Week of March 4th, 2024

Pathology & Laboratory Medicine Graduate Program & PDF Newsletter

Useful information for Graduate Students & PDFs in Pathology and their Supervisors.

EVENTS THIS WEEK (see below for more information) :

March 6th - PaSA Comprehensive Examination Workshop

March 7th - FOM Building the Future - Research Trainee Day and Lecture Series

PaSA: PATHOLOGY STUDENT ASSOCIATION (pasa@pathology.ubc.ca)

Find Us: Twitter @UBCPathologySA| Instagram @ubcpasa|Facebook at UBC Pathology Students Association

SLACK: https://join.slack.com/t/pathologystud-ogs6617/shared_invite/zt-1arrr1g5h-cGsWP~ZuDFOGwJcuh4wxDA

Events:

PaSA is thrilled to announce an upcoming online event focused on providing invaluable insights into the PhD comprehensive examination. Mark your calendars for March 6th from 4:00pm - 5:00pm, where Dr. Helene Cote will kick off the session with an in-depth review of how the comp exams work and what students can expect. Following Dr. Cote's presentation, we have an incredible panel of students (Lindsay Pallo, Fang Fang Li, and Juhee Oh) lined up to share their first-hand experiences, feedback, and expert tips on conquering the comps. Plus, we'll have an open floor for questions, ensuring you leave with all your queries addressed. Don't miss out on this opportunity to ace your comps—register now and secure your spot! Sign up here.

Meetings:

PaSA invites everyone to join the next PaSA Meeting which will be held on Tuesday, March 12th at 4:30pm via Zoom. 

Join Zoom Meeting
https://ubc.zoom.us/j/63631399673?pwd=OUwrMEY3L0s0NEJjMjVqVnZhRndIZz09 

Meeting ID: 636 3139 9673
Passcode: 628541

GRADUATE STUDENTS & PDFS

Faculty of Graduate & Postdoctoral Studies:

GradUpdate In this issue: Public Scholars Initiative Info Session, Launch Your Career in Canada, Creating Accessible Open Education Resources, Open Publishing with Scalar, Writing a Literature Review, and more.

Launch Your Career in Canada
Online and in-person | various dates and times, Mar 11 - 14
Learn more, register, or watch past presentations. Sessions include:

• Monday, March 11 | 12 - 1:30 pm | Pathways to Post Graduate Work Permit and Staying in Canada after Graduation
• Tuesday, Mar 12 | 6 - 7 pm | Path to Professional Success: Your First Canadian Work Experience
• Wednesday, Mar 13 | 12 – 1 pm | The Art of Building Connections
• Thursday, Mar 14 | 6 - 8 pm | Ask Hiring Managers and Alumni How to Get Recruited

Writing Your Diversity/Inclusion Statement for the Academic Job Market
Online CIRTL webinar | Friday, Mar 15 | 1 - 2 pm Register

Share your Experiences of Health & Wellbeing as an International Student
Are you an international student at UBC? Share your experiences of health and wellbeing by completing an anonymous and confidential survey. You can enter for a chance to win a $25.00 gift card. Deadline is Mar 24.

Three Minute Thesis (3MT) competition

The Three Minute Thesis (3MT) is an academic competition that assists current graduate students with fostering effective presentation and communication skills. Participants have just three minutes to explain the breadth and significance of their research project to a non-specialist audience. This year’s competition dates have been set for 2024:

• Open Heats: Tuesday, March 5, from 3 – 5 pm or Thursday, March 7, 10 am – 12 pm
• Students from any discipline are welcome to present in the Open Heats. These are particularly helpful for students whose programs are not hosting heats. We’d love to see participation from Arts and Education!
• Semi-finals: Tuesday, March 12, 10 am – 12 pm and 3 – 5 pm, in-person (with online option)
• Final: Thursday, March 14, 5 – 7 pm, Thea’s Lounge (with online option)

Students are welcome and encouraged to book a 20 min personal presentation feedback session. Even if they are just considering presenting, this can help shape their 3MT! Jan 25 - Mar 6, various dates and times. Register.

Faculty of Medicine:

The Faculty of Medicine are excited to announce the annual event Building the Future- Research Trainee Day and Lecture Series! This event will bring members of the Faculty of Medicine together to share and learn the diverse and innovative research work of graduate students and postdoctoral fellows.

Date: Thursday, March 7

Time: 8:30am - 4:00pm PST

Location: UBC Life Sciences Centre

GENERAL ATTENDEE REGISTRATION (Deadline: February 29, 2024)

Registration is now open for all! To register, please click HERE.

