On December 11, 2015, the Desjardins Centre for Advanced Training of the Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre (RI-MUHC) held an orientation for research trainees to learn about its activities in the areas of social and community participation and professional skills and career development. Attended by over 120 trainees, staff and faculty, the event was organized by Dr. Emily Bell, Manager of the Desjardins Centre for Advanced Training.

Guest speaker Julie Quenneville gave an impassioned speech encouraging trainees to use their networks to propel their careers, using examples of her own path from journalist to public servant to her current role as President of the Royal Victoria Hospital Foundation and McGill University Health Centre Foundation. Trainees had the opportunity to interact with the Centre's directors, Drs. Miguel Burnier and Costas Karatzas, and with representatives from McGill's Post-Graduate Students' Society (PGSS), Mitacs, SKILLSETS and the John Molson School of Business. The event was a great success, with trainees providing feedback that career training and resources are valuable to them and that they are looking forward to participating in the activities of the Desjardins Centre for Advanced Training.

If you missed out on this event, check out http://rimuhc.ca/web/research-institute-muhc/training-contact-us for more information and keep an eye out for the Centre's newsletter, which will list future events. We hope to see you at our next one!

─Mihaela Pupavac (PhD candidate, Child Health and Human Development Program)