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.

Previous Events

Event Title Event Date Organizer
Faculty Panel: Communicating Research to the Public - Graduate Pathways to Success
Writing Workshop - Speaking as a Scholar: Telling Your Research Story - UBC Centre for Writing and Scholarly Communication
The Joyful Journey: Graduate Student and Postdoctoral Scholar Professional Development Series (Spring 2025) - Writing Your Cover Letter for the Academic Job Market - Center for the Integration of Teaching, Research, and Learning
Writing Workshop - Verbs for Citations: Moving From Paraphrase to Summary - UBC Centre for Writing and Scholarly Communication
McMaster University 5 Minute Research Talks (5MRT) - McMaster University - McCall MacBain Postdoctoral Fellows Teaching and Leadership Program
Open Offerings at McMaster University - 5MRT (5min Research Talks) in the LIVElab - McMaster University
Incorporating Reconciliation, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion into your project (Mitacs) - Mitacs Training
Key Messaging: Effectively Articulating the Why's and How's of your Research - Graduate Pathways to Success and UBC Media Relations
Applying the principles of sound leadership and team building (Mitacs) - Mitacs Training
Fundamentals of Project Management Program - February/March 2025 - Postdoctoral Fellows Office

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.