Early Career Professional Subcommittee

The Early Career Professionals Subcommittee (ECPSC) is committed to providing resources to help improve the outcomes of early career professionals in the materials science community. They aim to develop programs and support early career researchers in the materials sciences across all career trajectories, including academia, national laboratories and industry professionals.

Since its start in 2019, the ECPSC has developed a variety of programming including career focused poster sessions, broader impact symposia and panel discussions at the MRS Meetings as well as webinar series and publications.

Chair: Babak Anasori, Purdue University
Co-Chair: Zachary David Hood, Argonne National Laboratory
HQ Liaison: Sandra Thompson, MRS Member Engagement Representative

Roster

ECPSC Programming

Meet the New Faculty Candidates Poster Session

The Meet the New Faculty Candidates Poster Session is typically held annually at the MRS Fall Meeting and Exhibit. It provides a platform for faculty candidates to develop their statements of research and teaching/pedagogy as well as the opportunity to network with other candidates, meeting attendees and search committee members.

Please visit the upcoming Fall Meeting page for submission details.

Meet the New Research Hires Poster Session

The Meet the New Research Hires Poster Session is typically held annually at the MRS Spring Meeting and Exhibit. It offers an opportunity for those seeking a post-doc, national lab, or industry position to network with other young professionals and present their accomplishments to recruiters and hiring managers.

Please visit the upcoming Spring Meeting page for submission details.

Webinars

The ECPSC has developed various webinar series focused on a variety of career development topics including:

Career Paths in Materials Science
The Job Application and Interview Process
Grant Proposal Writing (Applied and Basic)
Mentoring

Please visit the MRS Career Central page for archived career-themed webinars.

Please also visit the MRS Presents Webinar Series page to view our upcoming webinars.

Broader Impact Programming and Panel Discussions

Typically held at the MRS Fall Meeting and Exhibit, these programs are geared toward the next generation of professionals in academia and industry with a focus on different aspects of career development. Past topics have included:

Career Paths
Faculty applications
Job applications
Grant proposal writing
Research article writing
Teaching methods
Mentoring

Please visit the upcoming Fall Meeting page for details on future broader impact programming.

Publications

See the ECPSC’s recent article in MRS Bulletin: Critical parameters in the faculty application process: A data-driven analysis.