If you have questions regarding this event, please contact  med.gradpostdoc@ubc.ca.

Move UBC Events for FOM Trainees

Check out the Move UBC calendar for events all month long, including free fitness classes, Active Wear Wednesdays, and special events!

Professional Development:

Research Computing Training for Western Universities

Link to sign-up and listing of all upcoming webinars here.

Version control with Git online course - March 21 @ 10:00am register here.

CJUR Journal Review Board

The Canadian Journal of Undergraduate Research (CJUR) is currently seeking highly articulate and self-motivated graduate students and researchers from all fields to join our journal’s review board.

Reviewers will have the opportunity to give feedback on student submissions and help in deciding whether a submission moves to publication.

More Information and Registration Form https://ubc.ca1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_3qRafhhqu6JZvp4.

UBC Library Research Commons Newsletter - February

UBC Library Public Events -  “Introduction to Git and GitHub” March 20, Register

GRADUATE STUDENTS

Faculty of Graduate & Postdoctoral Studies:

Mental Health Literacy

Online, on demand Canvas course | Enrol

Check out the Wellbeing Training and Education available.

BIPOC Community of Care Circle

A space for Black, Indigenous and/or People of Colour to gather within the UBC community and discuss their experiences with one another.

In-person | Every other Wednesday, Feb 7 - Apr 3 | 5 - 7 pm | Email to register | Topics include:

• Feb 7 - Mental Health
• Feb 21 - Radical Love and Pleasure Activism
• Mar 6 - Institutional Harm and Community Justice
• Mar 20 - Allyship
• Apr 3 - Community Care 2

Grad Student Support Group

Feeling overwhelmed, stuck, or challenged in balancing work & life? This support group is for grad students to connect in a non-judgmental & welcoming space to help navigate the unique challenges of grad school.

In-person | Wednesdays | 3 - 4:15 pm | Learn more and register

Deadline Reminder for Spring 2024 Graduation

PhD:

FRIDAY, MARCH 22, 2024 - Last Day for Final Doctoral Oral Examination

FRIDAY, APRIL 19, 2024* - Acceptance of final, approved doctoral dissertation by Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies

MSc:

FRIDAY, MARCH 22, 2024 - Last Day for Final Master's Oral Examination

FRIDAY, APRIL 19, 2024* - Acceptance of final, approved master's thesis by Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies

* It normally takes a minimum of five business days for your thesis to be reviewed after you submit it to cIRcle. Please plan ahead for this and check your email in case you are asked to make corrections. Your submission is not complete and you will not meet deadlines until your thesis has been approved, and you have received an official email receipt.

Student Support Services

Grad Student Support Group

In-person | Wednesdays, Jan 10 - Apr 3 | 3 - 4:15 pm Register

Awards

Friedman Award for Scholars in Health

The Friedman Award for Scholars in Health is open to any UBC graduate student or medical resident studying in the area of health. ‘Health’ is interpreted very broadly, and includes health promotion and disease prevention, mental health research, laboratory sciences related to medicine or health, public health, health services research, or any area intended to impact human health. Applicants do not need to be studying in a health-related degree to be eligible to apply.

Awards of up to $50,000 each will be granted for 6 to 12 months of study outside of Western Canada. Friedman Scholars are expected to travel to other areas of Canada and the world to seek new perspectives, initiate new collaborations with experts in their fields and be exposed to different cultures. The award amount will be at the discretion of the adjudication committee.

Application Deadline: 13 March 2024 at 4:00 pm PT

For further information about this award opportunity, including eligibility requirements and application procedures, please visit: https://www.grad.ubc.ca/awards/friedman-award-scholars-health.

PALM Trainee Virtual & In-Person Conference Graduate Awards

The PALM GPS Program invites applications for PhD graduate students to present their work at international conferences. Each virtual award will be valued at ~$250.00 each and each in-person award will be valued at ~$1,000.00. The awards will be split over 2 cycles; cycle 1 for January through June, and cycle 2 for July through December.  More information including eligibility and the application are included here.

Cycle 1 application deadline: April 1, 2024

Professional Development

UBC Bioimaging Facility

The UBC Bioimaging Facility provides microscopy access, training and service to researchers across and beyond UBC.

• Optical microscope infrastructure for light/fluorescence, confocal, multi-photon,and live-cell imaging.
• Electron microscopy infrastructure and advanced sample preparation including cryo-preparation for electron microscopy, routine SEM and TEM, Cryo-SEM, Cryo-TEM, TEM tomography, Correlative Light and Electron Microscopy (CLEM), and CryoFIB-SEM.
• Training and technical support for users from diverse research disciplines from life sciences to material sciences.

