Front Range Industry & Postdoc Summit Announced

By Benjamin Nault | PAC President
The Postdoctoral Association of Colorado (PAC) Boulder and the NIST Postdoctoral Early-Career Association of Researchers (PEAR) are happy to announce the first annual Front Range Industry and Postdoc Summit (FRIPS). Our two organizations wanted to ensure that postdocs learn about opportunities outside of academia, as only a small fraction of postdocs will gain a tenured position in academia. However, many industries are looking for postdoctoral talent, as it improves the research and products.
FRIPS will take place from 12 pm – 4:45pm on September 27, 2018 at the Sustainability, Energy, and Environment Community (SEEC) building on the CU Boulder campus. The half-day conference will provide an opportunity for postdocs to learn about alternative careers outside of academia. During FRIPS, postdocs will be able to meet with scientists and human resource representatives from various industries along the Front Range. The industries will cover the fields of optical sciences; biomedical, chemical, and materials sciences; environment, aerospace, and engineering; and, information technology, computer science, and data science.
A two hour social/networking event will start around 5pm at FATE Brewery.
One aspect we are most excited about is the poster session, where postdocs can show off their work to industrial representatives. Our goal is to create collaborations between industry and academia. The industrial representatives will select the best posters in the four fields, and the winners will receive recognition and a prize. Also, we strongly encourage reusing a poster you have presented at other conferences.
If you are interested, or you are unsure and want to learn about what you can bring to industry, please consider signing up to attend the event. It is a free event (lunch provided). Also, if you do not have a poster you want to present, we still encourage you to attend.
We hope to see you at the Front Range Industry and Postdoc Summit (FRIPS) on September 27th. Registration is now open.