In this episode of the Clinician Researcher Podcast, host Dr. Toyosi Onwuemene explores the immense value of attending career development programs outside your home institution, focusing particularly on the AAMC Mid-Career Faculty Meeting. Dr. Onwuemene discusses how stepping out of your institutional culture can broaden your career outlook and equip you with the tools necessary for long-term success in academic medicine.
Key Takeaways:
- Targeted Career Development for Faculty: The AAMC offers programs specifically designed for academic medical faculty. These programs address the real-world needs of faculty members across different career stages.
- Breaking Away to Focus on You: The importance of physically stepping away from your daily routine to concentrate solely on your career.
- Gaining Perspectives Beyond Your Institution: Your institution has its own culture and set ways of thinking. By attending external career development programs, you can benefit from fresh perspectives that challenge and complement your institutional experiences.
- Psychological Safety to Discuss Challenges: External programs provide a psychologically safe space to openly discuss challenges without the internal politics of your institution.
- Access to Senior Faculty: These programs give you the unique chance to interact with senior faculty members from different institutions. This access is often more open and intimate compared to your home institution.
- Learning New Information: At these events, you’re likely to learn critical career development information that you might not encounter in your day-to-day work. These big-picture insights often come from faculty who take a step back from minutiae and share strategies for long-term career success.
- Increase your networks. At these events, you not only get to network with peers but also with senior faculty who could serve as mentors, coaches, and sponsors.
Final Thought: Career development programs outside your institution provide a unique opportunity to step back, assess your career, and make informed decisions that align with your long-term goals.
Call to Action: If you haven’t already, check out the AAMC’s career development opportunities and consider attending one that aligns with your career stage and goals. It’s a powerful investment in your professional future!
Sponsor/Advertising/Monetization Information:
This episode is sponsored by Coag Coach LLC, a leading provider of coaching resources for clinicians transitioning to become research leaders. Coag Coach LLCis committed to supporting clinicians in their scholarship.
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