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For 42 years, AWIS has provided members with the lifelong benefits of leadership, learning, and networking. We hope you'll continue to rely on us to connect you to great ideas, great people, and the most comprehensive collection of resources for women in STEM found anywhere.
Check out our national array of professional development programs and time-saving publications and resources all designed with your success in mind.
In the coming months, you'll notice we're 'breaking through' with new media, on-line learning programs, and public policy initiatives that positively impact your work and your life.
In the meantime, many thanks for your continued membership.
Best Regards,
Janet Bandows Koster
AWIS Executive Director/CEO
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 Careers |
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Contributed by Ramya Natarajan
Increase Your Visibility
Career experts agree that qualifications alone are no longer enough to get you hired or advance your career; the best strategy for getting ahead is to make yourself more visible. While scientists may not be accustomed to self-promotion, they must learn to employ this technique in order to get noticed. Read these anecdotes from scientific conferences and industry trade shows which illustrate ways that scientists can raise their profile.
Stand out from the crowd
Tips for Negotiating a Higher Salary
While it's almost always possible to negotiate a higher starting pay or pay raise, most people, especially women are reluctant to push for it. The myriad of reasons include worries about jeopardizing the job offer, fear of asking, lack of self-esteem or confidence, and even apathy. But being able to effectively communicate your worth to an employer is not only important for negotiating a pay raise, but it also ensures that the employer understands the value you bring. Show me the money
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Contributed by Rachel Britt
Federal STEM Education Overhaul
The Obama administration's 2014 budget request includes sweeping reforms to federally-funded STEM education programs. The proposed reforms centralize STEM education efforts, creating a few new programs, while consolidating or ending others. The Department of Education would oversee K-12 STEM education initiatives, while the National Science Foundation would be in charge of undergraduate and graduate STEM education. Efforts to attract underrepresented groups, like women, into STEM fields would remain intact.
Recruiting Young People to STEM Fields
The U.S. Corporation for National and Community Service announced a new initiative called "STEM AmeriCorps" meant to inspire young people to enter STEM fields. STEM AmeriCorps national service members will engage students in low-income areas directly by encouraging them to participate in science competitions. The national service organization will also recruit and support STEM professionals nation-wide who volunteer their time for in-school, after-school and other academic programs.
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Contributed by Meredith Fox
Ants are Smart Commuters
Apparently ants follow the fastest-rather than the shortest-path. Jan Oettler and colleagues at the University of Regensburg, Germany, observed colonies of fire ants cross an enclosure covered with different materials (smooth and rough) to find a food source-cockroaches! Rather than taking the most direct route, the ants traveled over the smooth materials, thus shortening their travel time. Using communication and social cooperation, the ants relied on pheromone trails, which eventually converged on the fastest route over time.
How do I get downtown from here?
Scientists "Grow" Kidney
Using the scaffolding of a rat kidney, researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital have essentially grown a kidney in the laboratory. When transplanted into an animal, the kidney started to produce urine, but at low levels. Although early in development, if successful, such engineered kidneys will have high clinical impact as kidneys are the most in-demand organ for transplant.
Can anyone spare a heart?
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 Work Life Balance |
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Contributed by Becky Mercer
Be True to Yourself
Authenticity means knowing yourself, sure. But a recent blog in The Harvard Business Review reveals that authenticity also means being able to connect with those around you. So stop being/saying/doing what you think others expect you to be/say/do, and allow yourself to connect with others on a more meaningful level. In the process you will become a better leader and communicator. Being authentic also means accepting your personal history and will allow you to both develop richer relationships and avoid unrealistic expectations and assumptions.
The real deal
Make Yourself Un-comfortable to Succeed
As the world becomes more competitive, those who step out of their comfort zone might be the ones to succeed. Taking risks outside of your comfort zone encourages you to push further ahead and reminds you of your inner strength. Uncomfortable acts such as asking for a raise, taking on more challenging work assignments, applying for a leadership position, and speaking up at a meeting can stretch your confidence muscle and help you get what you want, both in life and career.
Stretch yourself
Five Ways to Rescue Your Productivity
Sometimes a day that should have been productive turns into a big flop; meetings get delayed or cancelled, experiments fail-yet again, your cell phone dies, your presentation bombs. A recent issue of Entrepreneur.com
reveals five key steps to take to avoid and recover from workday time-wasters. Steps include keeping extra phone chargers in your car and/or desk, anticipating technical emergencies and schedule cancellations, and stopping to think about how failures can fit into the big picture of your work.
Lost and found
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 Health |
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Contributed by Jaime Smith
Live Music Beneficial to Preemies
Premature births have increased to nearly 500,000 a year, which equates to one of every nine children born in the United States. A recent study conducted at Beth Israel Medical Center on the use of music as medicine found that live music, played or sung, can have profound health benefits for premature babies. The researchers concluded that live music helped to slow the infants' heart rates and respiration, improve feeding, promote better sleep patterns, and reduce stress.
Rock-a-bye baby
Surgical Errors Mean More Money for Hospitals
Hospitals are making more money contributing to errors than preventing them! A recent study published in
JAMA found that surgical errors in hospitals equate to a 330% higher profit margin compared to patients who experience no complications. The study looked at 34,256 patients who had surgery in 2010. Co-author, Barry Rosenberg, said the study's findings are proof that hospitals have no incentive to improve surgical quality.
