Explore Employment Committee Resources and Workshops

By Chelsea Sharon and Amit Vishwas on behalf of the Employment Committee

In the lead up to the AAS January meeting, the Committee on Employment invites you to explore some of the resources we provide to the AAS community, both at the meeting and throughout the year! We're excited to bring you a wealth of online resources and upcoming events designed to support your career journey. Whether you're seeking guidance on job searches, professional development, or networking opportunities, we have plenty to explore.

While you might be familiar with the Job Register, the AAS Careers page hosts information on a variety of employment topics for all career stages. For our undergraduate members, there is a long list of summer research opportunities to explore. Or if you find yourself frequently fielding questions from high school students interested in astronomy careers, we have recently updated a detailed description of the skills, educational background, and career path options that you can pass along to prospective young astronomers. The Career Resources page has useful compilations of advice, such as

Astronomy-powered careers.
Image Credit: AAS Committee on Employment

networking and job hunting in general. If you are serving on the hiring side of employment, we also have resources on best practices in equitable hiring with references. If you’re considering careers outside of academia, but aren’t sure where to start, we have an extensive archive of Panel Discussions on the AAS YouTube channel, as well written profiles on astronomy-powered careers. 

If you can’t find what you’re looking for, please reach out to anyone on the Employment Committee, and we’ll see what we can do to help! We are always open to suggestions about new resources we can provide the community, and we aim to support all types of careers paths in astronomy and beyond. 

For those attending the Winter Meeting in National Harbor, the Employment Committee is putting on two workshops that you could benefit from:

• "How To Give Great Presentations: A Scientist’s Guide to Effective Communication” on Saturday January 11th from 9am to 5pm. If you’re nervous about giving your first talk at an AAS meeting, this workshop would be particularly timely for you! 
• "Effective Project Management for Everyone: How to Get Things Done” on Sunday January 12th from 8am until noon. This workshop will cover many of the tools and best practices for project management that astronomers can adopt from our friends in industry! So if you are  struggling to juggle multiple projects, are applying to faculty positions and want to have skills in place to manage your group, or are thinking about transitioning to industry and want to learn some useful skills for outside academia, this workshop is for you! 

And don’t forget about the Beyond Academe career panel and roundtable discussion groups during the meeting on Tuesday the 14th at 2pm and 3:30pm, respectively! We have a diverse line up of panelists, including folks from the world of philanthropy, science communication, aerospace, and data science. The more personal and informal roundtable discussions after the panel are a great avenue to network and explore ideas for professional growth. The roundtables also include people from traditional academic roles and at different types of institutions, such as folks working at observatories, primarily undergraduate institutions, nonprofits, and public outreach institutions, so there is something for everyone.

In addition to these workshops and roundtables, there is a whole host of other pre-meeting workshops you can sign up for. Topics include data science skills, specific telescope tools, proposal writing, classroom teaching, and more! If you didn’t sign up for a workshop when you first registered, you can still add one. 

• Follow the meeting registration link, log in, scroll all the way down to the workshops, and click on the “Add” button to add them to your shopping cart. 
• Proceed to checkout, enter the payment information and submit. You will see the confirmation page and receive an email when registered.

We encourage you to explore the Employment Committee resources at the AAS meeting if you are attending, and online if you are not. Let's connect, learn, and grow together! You can find the contact information of the Employment Committee on the AAS website here.