Post-WIL

Two students sitting and working together

Reflect on your progress, refine your goals, and access tools to support your career journey post-applied research.

If you are nearing the end or have completed your Applied Research experience, take some time to reflect on your progress and explore essential resources on topics such as job application support, writing and communication skills, and, if of interest to you, finding a postdoc position.

Stage 1: Pre-WIL: Seeking an opportunity > Stage 2: Pre-WIL: Opportunity confirmed > Stage 3: During WIL > Stage 4: Post-WIL

Career planning and job Search support

The Centre for Career Development (CCD) offers a range of services for graduate students centered on career planning. Whether you're aiming for an academic position or exploring alternative or post-academic career paths, the CCD can assist with finding opportunities, refining your resume, participating in mock interviews, and more.

The CCD provides specialized support for job search, including for academic positions. This includes CV, resume and cover letter writing, interviews in academia and industry, and job offer negotiation. Your home department and faculty mentors can also be great resources for discipline-specific hiring practices.

How to find a postdoc opportunity

A postdoc provides an opportunity to enhance your skills and gain further experience under the guidance of an experienced researcher.

Step 1: Check eligibility requirements

Before applying for funding or contacting potential supervisors, it's important to check the eligibility criteria set by most universities. Be sure to review these guidelines and confirm that you meet the necessary requirements. For example, you can refer to the University of Waterloo postdoc guidelines.

Step 2: Understand funding models

Familiarizing yourself with different funding models will help you explore your options and approach potential supervisors appropriately. If, after reviewing funding models, you decide to seek your own funding for a postdoc position, begin researching and applying for available funding opportunities.

Step 3: Confirm work requirements

If you are considering a postdoc position outside your home country, be sure to research visa requirements and work permit applications. For example, in Canada, international candidates need a work permit before starting a postdoc, unless they are Canadian residents. Understanding the processing timelines for work permits is crucial, as it will allow you to set a realistic start date if a supervisor is interested in hiring you.

Step 4: Find a supervisor

Once you’ve confirmed your eligibility, understood funding models, and are either securing your own funding or searching for a supervisor with available funding, you can start reaching out to potential supervisors. Review tips for finding a potential supervisor professionally and effectively.

Step 5: Review next steps

If you receive a postdoc offer, the next step is to review the offer details carefully. We’ve provided resources on our webpage for incoming postdocs to help you evaluate your offer and determine your next steps.

Self-reflection

Congratulations on completing your applied research experience! Completing your WIL experience is a great accomplishment and you should take the time to recognize your achievements and reflect on how this experience informs your career plans.

Below are some reflection prompts to support you in critically reflecting on your experience and kickstart planning for what lies in store for you post-graduation.

  • What were your overarching goals and expectations of your applied research? Did these goals and expectations change, and how so?
  • Who were the stakeholders and collaborators in your applied research project, and how did they shape your experience and contribute to your project?
    • How might you stay connected with the contacts you made through your applied research experience? How might you connect with other academics/researchers conducting applied research?
  • What types of skills and knowledge did you develop within your applied research experience and how did they contribute to the project?
    • To support you with logging the skills and knowledge you developed in your experience, you can fill out the future ready talent framework goal-setting chart.
    • What skillsets and knowledge would you like to develop further, and what improvements would you like to work on? You can log those in the FRTF goal-setting chart as well.
  • What are some of the major impacts/outcomes achieved within your applied research experience, and how do these impacts reflect your career values?
    • Do these outcomes reflect the outcomes you initially planned at the beginning of the experience?
    • What kinds of challenges did you encounter, and how did you address and manage these challenges?
  • Considering the connections, skills, and knowledge you gained, how has your applied research experience informed potential career paths for you?
    • Do you wish to continue conducting applied research in academia? If so, how might you articulate that in future academic applications? If not, how would you articulate this experience to both academic and non-academic employers?
  • Overall, how has your applied research experience shaped and further informed your:
    • What values and needs do you look for in a job/organization to feel you have a meaningful and satisfying career?
    • Impact(s) you’d like to have in your career (or in the next career opportunity)?
    • Types of work you’d like to do to accomplish the impacts you’re invested in?
    • Skills and knowledge you’d like to use everyday and would like to develop?
  • In regard to your career, what are your post-graduation plans and the immediate next steps that you need to commit to? What support do you need to work towards those next steps and be held accountable for these commitments? To support your thinking about these questions, below are some prompts to think through specifics:
    • What is it that gave me energy during my applied research, and how could it continue post-graduation?
    • What is it that got me into the flow when working?
    • How did I achieve balance, and if I did not what lessons did I learn on how I can incorporate balance?
    • What would I like to add to my CV or resume to reflect this experience and the skills that I've gained?
    • What do I need to reframe when applying to different fields/jobs I am interested in?
    • What compromises am I willing to make in my post-Applied Research job search?
    • What do I need to reprioritize in my career?
    • Do I have all the tools I need to achieve my career goals? If not, how will I mobilize those tools?

