CRA Update: Newly Expanded CRA Career Mentoring Workshops Now Accepting Applications

By Tracy Camp, Executive Director and CEO 

The Computing Research Association (CRA) is now accepting applications for its biennial CRA Career Mentoring Workshops (CMWs). The workshops provide valuable career advice and mentoring activities to people just beginning or in the early stages of their computing research careers. Building on the success of more than two decades of workshops for starting a tenure-track position in academia, this year’s program is expanded to include a workshop on teaching and a track on launching a computing research career in industry. 

Taking place in Washington, D.C., participants have the option to join one or both workshops. 

CMW: Teaching will be held February 20-21, offering participants the opportunity to hear from seasoned computing educators about the nuts and bolts of teaching large upper-division classes and graduate student seminars. The goal of this highly-interactive and engaging workshop is to help reduce the time you spend on teaching, reduce your frustration with teaching, and improve your teaching evaluations. Specifically, attendees will gain insight into how to write and edit course syllabi, be introduced to high-quality materials and master teacher models, go through a bootcamp on evidence-based practices such as active learning, and gain guidance on how to manage TAs and other administrative tasks. 

CMW: Research will be held February 22-23, with two track options:

• The Academic Track will provide advice and mentoring activities for those starting academic computing research careers. Session topics will include planning your research career, networking strategies, mentoring and managing students, preparing a tenure dossier, time management and work-life balance, among others. 
• The Industry Track will offer attendees advice and mentoring for launching a computing research career in industry. It will be led by experienced industry professionals and be focused on providing practical, actionable career advice, such as sessions on preparing a promotion application. Participants of the Industry Track will join the Academic Track as it makes sense, for session topics such as networking strategies and work-life balance.  

The workshops, consisting of a series of panels, are interspersed with opportunities to network with senior researchers and representatives from government agencies. 

Apply by December 11, 2023

Please submit your application no later than December 11, 2023. You will receive an email notification no later than December 20, 2023 on the status of your application and, if selected, next steps.