PhD: choosing France for your research

Meet the panelists

Registration and contact

Meetings on site

About the partners

France, a country equally renowned for its culture and its world leading research, has never stopped redefining its role at the centre of international research. The country’s research strategy is continuously fine-tuned to address the current scientific challenges and has helped to secure France’s place among the world’s leading powers in research. These qualities have long been attracting international scholars and scientists to France.

France aims to provide an increasingly easier access to its universities and research facilities, and a warm welcome for those who want to share their talents. Mobility grants, partnerships, and international cooperation are just some of the ways of encouraging researchers from abroad.

To help you explore a full range of opportunities that France offers to international researchers, Association Bernard Gregory has teamed up with the French diplomacy network in Northern America to hold a live online event (webinar) called ‘Research Opportunities in France’.

It takes place online and in English on the 19^th of May at 6 pm (CET).

By watching this webinar you will learn:

• What opportunities are there for PhDs in academia and in industry
• How to find these opportunities
• What recruiters in academia and industry expect from PhDs in the recruitment process (application, interview, skills, behaviour…)
• Why companies are recruiting international PhDs

Watch the webinar #1

Meet the panelists

• Dr Mathura Shanmugasundaram, docteure en génétique, Associate Director / Global Scientific Communications chez Biogen (Cambridge, Massachussets)

Dr. Mathura Shanmugasundaram obtained her Honours degree in Life sciences at the National University of Singapore and pursued her Ph.D. in genetics and molecular biology at Institut Pasteur, Paris. Following her doctoral program, she moved to the United States and continued her training in clinical trials and cancer genetics as part of the global clinical scholars research training and high-impact cancer research programs at Harvard Medical School. Dr. Shanmugasundaram then transitioned to a Mayo Clinic start-up company, OneOme, as a Medical Science Liaison in Pharmacogenomics and has since been involved in various functions within Medical Affairs in the pharmaceutical industry. She is currently an Associate Director of Global Scientific Communications at Biogen.

• Dr Serawit Bruck, docteure en biochimie, Directrice Scientifique chez Sidaction (Paris, IDF)

Serawit Bruck-Landais is currently the scientific director of Sidaction. A French NGO that raises awareness and funds biomedical and social science research, as well as prevention and care programs for people affected by HIV.

Dr. Bruck earned her BS in Biochemistry from the University of Texas at Arlington and her PhD in molecular biophysics from Washington University in St Louis, in 2006. She was a Pasteur Foundation post-doctoral Fellow at Institut Pasteur, Paris. Since 2010, she is invested in research policy analysis and implementation, mainly in the field of infectious diseases. At Sidaction, she is in charge of research grants & funding as well HIV research policy. She promotes pluridisciplinary research approaches, disseminates and communicates scientific advances through several media outlets.

Credit: Vincent Isoré

Sidaction is a French non-profit organization that raises funds and awareness about HIV/ AIDS. Founded in 1994, it relies on the generous donations from individuals to carry out its mission. Since its creation, Sidaction supports the fight against HIV in France and in more than 26 countries. It funds scientific and medical research as well as prevention and psychosocial support programs for people exposed or living with HIV. Technical support, training and advocacy complement this financial support. In France, Sidaction is the only AIDS non-profit funding cutting edge biomedical and social sciences research projects and supporting young scientists engaged in HIV/ AIDS research. Each year, it funds 15-20 research projects and grants about 20 doctoral and post-doctoral fellowships.

• Dr Lydie Jeux, docteure en biologie moléculaire, Research and Innovation Manager chez Elvesys (Paris, IDF)

Dr. Lydie Jeux is Research and Innovation Manager at Elvesys. She has published 3 articles in peer-reviewed Journals, with 47 citations and an h-index of 3. She obtained a Master degree in physiology, pharmacology and neurosciences, a PhD in Molecular and cellular biology at University of Limoges, worked as Research Engineer at CNRS and has been trained as a clinical research associate. Her main expertise areas are cellular biology, cancer and clinical studies. She is currently in charge of collaborative research projects for microfluidics applied to biology and biochemistry at Elvesys.

Elvesys is an innovative, self-funded company created by 3 microfluidic researchers who started to develop microfluidic instruments in 2011. Elvesys aims to become a key research partner for every researcher who needs microfluidics, all over the world. At Elvesys, we develop cutting-edge microfluidic instruments to help researchers to surpass the state-of-the-art in their field, and user-friendly microfluidic platforms to democratize the use of microfluidics. We collaborate with demanding labs and brilliant young researchers (post-docs and PhD students) within the framework of European projects to invent the technologies and products of tomorrow.

