Competency-based assessment for the training of PhD students and early-career scientists

The training of PhD students and early-career scientists is largely an apprenticeship in which the trainee associates with an expert to become an independent scientist. But when is a PhD student ready to graduate, a postdoctoral scholar ready for an independent position, or an early-career scientist...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Michael F Verderame, Victoria H Freedman, Lisa M Kozlowski, Wayne T McCormack
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: eLife Sciences Publications Ltd 2018-05-01
Series:eLife
Subjects:
Online Access:https://elifesciences.org/articles/34801
Description
Summary:The training of PhD students and early-career scientists is largely an apprenticeship in which the trainee associates with an expert to become an independent scientist. But when is a PhD student ready to graduate, a postdoctoral scholar ready for an independent position, or an early-career scientist ready for advanced responsibilities? Research training by apprenticeship does not uniformly include a framework to assess if the trainee is equipped with the complex knowledge, skills and attitudes required to be a successful scientist in the 21st century. To address this problem, we propose competency-based assessment throughout the continuum of training to evaluate more objectively the development of PhD students and early-career scientists.
ISSN:2050-084X