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PhD Plus Student Executive Board

PhD Plus Professional Development Program

The Pratt PhD Plus Professional Development Program is led by a Student Executive Board, which includes two PhD students from each Pratt School of Engineering department.  Their mission is to enable Pratt PhD students to prepare for, select, and succeed in their career path through exploring opportunities, honing skills, and mastering core competencies. There are three career themes that are the center of their programming: 

Academic Careers

Research Careers in Industry & Government

Entrepreneurship, Business, Law, & Consulting

The Student Executive Board organizes a variety of student engagement opportunities under each theme with a curated network of local, national, and internal/alumni engineering and career experts. 

Every semester, PhD students can develop their professional acumen from PhD Plus Career Conversations, Skills-Based Workshops, Panel Discussions, and a Career-Themed Course (fall only). Each event is strategically planned and focused on one of the three career themes. Student Executive Board members enjoy developing a robust professional network outside of Pratt, direct access to local and national engineering experts, and honing leadership skills.

The faculty advisor to the PhD Plus Student Executive Board is Dr. Joel Collier. 

The staff advisor to the PhD Plus Student Executive Board is Alison Brandeis. 

Email alison.brandeis@duke.edu with questions.