Plantae Presents – Fledgling Season: Sound Advice for ECRs Starting Out in Academia

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Plantae Presents – Fledgling Season: Sound Advice for ECRs Starting Out in Academia

Featuring Sunil K. Kenchanmane Raju and Howard S. Judelson

When: Friday, September 26, 2025, at
9:00 AM PDT | 12:00 PM EDT | 5:00 PM BST | 12:00 AM Beijing

About this Webinar

Making the jump from a postdoc to a faculty position can feel a lot like stepping off the edge of a cliff, equal parts exciting and terrifying. Applications, research statements, cover letters, endless waiting… and the big question: what are selection committees really looking for? In this webinar, you’ll get two perspectives that matter most: A freshly recruited assistant professor sharing what worked (and what didn’t) in his own job hunt, and a senior faculty member pulling back the curtain on what search committees actually value and the common mistakes to avoid.

From polishing your research statement to surviving the application grind, this session is designed to give early-career researchers the grounded, practical advice you wish someone had told you sooner.

Hosted by the 2025 Plantae Fellows.

 

SPEAKERS

Howard Judelson

Howard Judelson is Professor in the Department of Microbiology and Plant Pathology at the University of California-Riverside. After obtaining a Ph.D. in Molecular Biology from the University of Wisconsin studying slime molds, he shifted to studying plant pathogens during his postdoctoral training. Over the past three decades, he has focused on the molecular and cell biology of growth and development in the eukaryotic microbes known as oomycetes, especially the notorious plant pathogen Phytophthora infestans. As Professor (and former Department Chair) he has mentored many graduate students and postdoctorals, including three current graduate students and four postdoctorals.

 

 

 

 

Sunil Kenchanmane Raju

Sunil Kenchanmane Raju is an Assistant Professor in Botany and Plant Sciences at the University of California, Riverside. His research focuses on understanding the evolution of environment-responsive gene regulation in crops and their wild relatives, utilizing comparative cell-type-specific gene expression and co-expression patterns to enhance our understanding of the full breadth of gene function. He is also the founder of Plant Grads and Plant Postdocs, which provide resources and mentoring to early-career plant scientists worldwide.

 

 

 

 

 

MODERATORS

Malini Muthu Karpagam

Malini is a postdoctoral researcher at Smith College, Massachusetts, studying the physiological responses of Northeastern conifers to drought and cold stress. Originally from India, she holds a PhD in Plant Physiology from the Indian Agricultural Research Institute, where she investigated photosynthetic traits under high-temperature stress in rice. She also enjoys science communication, cooking, and interior design. X: @malini_muthuraj.

 

 

 

 

 

Indrani Kakati

Indrani is a current ASPB Plantae Editor and recently concluded her tenure as an ORISE postdoctoral fellow with USDA-ARS Beltsville Agricultural Research Centre in Maryland, US. Her recent work focused on understanding chocolate/cacao plants’ disease resistance mechanisms against devastating fungal pathogens wreaking havoc in cacao growing regions of the world. Apart from being a first-generation researcher, she likes to involve herself in easy science communication, reading, nature photography & enjoys being a mother to a curious 10 year old.   X: @Indranik333 /  BlueSky: indranik18.bsky.social.

 

 

 

 

Nathaniel Oragbon

Nathaniel holds a bachelor’s from the University of Ibadan, Nigeria and he is currently a graduate student of Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf, Germany and a member of the Cluster of Excellence on Plant Sciences (CEPLAS) Graduate School, Germany. His previous research focused on plant-nematode interactions and insect-nematode interactions. His Doctoral research at CEPLAS aims to elucidate how ABA signaling, and in the context of beneficial plant-microbe interactions, influences iron mobilization and nutrient acquisition in plants growing under alkaline, nutrient-deficient conditions. Nathaniel is passionate about science communication and looks for opportunities to further develop this skill. In his free time, he loves to travel, and especially to see and learn about sea life. He also enjoys both watching and playing soccer. X: @NathanIgwe.