• Dr Naomi Talyor, docteure en immunologie, Directrice de recherche à IGMM (Montpellier, Occitanie)

Naomi Taylor received her M.D. and Ph.D. degrees from Yale University, studying the disruption of Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) latency under the direction of Dr. George Miller. She then returned to clinical pediatrics, pursuing training in bone marrow transplantation at Childrens Hospital of Los Angeles. In 1996, Naomi began her own group at the Institut de Génétique Moléculaire de Montpellier, a joint CNRS/University of Montpellier research institute in the south of France. Her group focused on contributing to our understanding of T cell immunodeficiencies, the development of hematopoietic stem cell and T cell-based therapeutic strategies, and the impact of nutrient transport and utilization in erythropoiesis and lymphopoeisis. She was promoted to a 1st class INSERM Research Director position in 2008 and benefited from two sabbaticals in the Experimental Immunology Branch, National Cancer Institute.  In 2018, Naomi returned to the United States as a Senior Investigator in the Pediatric Oncology Branch, National Cancer Institute.

• Bérénice Kimpe, Head of International Department at ABG (Paris, IDF)

Registration and contact

Registration is free and online.

Go to registration

Registration deadline: May 19, 6 pm (CET).

For any further information, please contact Bérénice Kimpe : berenice.kimpe@abg.asso.fr

Meetings on site

The French diplomatic network in Canada and the USA will propose a series of meetings in different North American cities in order to continue exchanges on research opportunities in France, in a more personalized and interactive way.

Vancouver

Toronto

Additional cities

Vancouver

From 9:00am PST, with coffee and croissants

Place: Downtown Vancouver, 1140 West Pender Street, 4th floor, Vancouver BC V6E

Contact: anthony.lahaye@diplomatie.gouv.fr

Toronto

From 12 to 2pm, local time

Venue: Alliance Francaise, 24 Spadina Rd, Toronto, ON M5R 2S7

Contact: hugo.lequertier@diplomatie.gouv.fr

Additional cities (TBC)

Houston, Washington, New York

About the partners

Association Bernard Gregory (ABG) is a French non-profit organization that was created in 1980. It aims at connecting doctorate holders with employers from both academic and economic sectors.

Because public research in France (as in many countries in Europe) has been facing some challenges such as fewer permanent positions, an increase in temporary contracts and a limitation of their duration, ABG is especially focused on helping PhD holders to achieve a smooth transition into the business sector. That is why it has developed many tools and workshops to implement an efficient job search strategy (speaking the same language as the recruiters, marketing your research experience outside academia, knowing recruiters’ expectations and the recruitment process, etc.). It also offers a job board where thesis proposals and jobs for PhDs are advertised.

ABG is becoming more and more active on the international scene. A Franco-German branch has been created with the support of the Franco-German University. ABG is also part of the Euraxess network as Career development Centre, a network from the European Commission to facilitate the mobility of researchers.

ABG is strongly involved in EU-funded projects such as MSCA and helps mobile researchers to steer their career, especially when preparing a return mobility.

More info on www.abg.asso.fr
 

Under the respective leaderships of the Embassies of France in Canada and in the United States, the Offices for Science and Technology (OST) in North America aim to promote and support the development and recognition of the excellence of French research and technological innovation. By encouraging student, PhD and researcher mobility on both sides of the Atlantic, the two OSTs facilitate the emergence of lasting partnerships between local institutions and French research organizations.

These offices create a dense network that stretches across the North-American continent, from Washington to Vancouver through Quebec, Montreal, Moncton, Ottawa, Toronto, Boston, Atlanta, Houston, Chicago, San Francisco and Los Angeles. The scientific attachés at each position are world experts in in research, science, and innovation, and work in close collaboration with administrative staff and representatives from organizations such as INSERM and CNRS. They are under the authority of the scientific counselors and in charge of actively participating in the scientific and academic life in their circumscription by connecting with local actors – universities, research organizations, as well as technology centers, start-ups, expatriated scientists, etc. – and by highlighting the essential role France plays in scientific and technological innovation worldwide.

D-Fi USA aims to bring together scientists who have obtained their PhD in France and are pursuing their careers in the United States. This network is also intended for professionals in France who wish to share their experience across the Atlantic.

More information: sites.google.com/view/d-fi-usa