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 Events |
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MAY 1
AWIS NY Metropolitan Chapter
MAY 2
Virtual Webinar
AWIS Massachusetts Chapter
MAY 3
AWIS Seattle Chapter
MAY 6
AWIS NY Metro Chapter
AWIS Northern California Chapters
MAY 7
AWIS Greater Cincinnati Chapter
Virtual e-Learning Webinar
MAY 8
Discount for AWIS Members
MAY 9
AWIS Massachusetts Chapter
MAY 11
AWIS St.Louis Chapter
MAY 15
AWIS Seattle Chapter
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 Opportunities |
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Fulbright Post-Doctoral Fellowship
The United States-Israel Educational Foundation (USIEF), the Fulbright commission for Israel, offers 8 fellowships to American post-doctoral researchers in support of work to be carried out at Israeli universities. This program is open to American post-doctoral researchers in all academic disciplines.
The University of Michigan College of Engineering has recently established an annual future faculty development workshop for potential women and underrepresented minority faculty members.
Eppendorf & Science Prize for Neurobiology
The Prize is awarded annually to one young scientist for the most outstanding neurobiological research based on methods of molecular and cell biology conducted by him/her during the past three years. Prize money: US$25,000 Next application deadline: June 15, 2013
Elsevier Awards for Early-Career Woman Scientists in the Developing World Candidates must be female early-career scientists (within ten years of earning their PhD degree). At nomination, candidates must have lived and worked for at least three years in one of the countries listed in the nomination form.
Recognizing mid-career level women in clean energy. $10,000 awards in six categories.
The APEC Science Prize for Innovation, Research and Education ("ASPIRE") is an annual award to recognize young scientists who have demonstrated a commitment to both excellence in scientific research, as evidenced by scholarly publication, and cooperation with scientists from other APEC member economies.
Presidential Innovation Fellows
The Presidential Innovation Fellows (PIF) program pairs top innovators from the private sector, non-profits, and academia with top innovators in government to collaborate during focused 6-12 month "tours of duty" to develop solutions that can save lives, save taxpayer money, and fuel job creation.
Calling Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Graduate Students
Have you ever thought of ways to improve STEM graduate education? Do you have a creative idea regarding graduate training? If so, NSF wants to hear from you!
Travel Award Program for Early Career Investigators
Keystone Symposia on Molecular and Cellular Biology will offer a limited number of travel awards to early career investigators at the Assistant Professor or equivalent industry scientist level.
2012-13 AWIS Star Chapter Award
The AWIS Star Chapter Award honors those chapters who have accomplished many of the key objectives outlined in the Strategic Plan. The award encourages chapters to perform specific activities designed to ensure that women in STEM fields are able to achieve their full potential.
ADVANCE Program Solicitation
Increasing the Participation and Advancement of Women in Academic Science and Engineering Careers (ADVANCE) is accepting proposals for projects that develop systemic approaches to increase the representation and advancement of women in academic STEM careers, thereby contributing to the development of a more diverse science and engineering workforce.
Marie Curie Fellowship
Have you ever wanted to do research in Europe? Apply for a Marie Curie Fellowship. The goal of the Marie Curie Fellowship is to strengthen the human potential in research and technology by stimulating people to enter into the profession of research and attracting researchers from the entire world to Europe. To apply, you must have either a doctoral degree or at least 4 years' full-time equivalent research experience, after obtaining a degree permitting you to embark on a doctorate.
Small Business Postdoctoral Research Diversity Fellowship
The Small Business Postdoctoral Research Diversity Fellowship program aims to encourage creative and highly-trained recipients of doctoral degrees in NSF-supported science, technology, engineering and mathematical disciplines to engage in hands-on research projects in their areas of expertise at the kind of small innovative businesses that historically have fueled the nation's economic regime. Each research fellow will receive a stipend of at least $75,000 plus health insurance benefits.
NSF's Career-Life Balance (CLB) Initiative
Scientists now have the opportunity to submit supplemental funding requests to support additional personnel (e.g., research technicians or equivalent). This will help sustain research when the Principal Investigator is on family leave. In FY 2012, up to 3 months of salary support may be requested (for a maximum of $12,000 in salary compensation) by CAREER awardees.
Summer Institute for Training in Biostatistics
The Summer Institute for Training in Biostatistics (SIBS) offers a comprehensive six to seven week summer training course on biostatistics with relevant examples that include data collected in studies of heart, lung, blood, and sleep disorders.
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Volunteer Spotlight
Jodi Wittlin, PhD
is a Research Associate for the Institute for Defense in Washington, DC. Jodi volunteers with the American Physical Society and serves on the Chapters Committee for AWIS.
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Equal Pay Day in San Diego
The San Diego Chapter, along with the Lawyers Club of San Diego, co-sponsored the first annual Equal Pay Day Leadership Luncheon earlier this month. Chapter president Dody Sears and executive board members Tamara Weisser and Grace Nakayama posed for a photo after the luncheon.
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Association for Women in Science
1321 Duke Street
Alexandria, Virginia 22314
awis@awis.org
(703) 894-4490
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