Department

PME Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering

About the Department

The Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering (PME) was established in May 2019 and evolved from the Institute for Molecular Engineering, which was founded in 2011. The PME integrates science and engineering to address global challenges from the molecular level up. The PME's rigorous academic and research programs are made possible through the University of Chicago's unique partnership with Argonne National Laboratory. The PME is the first new school at the University of Chicago in three decades and the first school in the nation dedicated to molecular engineering.  In the next growth phase as a School, the PME will continue to expand its team of world-class faculty researchers and empower students from diverse backgrounds to collaborate with faculty in cutting-edge facilities. The PME aims to bring solutions for urgent societal problems to the forefront while training the next generation of scientific leaders and entrepreneurs. 

Job Summary

The PME Senior Director of Career Development will work with a growing population of students that includes undergraduate, master's, doctoral, and postdoctoral researchers. The PME Director of Career Development will aim to position our students and post-docs to be leaders in academia, industry, and government. This role will prioritize increasing visibility of PME research, educational programs, and students with potential employers. Building and maintaining relationships with potential employers, industry partners, and alumni to facilitate job placements, internships, and cooperative education opportunities for students. The Director plays a crucial role in supporting students' professional growth and helping them transition from the academic student environment to careers in higher education, industry and government.

Responsibilities

Leads and aligns the mission and vision for PME Career Development and Employer Engagement, ensuring support for a growing school and dynamic market needs, with the aim of increasing internship and job opportunities for PME graduate students and postdoctoral researchers. Develops effective strategies to market and promote PME talent, unique training environment, and career outcomes to both employers and future students, supporting internal and external recruitment efforts.Collaborates and maintains effective partnerships with Career Advancement, UChicagoGRAD, myCHOICE, the Polsky Center, Central Corporate Engagement Office, the Biological Sciences Division, the Physical Sciences Division, other partner offices, and relevant student organizations. Aligns career development and employer engagement efforts with the PME’s educational curricula and programs to ensure integration and cohesiveness towards successful employment outcomes.Leads cross-campus discussions and partnerships with STEM units and offices, to represent and emphasize PME needs within the career development and employer engagement landscape. Engages with advisory groups across industries relating to Immunoengineering, Materials Science, and Quantum engineering, as well as alumni and industry partners, to understand the market and to place students and postdocs successfully in that market.Facilitates professional development opportunities for the broader PME student and postdoc affairs team to advance their knowledge and efforts linking educational programs to employment outcomes. Attends external meetings, conferences, and events to benchmark best practices with peers and industry partners related to trends in career and employer engagement services.Oversees and manages employer engagement strategies for the division through active cultivation, relationship management, and promotion to expand recruitment pipelines for PME master's students, doctoral students, and postdoctoral researchers. Expands the scale and impact of employer engagement initiatives for the PME through a variety of methods such as cold contacting, high-touchpoint email and telephone campaigns, leveraging alumni and faculty partnerships, industrial meetings and conferences, and LinkedIn networks.Manages and supervises staff in areas of employer engagement, working with them to successfully execute and grow efforts aligned with the PME’s strategic initiatives, including collaborating with campus partners, event and program management, marketing, employer relationship management, and outreach efforts.Partners with employers across industry, government, and nonprofits spanning immunoengineering, materials science, and quantum engineering disciplines to ensure recruitment strategies meet their needs, through direct collaboration and by offering a programming including but not limited to employer info sessions, coffee chats, on campus interviews, employer treks, career fairs, and networking events.Builds a strong regional, national, and global employer engagement presence, creating pipelines for both internships and full-time job opportunities, and incorporating the needs of a highly international student and postdoc population. Develops and executes employer-aligned professional development programming to ensure PME graduate students and postdoctoral researchers succeed in the job market.Creates and develops strategies to support the growth and success of the PME’s master’s program by partnering with staff in Academic Programs, Marketing and Communications, the Dean of Students' office, and other campus partners. Creates, follows, and tracks progress of strategic employer engagement using a targeted list of employer partners across thematic areas in partnership with Alumni Relations, Central Corporate Engagement Office, and the PME advisory board.Leads career and professional development efforts and supports services specific and tailored to engineering and applied sciences. Manages career development staff to successfully meet the needs of a growing and highly international population of graduate students and postdocs through individualized advising and customized programs.Designs, develops, and executes career and professional development programming, including but not limited to workshops, short programs, mini-courses, symposia, and working groups.Partners with the PME Office of Postdoctoral Affairs to design programming and support services for PME postdoctoral researchers. Advise Master’s students, PhD students, Postdocs, and recent alumni concerning their career trajectory, professional development, and other related matters in one-on-one, personalized advising sessions.Creates and executes programming designed to support the growing Master of Engineering program, anticipating and leading career development and employer engagement efforts to align the program to both the students' and the market's needs. Ensures career development initiatives are integrated into the PME Master's and Doctoral programs in partnership with the Dean of Students' office, as well as the academic programs staff.Tracks and analyzes outcome metrics for employer engagement activities through a post-event feedback process of both attendees and employers to assess key areas, including but not limited to internship/full-time job placement, interview placement, and job offers. Tracks and regularly reports alumni outcomes to PME and University leadership, such as the Provost's office, Dean of PME, PME advisory council, and PME’s marketing team, on a bi-annual basis through systematic processes, analyzing placement outcomes and trends. Reports and analyzes student and postdoc engagement with career programming.Researches organizations that are hiring and partners with a wide variety of employers to ensure recruitment strategies meet their needs. Maintains contact with a portfolio of employers to serve as their dedicated Career Advancement liaison.Analyzes market and trends as they relate to job searches. Assesses student feedback and evaluations and collaborates with other career services staff members, student organizations, or other staff to determine program offerings and innovations.Works independently to write timely and effective articles about career management topics for a variety of student publications. Conceptualizes, develops, and delivers career management programming and published materials.Researches organizations that are hiring and partners with a wide variety of employers to ensure recruitment strategies meet their needs. Maintains contact with a portfolio of employers to serve as their dedicated Career Advancement liaison.Performs other related work as needed.

