FALL 2024 NEWSLETTER
SMU Corporate Engagement is your connection to SMU for cutting-edge research partnerships, strategic philanthropy, talent acquisition, and continuing and executive education. We connect companies, nonprofits and individuals to SMU faculty, students and staff who are ready to collaborate with business.
Around campus:
Moody Graduate School aids Ph.D. students and postdoc researchers in entering corporate sector
Rob Pearson, director of graduate career development and postdoctoral affairs in SMU’s Moody School of Graduate and Advanced Studies, has a distinct passion for assisting doctoral students and postdoctoral researchers, including preparing them for employment in the private sector.
The office is responsible for meeting with doctoral students and postdoctoral researchers individually for career counseling, interacting with students in departmental seminars and discussing the wide range of career options available to them, including those in the corporate sector.
“Our office supports graduate students and postdocs who perform research in extremely diverse academic fields, so understanding the norms in those fields is key,” Pearson said. “An important part of my work is helping students gain the ability to speak to the diverse applications of their skills in multiple sectors and preparing the next generation of researchers. Collaboration between academic researchers and corporate research and development teams is crucial for innovation.”
Pearson described the essential skills doctoral students and postdoctoral researchers possess as of great value for corporate employers: “Our doctoral students and postdocs are advanced thinkers with highly specialized knowledge in their fields. They are also great communicators and collaborators who identify problems and strategize innovative solutions. I encourage them to practice telling the story of their doctoral research and their skills to diverse audiences so they can identify those points of connection between their interests and the needs of the corporate sector.
“The role of doctoral and postdoctoral training in the advancement of industry R&D and adjacent areas in the corporate sector is absolutely vital,” Pearson said. “The research doctoral students and postdocs perform exhibits innovation and a synthesis of knowledge that is of critical importance for industry.”
Pearson wants his office to continue to find new points of connection between the corporate sector, our students and postdocs and our faculty. “We want our office to create and strengthen relationships between our students and the business community, aligning graduate and postdoctoral training with the needs of employers seeking highly advanced researchers and skill sets in a variety of fields.”
For more information, about Pearson’s work, you can reach him at pearsonr@smu.edu.
AT&T Data Science Scholars Program produces third student cohort
In August, 10 SMU undergraduate, graduate and doctoral students completed the AT&T Data Science Scholars Program (DSSP), which includes a certification in data science and a full-time paid internship at AT&T. With curriculum developed jointly between SMU faculty and AT&T executives, the DSSP provides SMU students an opportunity to receive certification in a tech field highly coveted by industry while gaining real-world experience working with data scientist mentors at one of America’s premier corporations. The DSSP also allows AT&T to sustain a pipeline of new highly trained data scientists ready to succeed in a competitive professional environment.
Led by Bivin Sadler, assistant professor of Dedman College’s Department of Statistics and Data Science and an instructor in the University’s continuing and professional education office, the DSSP is concluding its third successful session with an eye toward the future. Currently, AT&T has hired six SMU DSSP graduates as full-time employees, given their outstanding performance in the program. SMU students gain valuable knowledge and skills through their active participation in the program, and AT&T supports a valuable recruiting channel.
SMU can develop a customized program in data science or other fields of study for your company’s talent acquisition needs. If your organization is seeking to build its own data science student pipeline or a similarly tailored program in an area of need, please reach out to Tim Angell, director for Corporate Engagement, at tangell@smu.edu.
SMU starts its inaugural ACC football campaign
If there’s more excitement than usual on the Hilltop this summer, it’s probably due to the Mustangs’ entrance in the Atlantic Coast Conference! SMU football kicks off its season against Nevada, then hosts Houston Christian August 31. The Mustangs play eight conference teams in its first campaign in the ACC, including home games against Florida State, Pitt, Boston College and Cal-Berkeley. Tickets for these home contests are selling fast! Check out SMU Athletics’ website for purchasing tickets for games against premier powerhouse teams.
Coming soon:
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Let’s talk.
Best,
Rob Strauss
Senior Director of Corporate and Foundation Relations
Tim Angell
Director for Corporate Engagement
SMU
Office of Corporate and Foundation Relations
P.O. Box 750402
Dallas, TX 75275-0402
www.smu.edu/CorporateEngagement
cfr@smu.edu
