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What’s an Individual Development Plan and why do you need one?

Did you know that of the 70 percent of postdocs who are holding out for tenure-track faculty positions, less than 15 percent will get one?

At the Postdoctoral Affairs Office, we’re devoted to preparing ASU postdocs for this challenge by helping you explore alternative career pathways like government and industry research. We also want to arm you with resources and tools to help you be more competitive in the academic job market.

One under-utilized tool you should conisder for growing your career is an Individual Development Plan. I found my own Individual Develop Plan process to be extremely helpful in planning my career. 

What’s an Individual Development Plan?

The Individual Development Plan is a tool designed to serve as a roadmap for your career. It guides you through the discovery process of researching careers, interviewing people in those careers, setting goals and implementing your plan. These things may seem like no-brainers, but while absorbed in work we forget to tend to things like developing new skills and practicing presenting ourselves, yet this is what will set you apart and propel you forward as a candidate. 

You can find free IDP programs available online. The American Association for the Advancement of Science has one for STEM, and the Graduate Career Consortium’s Imagine PhD is geared toward those working in social science and humanities. Both incorporate self-assessments and match your results with career options.

Try this at your next PI meeting

I encourage you to spend one meeting a month talking with your PI about your skills, interests and values. Talk about where you want to go in your career and plot it out, like on a map. 

The IDP workbook we’re developing will help you do this in a systemic way. It will be available during spring 2020.