Control your career thanks to clarity about your own ability and requirements

Best Practice VUMC

To improve the career prospects of doctoral candidates, postdocs and medical researchers VUmc focuses on their personal development. They have the opportunity to follow training programmes to develop their personal skills as well as individual coaching programmes.

The VUmc’s career development policy aims to enable scientists to assume responsibility for their personal leadership style in order that the right people assume the right position, from where they can further develop their talents.

What does the career development policy involve?

Doctoral candidates and postdocs (this will include senior scientists in the future) take part in training and/or coaching sessions focusing on their personal development. These sessions supplement the training programmes in general scientific skills, such as writing a scientific article.

By additionally investing in their personal development, doctoral candidates and postdocs increase their capacity to self-reflect and learn to deal with matters such as: how do I use my time prudently and set the correct priorities, how do I combine different matters such as teaching and research, how do I deal with supervisors or colleagues who may often be difficult, how do I provide proper supervision without having to spend too much time in doing so, how do I deal with tough competition in the world of science, how do I deal with difficult forms of collaboration, and how do I chart my own career path and ensure that I am successful?

What makes this career development policy successful?

Working on personal development at an early stage enables young scientists to anticipate better what is required to become successful.

The training sessions make the problem areas easier to discuss. For instance, insecurity that only a small percentage will ultimately be able to continue their career at the VUmc plays a role for doctoral candidates and postdocs. Clear and fair expectations about one’s future prospects coupled with a clear view of one’s own qualities puts doctoral candidates and postdocs in a better position to chart their individual career paths.

The training sessions place emphasis on the person behind the scientist and aspects facing scientists for which to date little or no support has been provided. Evaluations have revealed that there is a great need for this.

Professional trainers, who have a scientific background and know the world of science inside out, provide the training sessions.

How is it organised?

- Enter into contact with the Board, research directors and professors
- Organise meetings with Human Research Management (HRM) to inform scientists about
the programme
- Invite professors to take part
- Offer professors individual coaching as well
- Start with a small group and ensure that participants spread the word
- Seek to link up with deans and professors who are leaders in their field
- Organise return sessions

What is the most difficult aspect of this approach?

The change in culture required to create a successful career development policy. Training programmes aimed at developing scientific skills are generally well supported. Personal skills training programmes regrettably are not yet widely accepted.

Why is it important to invest in young talent?

Investing in personal development will have a permanent impact on well-being, balance and job satisfaction, which in turn will benefit effectiveness and productivity.

The VU Medical Centre seeks to develop that talent because the employees as well as the VUmc will benefit. Based on its responsibility as a good employer, VUmc aims to offer scientists who are unable to further their career in science after having obtained their doctorate or post-doctorate, sufficient opportunities to continue their career elsewhere. An employee who looks back positively on VUmc can act as an ambassador for VUmc. Scientists could possibly also continue their career in another capacity or at other VUmc locations and still be extremely valuable to the organisation.

Why was the PhD programme structured in this manner?

In the employee satisfaction survey career prospects score moderately among doctoral candidates and postdocs. To climb out of the dip, a new method was sought to instil more confidence in the relevant target groups about their career prospects, enabling them to work on their personal leadership skills and help shape their own future better.

What are the future plans?

Due to the success of the first training programmes, the range of training programmes offered will be expanded and an increasing number of tailored training programmes will be held for research groups. Newly developed training programmes, such as Collaboration and 'politics' in the world of science - from island to archipelego' and 'The critic unmasked' serve to illustrate the above.

The first training programme teaches scientists how to improve collaboration and to deal with a competitive environment in the world of science. The second training programme focuses on how to deal with criticism, including self-criticism, and the high pressure scientists impose upon themselves. Since September 2010 training programmes for senior researchers and professors are also offered.