Industrial Mathematics Group

Sanctuary Seekers STEM Seminar: Career and Professional Development

Thursday 25 June 2026, Mansfield College

Introduction

We are delighted to host our third in-person STEM seminar for Sanctuary seekers at Mansfield College, Oxford. The seminar was co-designed by David Levy from Politics together with , Georgia Brennan from the Mathematical Institute, with administrative support from Arham Farid. It has been made possible because of the generous participation of other colleagues from the Mathematical Institute and around the University. The event will include a welcome from Helen Mountfield KC, , sessions on career development (careers in academia and STEM and applying for jobs) and professional growth (applying STEM skills in industry and commercial environments and a CV and cover letter workshop). There will also be a chance to exchange ideas with each other and speakers in the breaks, as well as in the sessions. We expect that the event will give participants a new network as they remain in touch with each other, and we hope that the learnings from the day will help them in the next stages of their careers.

Venue and travel

• The venue of the workshop is Mansfield College. The workshop will take place in the Old Hall of Mansfield College.

Schedule

• 09:45-10:00: Introductions, seminar goals and hopes for the day. David Levy, Georgia Brennan, Samuel Cohen and Torin Fastnedge.
• 10:10-10:15: Welcome. Helen Mountfield KC, Principal of Mansfield College.
• 10:15-11:00: Session 1 - Transferable skills: Applying STEM skills in industrial/commercial settings. Samuel Cohen.

• 11:15-12:00: Session 2, part 1 - CV and Cover Letter Workshop with Niamh Walsh from Oxford University Careers Office.
• 12:00-12:40: Session 2, part 2 - CV Clinic (opportunity for 1:1 slots) with Niamh Walsh and Suzi Black from Oxford University Careers Service. Please bring a printed copy of your brief CV (1-2 pages max) or have it visible on a laptop.

• 13:45-14:45: Session 3 - Planning for job applications
  • Applying for jobs in academia. Georgia Brennan, University of Oxford.
  • Applying for jobs in industry. Maria Bruna, University of Oxford.
  • Industry/academic collaborations. Christiana Mavroyiakoumou, University of Oxford.

• 15:00-15:50: Session 4 - Open Q&A with panel: David Levy, Georgia Brennan, Christiana Mavroyiakoumou, Maria Bruna, Samuel Cohen, and Torin Fastnedge.
• 15:50-16:00: Conclusions and closing remarks.
• 16:00: End.

Sponsors

We express gratitude to our sponsors for their generous support in making this event possible.

• The Mathematical Institute
• Mansfield College
• Jan Saxl Fund
• The Council for At-Risk Academics (Cara)
• Isaac Newton Institute TBC

Last year's event