Who we are
The Trainee Advisory Committee (TAC) is composed of students and fellows from all academic levels and is representative of all WCHRI research disciplines. TAC engages in-training members in WCHRI programs / activities and is responsible for:
- providing career, mentorship and skill-building opportunities and resources
- providing feedback and suggestions to improve WCHRI programs and trainee engagement
- advising on WCHRI Research Day workshops, topics and format
- representing in-training member interests in WCHRI.
Subcommittees
The purpose of the mentorship is to provide meaningful mentorship experiences for graduate students and postdoctoral fellows involved in women and/or children’s health research. The mentorship matches WCHRI trainees to leaders both within and outside of academia working in women and/or children’s health. The mentorship runs annually from September to May and organizes events to encourage trainee professional development.
Eligibility
Mentees:
- Mentees must be supervised by a WCHRI member and be a graduate student in a thesis-based program or postdoctoral fellow; and
- Must either be an applicant to the WCHRI Graduate Studentship Award (GSA) competition or WCHRI Postdoctoral Fellowship Award (PDF) competition;
- Priority will be given to WCHRI GSA recipients.
Mentors:
- Mentors must be a current or previous WCHRI member; and
- Have held an academic position (assistant, associate or full professor) for >1 year; or
- Have received a Ph.D. in women’s and/or children’s health and currently work in a sector relevant to WCHRI.
Mentors will be recruited using the yearly membership renewal form sent by WCHRI each June. Non-academic members will be contacted via email. Interested individuals will receive a Google form to collect relevant information for matching.
Timeline and Commitments
Mentors and mentees will receive monthly communications to provide guidance on mentorship meeting topics and tools for mentee introspection. Mentees will be expected to participate in three events – an orientation, a mid-point workshop, and a year-end event.
| Event | Month |
| Recruitment | July – August |
| Orientation Workshop | September |
| Monthly Mentorship Meetings | September – December |
| Mid-point Workshop (mentees only) | January |
| Monthly Mentorship Meetings | January – May |
| Year End Event | May |
| Program Evaluation Survey | May – June |
The Mentorship subcommittee supports the implementation of the WCHRI Mentorship Program and oversees its workshops.
The Outreach and Recruitment subcommittee aims to promote, uplift, and engage WCHRI trainees by creating trainee-focused content for use across WCHRI media (e-newsletter, website and social media accounts). To do this, this subcommittee supports trainee-focused spotlight publications, oversees Grad School 101 events, and works with other subcommittees to promote and market their programming.
Examples of profiles
- Ashton James: Building consensus on indicators of social and emotional well-being (September 2022)
- Samuel Yang: Connecting with communities to improve sleep education (June 2022)
- JuliAnn Thai: A summer of research (September 2021)
Please contact WCHRI Communications for suggestions for featuring WCHRI trainees on our social media pages!
The Technical Skills subcommittee aims to offer technical skills workshops to further engage and enrich WCHRI trainees’ interest in women’s and/or children’s health research as a career.
This subcommittee offers a learning series that allows trainees (past, present, and future) to enhance their knowledge on a wide range of topics, from effective research and technology tools to exploring career paths in health research. Please contact wchritac@ualberta.ca if you have any suggestions for future technical skills workshops!
Upcoming workshops:
| Date | Topic | Speaker |
| None currently |
The Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion subcommittee aims to advance, promote, and integrate equitable, diverse, inclusive, and justice-oriented teaching, learning, and research practices amongst WCHRI Trainees. To do this, it facilitates a Community of Practice that holds space for us to learn and grow alongside one another as health researchers. In addition, the subcommittee holds workshops and other learning opportunities to discuss EDI-related topics amongst WCHRI Trainees and Members. One such event is the recurring “Indigenous Health and Taking Reconcili’action” workshop facilitated by TAC member, member of Saddle Lake Cree Nation, researcher, and undergraduate student Shannon Cornelsen. The subcommittee is also exploring the addition of other activities, such as highlighting or connecting health research students who may need some extra support.
Please contact wchritac@ualberta.ca if you have any suggestions for future EDI events, activities, or Community of Practice suggestions!
Membership
WCHRI in-training members from all levels have the opportunity to join TAC. Members will be selected by the current TAC members to be representative of WCHRI member faculties/departments, research themes and levels/types of training (i.e. undergraduate, graduate, postdoctoral and residency). Principles of equity, diversity and inclusion will also be considered in this process. Expression of interest applications will be accepted year-round and will be kept on file until a relevant position opens up within one of the subcommittees. Membership will also be sought through a quarterly process as well.
To apply, please fill out the expression of interest form and we will be in contact within six weeks of application.
Term:
- 1.5 years (renewable). The committee will meet once every month or as needed. Each program subcommittee also has its own scheduled meeting/work times.
- There is an expectation that newly nominated members will be available to sit on the committee and their respective subcommittees for a minimum of 18 months.
A current list of TAC members can be found on our Governance page.
Questions?
Please let us know if you have any questions at wchritac@ualberta.ca.