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A thesis defense is a cross between an exam and a ceremony.

A well-constructed e-persona reflects a measure of thoughtfulness, professionalism, and competence.

If your supervisor expects everyone to be on deck all day, make the case that a brief respite to recharge your batteries will benefit both you and the laboratory.

"The University of Connecticut postdoc union is obviously a model and an inspiration for us." --Matthew O'Connor

"I enjoy ... making a difference and seeing how much the world of antidoping has developed in the last few years." --Osquel Barroso

"[Working in research support] allows me to translate direct understanding of the sciences to help science without actually doing science." --Elisabeth Prescott

"I joined for a bit of adventure … [and the] opportunity to go all over the world." Sally Serenyi, Schlumberger

"Water problems are not going away." -Richelle Allen-King, University at Buffalo

A peer reviewer is "the first person seeing the most novel result in the field. This great privilege comes with great responsibility." --Ana Marusic, joint editor-in-chief,
Croatian Medical Journal

Look at submission, revision, and resubmission "as an iterative process." --Phil Corlett, University of Cambridge

A busy manager can't be so shortsighted as to look for only smarts.

"When I retire, I'm going to have to go around to many places with my hat in hand to collect a little bit here and a little bit there." --Dagmar Meyer, Marie Curie Actions program

Former postdoc-activist Laure Haak has learned firsthand why, despite an
abundance of impeccably trained postdocs, good help in industry is hard to
find.

"It’s an exciting and lucrative area of opportunity for Ph.D.-level scientists."

Leaving the chemistry department behind doesn't have to mean leaving chemistry behind. Chemists have a broad, and broadening, range of career options to choose from, both in and out of the lab. The biggest challenge is looking beyond the more traditional roles, which represent only a fraction of the options available in this fast-growing field.

The most important factors for ensuring a successful postdoctoral experience are honest and open communication with mentors, according to postdoc supervisors who responded to a survey carried out for Science
Careers. Here, they provide some strategies and tips for effective communication and for teaching graduates how to communicate better.

Universities across the United States and Europe are increasingly reshaping recruitment policies in order to attract and retain more junior faculty. Replacing the old sink or swim attitude is a desire to provide a more supportive and nurturing environment. Driving the new trend are several factors, including a concern that many of today's senior faculty are approaching retirement age and will need to be replaced, and a desire to have faculty that more closely reflect the gender and ethnic diversity of the population they serve.

As nations compete for scientific recognition, Germany is boosting its fight. Over the past few years, the Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung (BMBF)—Germany's ministry of education and research—has upped the science budget and encouraged initiatives that require universities and scientists to be more innovative. The intention is to promote competition to improve the nation's science reputation.

Nationwide and institution-sized surveys show a leaky pipeline partially patched, but the reservoir still far from full.