Upperclassmen
The NSBP Upperclassmen Forum is for junior and senior
physics and astronomy majors. Suitable topics in this forum group include course selection, taking the
GRE, applying to and finding financial support for graduate school, finding a
job, and mentoring younger students.
Women in Physics
Postings in the NSBP Women in Physics Forum should discuss
the intersection of race and gender in the physics profession. Suitable topics include career survival
skills, dating, marriage, and child bearing as it relates to a career as a
professional physicist.
Graduate Students
The NSBP Graduate Students Forum is for graduate students at
all levels. Usual topics include
choosing an advisor, when to collaborate
and when to compete, getting along with lab and group mates, teaching skills for GSTA's, mentoring younger
students, leadership and empowerment, organizing and writing the thesis,
balancing work and personal life, handling disputes with your advisor and
committee members, and transitioning to
a post-doc or your first job.
Postdocs, Young Professionals and Junior Faculty
This forum is a support network of postdocs, research assistant professors, new faculty
members and other young professionals in physics. Discussion topics
include skill development in lab management, mentoring, teaching, and grant
writing. Other topics include salary
and benefits optimization, dealing with journal editors and referees, and the
tenure/promotion process.
Underclassmen
The NSBP Underclassmen Forum is for 1st and 2nd year physics
majors who are trying figure out what classes to take and when, and how to well in them. Course selection can have a major impact on
graduate school and other career options.
Students also share information on REU programs and other interesting
topics.
K-12 Teachers: The Bouchet Forum
This forum gives a chance for current K-12 physics teachers,
current students interested in K-12 teaching and other NSBP members to exchange
ideas. The forum is named after Dr.
Edward A. Bouchet who was the first African American to earn a Ph.D. in the United
States. The degree was awarded in physics by Yale
University in 1877. Bouchet went on to teach at the Institute for
Colored Youth (ICY) in Pennsylvania. His Ph.D. studies were financially supported
by one of the school's trustees in what we would call today a scholarship for
service agreement. Bouchet taught at ICY
for nearly 30 years and was a pillar of the African American community in Philadelphia.
Science Policy Forum
Beyond issues of funding and facilities that impact physics, physics itself impacts many major public policy matters, from arms control, climate change, technical innovation, and energy efficiency, to local environment and land use. Science and technology are amongst the most
powerful transforming forces in society, and they should be the servants of justice, freedom, equality, and enlightenment. Thus science and its application to the policy process can help form the intellectual framework for society's pursuit of these things and improve the overall quality of life.
