Edward F. Lener

Redesigning Workflows and Implementing Demand-Driven Acquisition at Virginia Tech: One Year Later

Part of the Library and Information Science Commons An indexed, print copy of the Proceedings is also available for purchase at: http://www.thepress.purdue.edu/series/ charleston. You may also be interested in the new series, Charleston Insights in Library, Archival, and Information Sciences. Find out more at: http://www.thepress.purdue.edu/series/charleston-insights-library-archival-and-information-sciences.

Research Involving Human Subjects and Animals and Biohazards and Laboratory Safety

Researchers should understand the ethical principles, laws, regulations, and university policies undergirding research with human subjects, animals, biohazards, hazardous chemicals, and laboratory safety. Human subjects research requires approval of Institutional Review Boards, compliant with the Code of Federal Regulations. Animal research requires protocols compliant with the US Animal Welfare Act, as codified in the Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals, and approved by an Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee. Research with recombinant or synthetic nucleic acid molecules must comply with National Institutes of Health (NIH) guidelines, as overseen by institutional biosafety committees that also oversee research with microbiological hazards, as regulated by the NIH and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Radiation safety officers and radiation safety committees oversee research with radioactive chemicals and radiation hazards. University environmental health and safety offices are charged with oversight of dangerous and toxic chemicals, and laboratory safety.

Chapter 4 – Time Management

Productive researchers require time management, which includes planning and methods for organizing and executing plans. The plans revolve about goals: lifetime, intermediate, and short term. Goals should be written, clear, and measurable. A list of intermediate and short-term goals becomes a To Do List that is prioritized according to importance and pursued accordingly because 80% of researchers’ goals are achieved by completing 20% of the most important ones. Staying goal- and priority-oriented is aided by effective organization of research and scholarly work. The interventions include: focusing on work during times of greatest mental acuity, organizing workspace areas, learning routines for ordering supplies, bookmarking responsible conduct of research websites, engaging the time of undergraduate researchers productively, and taking time to promote creative thought. Identifying and eliminating time wasters reinforces planning, priority setting, organizing efforts, and achieving goals, including effective communications and wise use of social media and interactions.

The Graduate Researcher and Teaching

Learning to teach well enhances communication skills. Moreover, graduate researchers with teaching skills fare better in hypothesis generation and research design. Becoming a good teacher is also essential for those researchers anticipating a career in academia, where teaching responsibilities will generally increase, going from highly research-intensive universities to comprehensive universities, to community colleges. Excellent teachers are known for their accessibility, kindliness, openness to students’ views, and clarity in course objectives and policies. Building teaching skills may begin with service as a teaching assistant, which may provide a self-discovery understanding that the attributes of great teachers are complementary to the traits of notable researchers, especially in becoming well prepared and well organized, conveying enthusiasm, being professional, approachable and relaxed, understanding different learning styles, and becoming a more critical thinker. Teaching skills can be refined by taking advantage of centers for teaching excellence now in operation within many universities.

Writing and Speaking Skills

Graduate researchers need approaches and styles that will enhance their effectiveness in written and oral communications. Improvement requires attention to the elements of good writing, methods for improving writing skills, and tips on writing specific pieces. Writing is aided by outlines, revising and rewriting, avoiding jargon, using university writing centers, and developing a “writing friends” system. Protocols for texting, emailing, and preparing notes, memos, and letters are useful when used appropriately. In research, data management and organization of notebooks are aided by software, including so-called electronic laboratory notebooks. Reports and related efforts such as research articles benefit from approaches that include general outline questions, tabulating and graphing results, well accepted approaches and formats for text and referencing, and limiting speculation. A schema can be used in preparing book and journal reviews. Oral communications are assisted by a unique style, considering the needs of others, listening skills, and gravitas.

Chapter 1 – Getting Started

Entering graduate school marks a turning point in many lives. Graduate education is designed for individual development and growth. With commitment, hard work, and some guidance, students become independent scholars and researchers. For many, the choice of attending graduate school begins with independent exploration as a baccalaureate student, including opportunities to engage in undergraduate research. Choosing a particular graduate program is also important and there is value in putting choices into a global perspective. Guidance is available for choosing graduate institutions and programs, including programs outside the United States. For illustrative purposes short biographical sketches have been included for three students who studied in doctoral programs in Australia and the United Kingdom. Assuming acceptance and enrollment into a program nationally or abroad, insight is provided on who’s who and what’s what in graduate research units and universities.

Shaping a Career

Career planning should begin in graduate school. Thinking 5 or 10 years ahead is helpful in attaining career goals. The planning efforts are augmented by individual development plans (IDPs). One Internet-based program, dubbed myIDP, can be used for self-assessment, judging destination options, setting goals, and designating a mentoring team. The destination options may include higher education institutions, government agencies, and corporate (profit and nonprofit) agencies. There is also merit in exploring opportunities within different sectors, including potential advancement through supervisory, management, and administrative roles. Career planners should also consider possible shifts of employment, from one sector to another. In all cases, development as an “integrated professional” – broadly educated in the liberal arts, possessing focused learning skills, and understanding how breadth and depth come together in myriad fields – reinforced by an interdisciplinary orientation, a commitment to dynamic life-long learning, and an understanding of strategic planning – will provide abundant career rewards.

Chapter 3 – Making Choices

Becoming a creative researcher involves choices, including fields and types of research, advisors, role models and support, graduate program components, a research problem, and thesis or dissertation committee members. The research choice may include personal interests, aptitudes, and career goals involving considerations of the basic or applied aspects of the work, along with its social importance and personal meaning. The problem should also include considerations of its interdisciplinary and translational characteristics. Choosing an advisor should include considerations of scientific accomplishments and reputation, a dedication to students’ holistic development, laboratory infrastructure, organization and management, research support, enthusiasm for science, and sensitivity to advancing women and members of underrepresented groups. There are also benefits to choosing role models from among faculty members, postdoctoral fellows, and senior peers. Other choices include financial support from teaching or research assistantships or fellowships, a research problem, and curricular or other educational opportunities supporting career goals.

Virginia Tech’s Participation in ASERL’s Cooperative Print Journal Retention Project

Follow this and additional works at: https://docs.lib.purdue.edu/charleston An indexed, print copy of the Proceedings is also available for purchase at: http://www.thepress.purdue.edu/series/charleston. You may also be interested in the new series, Charleston Insights in Library, Archival, and Information Sciences. Find out more at: http://www.thepress.purdue.edu/series/charleston-insights-library-archivaland-information-sciences.

Never Let a Serials Crisis Go to Waste: Building Support for Library Collections at Virginia Tech

Follow this and additional works at: https://docs.lib.purdue.edu/charleston An indexed, print copy of the Proceedings is also available for purchase at: http://www.thepress.purdue.edu/series/charleston. You may also be interested in the new series, Charleston Insights in Library, Archival, and Information Sciences. Find out more at: http://www.thepress.purdue.edu/series/charleston-insights-library-archivaland-information-sciences.