of this information may be directed to the PDFO at postdoctoral.fellows@ubc.ca.