Dear colleagues,
Please share the announcement below about the "To My Younger Self" mentoring program, sponsored by the INFORMS DEI Ambassadors program, with your students. We are seeking applications from women-identifying Ph.D. students in their third (or later), but not final, year of doctoral studies. Applications are due February 15, 2022.
****
"To My Younger Self" (TMYS) is an INFORMS DEI Ambassadors project, which provides professional development to women-identifying doctoral students through a tiered set of activities that allows them to interact with more experienced women in the field. We call this program "To My Younger Self" because we imagine the invited workshop facilitators, mentors and panelists will provide the sort of mentoring and professional development coaching they wish they had received earlier in their careers.
At the end of the year-long program, participants will 1) Form a community of peer women across institutions; 2) Have a network of connections with senior women across institutions that they will recognize as mentors and advocates; 3) Be equipped with professional and self-care skills; 4) Feel confident in their abilities to succeed in our profession.
Four short virtual workshops will be held throughout the year, each on a different topic, for example: mental health and wellness, developing your professional network, applying for jobs, family life, grant proposal writing and editorial work, and overcoming the imposter syndrome. TYMS will offer paired mentoring for the students. Mentors will be selected from established women in our profession with a track record of excellent mentorship. Students will participate in a series of research talks to present their research to the group to get high level feedback and practice presentation skills. Participants, mentors and panelists participating in the 2022 INFORMS Annual Meeting will be invited to a celebratory dinner to conclude the program. This will give participants the chance to meet face-to-face, solidify their professional relationships and build community. The program will offer a small amount of travel support to offset student participant costs to attend the Annual Meeting.
The Ambassadors and the primary contacts are Susan Martonosi, Professor of Mathematics at Harvey Mudd College in Claremont, CA (martonosi@g.hmc.edu), and Banafsheh Behzad, Associate Professor of Information Systems in California State University, Long Beach (banafsheh.behzad@csulb.edu).
We invite applicants for TMYS 2022. We are specifically interested in women-identifying PhD students in their third (or greater) year, but not final year, who are interested to continue their journey into academia. We encourage applications from students whose academic programs lack a formal mentoring component, as well as students from underrepresented groups. Application must be received by Feb. 15, 2022 and should be completed through https://forms.gle/n9k4Tr3Cptzb5D2Q6. Click or tap if you trust this link." data-linkindex="2">this form (https://forms.gle/n9k4Tr3Cptzb5D2Q6). Please attach a curriculum vitae, unofficial transcript, and a statement of purpose, stating why you are interested in joining this program, what your professional goals are, and the level of mentoring available to you at your home institution. About 10 qualified applicants will be chosen and notified by the end of February.
------------------------------
Banafsheh Behzad
Associate Professor
College of Business
California State University, Long Beach
------------------------------