2023 Faculty Courses School of Life Science and Technology Department of Life Science and Technology Graduate major in Life Science and Technology
International Career Development Basics
- Academic unit or major
- Graduate major in Life Science and Technology
- Instructor(s)
- Takashi Suzuki / Eiry Kobatake / Shoen Kume / Yasunori Aizawa / Shawn Mcglynn / Knut Woltjen
- Class Format
- Lecture/Exercise (Livestream)
- Media-enhanced courses
- -
- Day of week/Period
(Classrooms) - Intensive
- Class
- -
- Course Code
- LST.B404
- Number of credits
- 110
- Course offered
- 2023
- Offered quarter
- 3-4Q
- Syllabus updated
- Jul 8, 2025
- Language
- English
Syllabus
Course overview and goals
Background- Internationally speaking, it is becoming more and more competitive to obtain a position in academia or in international companies. In the PhD selections overseas, it is often the case that students have to give presentations after critical readings of important scientific papers or logical essays. In such circumstances, it is becoming necessary skills to strengthen their practical ability in English for the master course students to overcome upcoming hurdles. Aim- The lecture will be given by the international lecturer who has experience and has developed his/her career in international academic environment. Latest topics in modern life science will be chosen. Building up on those topics,it will be important for the students to develop their abilities to grasp the scientific issue behind the data, to discuss scientific matters in logical way in English, to build up their original research proposal, organizing the research network with cooperators, to persuade or convey the ideas to international collaborators, to communicate with the local public. Furthermore, by exposing to the international environment where you have to present and discuss the scientific matters in English, the students start to intensify their own abilities to go through multiple interviews on their upcoming career path.
Course description and aims
By the end of this course, students will be able to:
1) Absorb the contents of scientific literature or presentation in English and understand swiftly.
2) Build their ideas on how to solve the upcoming questions through accurate understanding of the scientific data and through discussion with a group of people.
3) Learn how to efficiently convey their messages, how to ask efficient questions,and come up with a discussion strategy to draw a solution for the problem.
4) Learn how to make the job interview successful in academia or in international companies.
Keywords
Scientific description, scientific papers, oral communication, group work, discussion, presentation
Competencies
- Specialist skills
- Intercultural skills
- Communication skills
- Critical thinking skills
- Practical and/or problem-solving skills
Class flow
The rough frame of this course is: Problem assigned by the lecturer → discussion in English → oral presentation. Therefore, active participation and contribution to the lecture will be strongly encouraged. The students will be assessed by their ability in language skills, and divided into groups. According to the group's ability, a scientific problem will be given. The students will have to present their ideas to solve the problem multiple times after thorough discussion within the group. Lectures will be delivered online through Zoom.
Course schedule/Objectives
| Course schedule | Objectives | |
|---|---|---|
| Class 1 | 【tentative】How to read and discuss the scientific papers critically | Will be given during the lecture |
| Class 2 | 【tentative】How to understand the scientific papers and to ask critical questions | Will be given during the lecture |
| Class 3 | 【tentative】How to understand and discuss the scientific oral presentations | Will be given during the lecture |
| Class 4 | 【tentative】How to understand the scientific oral presentations and to ask critical questions during discussion | Will be given during the lecture |
| Class 5 | Exercises in job interview and mutual evaluations (1) | Will be given during the lecture |
| Class 6 | Exercises in job interview and mutual evaluations (2) | Will be given during the lecture |
Study advice (preparation and review)
To enhance effective learning, students are encouraged to spend approximately 100 minutes preparing for class and another 100 minutes reviewing class content afterwards (including assignments) for each class.
They should do so by referring to textbooks and other course material.
Textbook(s)
none
Reference books, course materials, etc.
none
Evaluation methods and criteria
The students will be evaluated by the extent of participation and contribution to the group work and multiple presentations.
Related courses
- LST.B605 ： International Career Development Advanced
Prerequisites
As this lecture will deal with topics on Life sciences, basic knowledge of related area is preferable.