On June 28, the Rady Faculty of Health Sciences hosted a faculty and graduate student development workshop at Bannatyne campus that brought together faculty, postdoctoral fellows, research associates and graduate students from across the colleges of nursing, medicine, pharmacy and rehabilitation sciences.
Titled Grow You and Your Career Success Beyond COVID-19, the workshop was led by Dr. Alex Clark and Bailey Sousa, authors of the 2018 book How to Be a Happy Academic.
Clark is the dean of health disciplines at Athabasca University, and Bailey Sousa is on secondment to the Ministry of Advanced Education, Government of Alberta from the University of Alberta. Their work on academic skills has been featured in University Affairs, The Guardian, Times Higher Education and numerous professional journals.
Clark and Sousa have spoken and led interdisciplinary workshops throughout Canada and internationally on aspects of academic work, including incorporating values, developing success indicators, writing publications for impact and grantsmanship. This workshop was largely focused on using a growth mindset as a tool for success in academia.
“Do you see yourself more as a growing resume than as a growing person?” Clark asked at the beginning of the workshop, a question he and Sousa said cuts to the heart of an individual’s mindset.
They talked about the difference between growth mindsets and fixed mindsets and led participants through reflections on their own mindsets and how to develop a growth mindset not only in themselves, but in others.
“While mindsets influence your likelihood of success over time, they can also influence those of your students and other colleagues or staff,” Sousa said.
The event was organized by College of Nursing faculty members Dr. Donna Martin, Dr. Hope Anderson and Dr. Susan McClement.
“An evaluative survey was conducted with positive responses about the facilitators, content, workbooks, and an appreciation about learning how to incorporate a growth mindset in academic and research work,” Martin said. “From my perspective, this workshop had a great impact on all attendees.”