Writing and communication support

Writing and Communication Centre

The Writing and Communication Centre (WCC) supports graduate students in developing as writers and communicators. Expertly designed by WCC staff, their workshops focus on essential principles of communication, encouraging reflection on your role as a communicator while building practical skills. WCC also offers a range of online resources on genres and modes of communication and features four specialized science communication workshops:

  • Introduction to STEM writing: This workshop explores the fundamentals of STEM writing, focusing on audience, context, and purpose. It covers the structure of lab reports and effective strategies for integrating quantitative data to support findings. This workshop is applicable for students new to lab reports or preparing for research-based writing.
  • Writing with quantitative data: Learn how to effectively incorporate quantitative data into your writing to create a cohesive narrative.
  • Principles of clarity in scientific writing: Master clear and concise scientific writing. This workshop teaches skills for eliminating common errors to enhance readability and precision, with hands-on examples.
  • Science communication workshop series: This series introduces the essentials of communicating technical information to non-expert audiences, covering purpose, audience, and context. Participants will learn how to effectively engage in science communication.

Find these workshops on LEARN by self-registering for the course, “WCC Workshops.”

Mitacs

Mitacs offers a series of training courses on topics relevant to graduate students. Each course bundle includes a self-paced, asynchronous module and a live virtual session. Successfully completing both components awards you an official Mitacs certificate for the course.

Included in these offerings are self-paced courses and facilitated workshops centered on enhancing communication skills:

  • Enhance your communication skills (self-paced e-learning): This asynchronous course focuses on developing effective communication skills, particularly in the private sector. You will explore core communication elements to shape project messaging, engage audiences, gain support, and secure partnerships and funding.
    • Key outcomes include identifying key communication elements and their impact on credibility, tailoring content to specific audiences and purposes, summarizing key points and explaining complex concepts clearly, understanding communication expectations in research versus private sector contexts, and developing a comprehensive communication plan, including a unique value proposition.
    • Upon completion, you are invited to self-enroll in a facilitated session.
  • Refined project communication plan (facilitated workshop): In this online workshop, you will learn to create an effective communication plan, essential for sharing your value proposition and aligning teams. Through hands-on activities, you will build your plan and collaborate with peers to evaluate and present findings.
    • Objectives include recognizing key communication components and their impact on credibility, tailoring content for specific audiences, summarizing key points and clarifying complex concepts, differentiating between communication expectations in research and industry, and creating a communication plan for your project.

To access Mitacs online courses, you will need to create an account on EDGE, the Mitacs online learning management system. To get started: 

  1. Visit the Mitacs EDGE login page.
  2. Create a new account (previous Mitacs login credentials will not work).
  3. Confirm your account by clicking the link in the verification email, which will take you back to the login page.
  4. Sign in and select "General Learner" from the Learner Affiliation drop-down list.
  5. Complete your registration by filling out the personal information page.