More information can be found here.

Graduate Instructional Skills Workshops
In-person | March 16, 23 & 24 | 9 am - 5:30 pm | Apply by Mar 13.

Check out additional upcoming ISWs.

Course Opportunities

Recommended Course Opportunities:

PATH 548L (3 CREDITS)  - EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN & CONSIDERATIONS FOR DATA  COLLECTION, PRESENTATION, ANALYSIS & INTERPRETATION

(Runs Apr – June) This course will provide students with insight about study design, data collection, data presentation, data analysis, and data interpretation. Course Coordinators: Dr. Helene Cote & Dr. Andrew Roth

Course Objectives:

• Design a study and an analysis plan
• Identify sources of error, variability, and bias
• Present data transparently and informatively
• Perform simple statistical analyses using statistical software
• Read the scientific literature critically
• Know when and how to interact with a biostatistician

If you would like to register, please contact the Graduate Program Coordinator Heather Cheadle.

POST-DOCTORAL FELLOWS

Awards

A comprehensive List of awards for PDF's can be found here: https://www.postdocs.ubc.ca/awards-funding

Applying for funding

Please visit Funding Opportunities for a listing of funding opportunities that may be available to you.

Some funding opportunities require institutional endorsement of applications. Unless otherwise specified, please follow the procedures outlined in the UBC Signature Policy: Application for Research Funding.

Support for Postdocs

For the most up-to-date information pertaining to postdoctoral fellows, visit the PDFO website where you will find answers to frequently asked questions (FAQs) related to appointments, immigration, professional development, Tri-Agency funding, and more.

The PDFO has transitioned all upcoming professional development events to an online format. Information about upcoming professional development sessions can be found on the PDFO website. Additional online PD resources can be found on the PDFO website.

SUPERVISORS

Faculty of Medicine Adjudication Opportunities

The FOM are hosting Faculty of Medicine 3 MT thesis Heat for graduate students during the main annual event Building the Future event – Research Trainee Day on Thursday, March 7 at Life Sciences Centre. 20 graduate students from different graduate programs are presenting their research in 3MT thesis format. The selected top presenters will move to the UBC 3MT thesis semi-finals.

They are looking for two faculty members to help us with the adjudication of this session.

9:45 - 11:45   Faculty of Medicine 3MT Thesis HEAT (LSC 1002)

If you are able to assist please reach out to Richa Sharma directly at richag.sharma@ubc.ca . 

International Students: Considerations regarding increased financial requirement for study permits

Regular study permit applicants: Applicants can use various options to show proof of funds to meet the $20,635 + tuition + travel costs, such as bank account statements, award letters issued by UBC, receipts from deposit payments etc. If a research program were to issue an award letter totaling $40,000 to an applicant, the applicant can reference the award offer in their letter of explanation to IRCC with details about the amount of the first year tuition fees, the cost of flight ticket plus living cost of $20,635 to ensure visa officers understand they meet the minimum financial requirement (if that is the case).

Postdoctoral Fellows seeking Positions

We are posting potential student CV's on our website on our Students Seeking Supervisors page. If you are looking for students, please feel free to review the CV's and check back here often.  Among our posted CV's we have strong students from Canada and other countries, including students from McGill,  SFU, U of Ottawa, UCSD, ICL, and UBC who are looking for Supervisors.

If you are contacted by a strong student, but are unable to recruit them, please ask the student whether they would like their CV added to our website and refer them to the Graduate Program Coordinator . 

PROGRAM COORDINATOR & GRAD ADVISOR CORNER

👀 Please explore our Program Website for guidance, including  tips on planning your MSc Examination here.

🍵WEEKLY Program Coordinator Virtual Open Office Hours* - If you need advice, have an issue, or just want to chat, Heather will be hosting a one-hour virtual open office every week on Thursday from 1:00am - 2:00pm . Feel free to stop by here: 

Join Zoom Meeting
https://ubc.zoom.us/j/62812937886?pwd=Q0V2eGtJNTVidnJiSU5pVkQ3R2tFQT09

Meeting ID: 628 1293 7886
Passcode: 680021

I am also available in-person in my office at UBC Hospital Koerner Pavilion in room G109A on Mondays.

PALM Student Representatives:

If you know someone who wants to receive this newsletter, advertise an event, or if you have any ideas for how to improve the newsletter, let us know at heather.cheadle@pathology.ubc.ca . We are always accepting content including photos for upcoming newsletters -- just email us!