Seeking and Succeeding in Undergraduate Research: Perspective from AIChE Undergraduates
AIChE Executive Student Committee, UCLA Student Chapter
9:00 AM - 9:45 AM
Undergraduate research is a great way for young students to explore the field of scientific and engineering discovery. However, as sought after research opportunities are, the path to seek one is often not clearly illuminated, and interested applicants are often thrust into a complex and unfamiliar world with little guidance. Here, we plan to discuss how to succeed in all facets of research, from securing the first opportunity to succeeding in your research experience.
We will first begin with good tips for getting your foot into the doors of research, including but not limited to reaching out to professors, connecting with past graduate students, and attending organized recruiting events. We will then discuss how to be a good researcher and the communication and intellectual development skills you will need and acquire from researching. We will present the importance of balancing other priorities while pursuing research throughout the school year, and list other opportunities that can be pursued during the summer. In light of the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the speakers will also discuss how undergraduate research can be conducted both in-person and remotely. Finally, we will cover how to draw knowledge based on your experience, and how to utilize your time as an undergrad researcher to inform future career decisions. Throughout the talk the speakers will draw specific examples from their budding research careers and address any questions.
This workshop is a collaboration between the AIChE Executive Student Committee, the UCLA AIChE Student Chapter, and the Caltech AIChE Student Chapter. We hope to provide this workshop in a virtual format to allow for greater access to the broader international chemical engineering community.
Preparing for and Facilitating your Career Fair
AIChE Executive Student Committee, VaTech Student Chapter
9:00 AM - 9:45 AM
Career fairs are often the largest and most significant professional development events that AIChE Student Chapters provide. Providing exclusive networking, internship and full-time opportunities for AIChE members and usually generating the most revenue for the chapter, career fairs take months of dedicated planning, careful outreach, and coordination among officers, corporate sponsors, and administrators. Here, we discuss tips and advice on how to run successful career fairs for your AIChE Student Chapter.
We will cover in a chronological sequence the preparation for the fair (i.e. corporate correspondence, sponsorship packets, venue selection, advice given to attendees, etc.), the execution of the fair (attendee/representative check-ins/interfaces, distribution of refreshments, etc.), and action items post-fair (managing interview rooms/times, thank you notes, transitioning information, reflections, etc.). Throughout our talk we will offer examples based on our experience running career fairs during our service in our respective AIChE Student Chapters to illustrate our various points of advice. In light of the COVID-19 pandemic, we will also provide perspectives on running events both virtually and in-person and the challenges associated with each. We will additionally present possible future opportunities for chapters and what we may pursue in the future related to career fairs.
This workshop is a collaboration between the AIChE Executive Student Committee, the UCLA AIChE Student Chapter, and the Virginia Tech AIChE Student Chapter. We hope to provide this workshop in a virtual format to allow for greater access to the broader international chemical engineering community.
Designing an Effective Professional Development Series
Wayne State University Student Chapter
9:50 AM - 10:35 AM
Over the past academic year, the Wayne State University chapter of AIChE designed and hosted an innovative, multi-part professional development series, with the goal of connecting our students with industry professionals and providing a robust foundation of career preparation skills. In this workshop, we build on those experiences and share how impactful programming can be used to strengthen students' engagement with their AIChE chapter. The workshop is divided into three parts: leveraging relationships with faculty, alumni, and industry professionals to develop impactful programs; utilizing technology to make events accessible to both speakers and students; and creating a schedule of activities that maximizes opportunities for student participation. Additionally, strategies for the successful execution of a multi-part, semester-long program are discussed. This workshop is targeted towards student leaders who create and execute events for their organizations along with being beneficial for students seeking additional resources for career preparation.
Co-ops and Internships: Perspectives from Final Year Undergraduates
AIChE Executive Student Committee, UCLA AIChE Student Chapter
9:50 AM - 10:35 AM
Co-ops and internships are undoubtedly one of the most rewarding experiences for undergraduate students and their careers. Providing exclusive networking and direct experiences in the workforce and sometimes even leading to full-time employment offers, these opportunities can often serve as jump-starts to students’ professional journeys in chemical engineering. However, as sought after co-ops and internships can be, securing and succeeding in one can be an elusive, difficult task, a subject not often directly taught in universities. Combined with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, there is quite a bit of uncertainty associated with this task. In this workshop, we as final year undergraduates in chemical engineering, hope to provide some advice and insights into finding internships and co-op opportunities as an undergraduate chemical engineering student.
The first portion of our presentation will be dedicated to finding an internship/co-op position. We will detail various avenues of finding opportunities, including but not limited to prior connections, career fairs, infosessions, and LinkedIn correspondence. We will then discuss the interview process generally and a general approach on how to succeed before, during, and after the interview. Finally, we will detail on how to make the most of the internship/co-op, specifically on leaving a good impression and setting up chances for future professional opportunities. This talk will reflect experiences in the context of COVID-19, but will attempt to discuss pre-COVID-19 experiences when possible. In the case of co-ops, we will also discuss working throughout the school year while balancing other commitments.
This workshop is a collaboration between the AIChE Executive Student Committee, the UCLA AIChE Student Chapter, the Caltech AIChE Student Chapter, and the Virginia Tech AIChE Student Chapter. We hope to provide this workshop in a virtual format to allow for greater access to the broader international chemical engineering community.
Why implement the sister chapter program in your chapter?
Executive Student Committee
9:50 AM - 10:35 AM
Do you want to know more about the sister chapter program? This workshop seeks to raise awareness of the sister chapter program that helps to connect Student Chapters globally, as well as to facilitate the professional development of its student members by learning how to work with chemical engineering student peers from different cultural and geographic backgrounds. We´ll present how to implement your sister chapter and how to improve the relationship between sisterhoods.
1. Introduction
What is the Sister Chapter Program
How many sisterhoods do we have?
Benefits for Participating Chapters
Documentation of activities (Photos)
2. How to improve the SC relationship
The art of playing with the science
Executive Student Committee
9:50 AM - 10:35 AM
K-12 Outreach Program
What is the K-12 Outreach Program? It seeks to connect AIChE Student Chapters with each other and with K-12 students. In this workshop the Executive Student Committee (ESC) encourages participants to start the K-12 program in their own chapter and make an impact on younger students. We also encourage and demonstrate how Student Chapters are encouraged to share their K-12 outreach experience through modules that contain information about science demonstrations and experiments that they have found most successful. The importance of it is to be able to reach more children and make them have a pleasant experience learning in a fun way. We want to show the most successful modules too that have helped children to learn in a didactic way a lot of topics related to the sciences.
Career Fair Preparation
Mississippi State University Student Chapter
10:40 AM - 11:25 AM
This workshop will review how to prepare students for the career fair. This includes resume building, interview skills, and how to market yourself to recruiters at your school's career fair.