Minimum Qualifications

Education:

Minimum requirements include a college or university degree in related field.

Work Experience:

Minimum requirements include knowledge and skills developed through 7+ years of work experience in a related job discipline.

Certifications:

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Preferred Qualifications

Education:

An advanced degree in higher education, business, physical sciences, or engineering is a plus. 

Experience:

Higher education administrative experience is a plus.

Technical Skills or Knowledge:

Proficient in counseling, career advising and career placement, corporate and recruiter engagement and knowledge of career development theory.

Preferred Competencies

Identify needs, propose, and implement solutions in administrative processes; demonstrate a high level of sensitivity and discretion when dealing with confidential situations.Familiarity with the scientific research enterprise and higher education structures highly preferred.Excellent written and oral communication skills to communicate effectively and cultivate positive working relationships with students, staff, faculty, leading and managing a team and the general public.Excellent interpersonal skills including outstanding judgment, discretion, a strong ethical approach to decision-making and a demonstrated ability to resolve conflicts fairly and diplomatically, and maintain confidentiality.Work independently, take direction, and achieve consensus.Excellent computer and organizational skills, problem-solving, and attention to detail.Manage day-to-day duties with efficiency and coordinate multiple long-term projects effectively.

Application Documents

Resume/CV (required)Cover Letter (required)

When applying, the document(s) MUST be uploaded via the My Experience page, in the section titled Application Documents of the application.

Job Family

Student Affairs & Services

Role Impact

Individual Contributor

Scheduled Weekly Hours

37.5

Drug Test Required

No

Health Screen Required

No

Motor Vehicle Record Inquiry Required

No

Pay Rate Type

Salary

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FLSA Status

Exempt

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Pay Range

$90,000.00 - $100,000.00

The included pay rate or range represents the University’s good faith estimate of the possible compensation offer for this role at the time of posting.

Benefits Eligible

Yes

The University of Chicago offers a wide range of benefits programs and resources for eligible employees, including health, retirement, and paid time off. Information about the benefit offerings can be found in the Benefits Guidebook.

Posting Statement

The University of Chicago is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, or expression, national or ethnic origin, shared ancestry, age, status as an individual with a disability, military or veteran status, genetic information, or other protected classes under the law. For additional information please see the University's Notice of Nondiscrimination.

 

Job seekers in need of a reasonable accommodation to complete the application process should call 773-702-5800 or submit a request via Applicant Inquiry Form.

 

All offers of employment are contingent upon a background check that includes a review of conviction history.  A conviction does not automatically preclude University employment.  Rather, the University considers conviction information on a case-by-case basis and assesses the nature of the offense, the circumstances surrounding it, the proximity in time of the conviction, and its relevance to the position.

 

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