¶®É«µÛ

Nov. 13 | 9 - 10 a.m. MT | Online via Zoom

Description: Many graduate students wait until the end of their program to start planning for their career, missing out on evolving trends in employment and opportunities that will help them land their ideal job. Taking occasional breaks from studies to explore your career options and work on your career plan during your program can help you in the future. In this interactive workshop you will learn strategies to help you explore your current expectations, values and goals to discover pathways to your ideal career once you've finished your program. Your future-self will thank you.

Presenter: David Redekopp, PhD
Dr. Redekopp's 35+ years in the career development field, he has worked on all aspects of career development through consulting, program/product/policy development, research, and practitioner education projects. He recently co-authored Strengthening Mental Health Through Effective Career Development: A Practitioner's Guide, a book mapping career development and mental health relationships.

Dr. Redekopp has worked with federal, provincial, municipal, and First Nation governments; private organizations in many sectors; institutions such as schools, universities, and service agencies; and populations of different cultures, work levels, abilities, and geographies. He thanks the Indigenous peoples, past and present, who have cared for Treaty 6 territory.

Raised in Treaty 1 territory, Dr. Redekopp has worked across Canada and with or in Australia, Bahrain, Bulgaria, England, Finland, Kazakhstan, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the Netherlands, Scotland, the United States, and Wales. He holds a PhD in Educational Psychology from the ¶®É«µÛ

Nov. 13 | 10:30 - 11:30 a.m. MT | Online via Zoom

Description: What are the current trends in Canadian employment? What sectors and industries are people with graduate degrees in highest demand? What skills and competencies are employers looking for in the current job market? In this enlightening conversation with members of the Government of Canada's Employment and Social Development Ministry you will learn the latest employment trends for graduate students and postdoctoral scholars and what areas to watch. This is your chance to ask questions and discover new industries to focus your career search. 

Presenter: Tina Namiesniowski
On March 3, 2021, Tina Namiesniowski assumed the role of Senior Associate Deputy Minister at Employment and Social Development Canada. In addition, the Clerk appointed her Deputy Minister Champion for Employees with Disabilities in the Federal Public Service effective November 29, 2022.

Prior to joining ESDC, Tina led the public Health Agency of Canada through the initial months of Canada's response to the Covid pandemic. She was named President of the Agency in May 2019, following appointment as Executive Vice-President at the Canada Border Services Agency in October 2016.

Ms. Namiesniowski has spent more than 35 years in the federal government. She became a public servant in 1989 and spent the first ten years of her career at theDepartment of National Defence. She also worked at the Treasury Board Secretariat, Canadian Heritage, Public Safety, the Privy Council Office and Agriculture and Agrifood Canada. She has significant policy, program and operational experience and a passion for public service.

Tina's career has greatly deepened her understanding of Canada, the citizens we serve and Canada's contribution globally. She knows first-hand the stresses that organizations face in times of peril, what it takes to rise to the challenge and the importance of innovation. She is committed to service, policy and program excellence. Tina holds a Bachelor of Arts in political science and history from Carleton University. She also holds a Master of Arts in political science, with a concentration in strategic studies and international relations from Dalhousie University. <

She is married and has 3 children.

Presenter: Atiq Rahman
Atiq Rahman is the Assistant Deputy Minister of the Learning Branch at Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC), which consists of the Canada Education Savings Program, the Canada Student Financial Assistance Program, the Support for Student Learning Program and Canada Service Corps. Through these programs, the Government of Canada provides youth and students with financial and non-financial support to pursue post-secondary education and service opportunities.

Previously, Atiq held a number of positions in the Canada Student Financial Assistance Program including the Director of Policy and the Senior Director, before serving as the Director General of the program.

Atiq has an MBA and a PhD in Business Administration from McGill University where he was a Commonwealth Scholar.

Atiq likes to spend his leisure time with family (wife and son), reading, and watching football (the other kind, also known as soccer), cricket and tennis.

Nov. 13 | 12 - 1 p.m. MT | Online via Zoom

Description: What if your graduate degree wasn't just a stepping stone, but a starting point to design a career and life that genuinely aligns with who you are? Madeline Springle, PhD student in Industrial/Organizational Psychology at the University of Calgary, invites you into the story of how she moved beyond the traditional academic or industry paths to build a career of her own. From representing her research in national competitions like SSHRC Storytellers and 3 Minute Thesis, to founding Master Your Interview, a business that helps high-achieving professionals overcome interview anxiety, Madeline shares the pivotal questions, mindset shifts, and lessons learned that helped her carve out a career rooted in her values, strengths, and sense of purpose.

This interactive session will challenge you to reflect on your own graduate school journey: What energizes you? What kind of workday do you want to design? What mindset shifts do you need to make to speak about your work (and yourself) with confidence?

You'll walk away with practical tools to reframe how you approach interviews, networking, and communicating your value, so you can design a career that feels like it truly fits. Madeline's story is proof that you don't need to have it all figured out by the time you finish grad school. What matters most is learning how to talk about who you are, what you bring, and where you want to go.  

Presenter: Madeline Springle, PhD student in Industrial/Organizational Psychology at the University of Calgary

Nov. 13 | 1:30 - 2:30 p.m. MT | Online via Zoom

Description: The ¶®É«µÛ Career Centre staff have been exploring generative AI tools to see how useful they can be in the job search, job application and interviewing process. Given the career exploration falls outside of the academic arena, there is more flexibility in how people are using these tools. Come join this panel to learn from their experiences and discover new ways to use AI to help you with your job search.

Presenters: Members of the ¶®É«µÛ Career Centre including Graduate and Postdoctoral Student Advisors, and Career Advisors will join this panel to provide their expertise on the use of generative AI tools in the career management domain.