In this episode, we’ll discuss three tips to improve your academic lab website for prospective researchers. And so the top three tips are:
- Update your website content before recruitment season
- Create a positions page so potential group members know what to do to join
- Add your group’s personality to the website with real photos.
So I’ll dive into each one of these tips deeper.
Update your website content before recruitment season.
When I was applying for grad school, I looked at a lot of group websites to see if they had been updated in the past year. Sometimes I encountered websites that weren’t updated, or it’s been a long time, like over five years since it was updated. And this was like a huge red flag to me.
And so when I saw that I was a lot less interested in inquiring about that group. And so if you’re a professor of a research group, you need to remember that prospective students are your website users. So you need to think about why they’re on your website and make sure that your website addresses those needs.
And so for another example, when I was a prospective student, I saw that many group websites hadn’t updated any type of news or announcements. Or like if I looked at their group members, it said that their last group member joined in 2018. That would be kind of concerning, right? So it just made me wonder if the group was still actively doing research or recruiting new group members.
For some groups, I wanted to read some of their papers so that I could show them that I was interested and willing to learn. But when I went to the publications page, I just had no idea where to start. Being a new student, I was just really overwhelmed by the list that they just had with all these like foreign technical language and the titles. And I also just didn’t know which papers would be the most impactful or relevant to read. And so these are some of the experiences that I kept in mind as I updated our lab’s website and made that easier for prospective students to use. And so these are some of the changes that I implemented.
Include brief descriptions of subgroups and notable papers on the homepage.
So first, I provided brief descriptions of each of the different subgroups in our group with links to the notable papers on the homepage. And so when you’re in your group, you think that the subgroups sound straightforward to you. But to people outside of your group, it’s not always clear. So it’s really important to define it from the get-go.
Additionally, providing links to papers makes it a lot less stressful for the students to try to find which one is the most relevant. And in general, it’s just easier for them to find if they can just click on that link and go straight there rather than having to dig through your publications list. And this can also reduce your email exchange with them because a lot of new students might be like, what papers should I read? And you’re like, just look at my publications list.
Update the Recent News section.
The second one was updated the recent news section. And so in this section, they can see our recent accomplishments like publishing a new paper, welcoming new group members, group members achieving some milestone or award. And hopefully, we can add like a celebratory news every few months. But having that on there shows that, you know, we want to celebrate our group members and that, you know, our group is doing stuff.
Link publications directly on your website and organize by subgroup.
The next section or the next tip is replacing the standard reverse chronological publications page with blog posts that are directly linked to the publication with an abstract and then organized by subgroup. And so this is, this is actually kind of time intensive, especially if you have a lot of publications, but this could pay off. So for students who are interested in specific subgroup, they will be able to find relevant papers more easily, or not just students, but potential collaborators as well.
So this does require a bit of work, but it is worth it in the end. And so you can apply this formula for a simple website structure throughout your website. So you can just have the section title for each of the subgroups that you have, and then a short description of that subgroup, and then include a relevant photo or figure that represents that subgroup, and then include any relevant links for more information, whether that’s like papers, patents, whatever it is.
And so actually going back to the reverse chronological publications page. The other thing that I realized was that professors actually, they just love the list. I personally don’t love the list only. But I think that you still need to have the list because that list is just like everyone has it.
So even though it wasn’t something that I wanted to have, my advisor really wanted us to have that. And so that was just like another link that we had on the side. And so in that list, it didn’t have any of like the individual links to the publications, but at least everything was kind of all in one place. So then now you’re having to keep two things updated, which is like the blog posts with all the publications, and then also that list. But if you are, you know, pretty organized with your CV and keeping those things updated, it’s about the same level of maintenance.
Update your lab website every six months.
So I recommend that you update your lab website every six months, at the very least. And this can just be with news about like the group and the project updates or whatever. And so the simplest way to do that is just to use the blogging function on your website. So if you are through a university, usually university platforms is most likely using WordPress. And so you can just like write a short post announcing new group members’ notable accomplishments or recent events. And so just also make sure that all the contact information on the website is valid. Because when a prospective researcher or collaborator is on your website, and they encounter errors on your website while trying to get in contact with your group, they might get frustrated and just reconsider asking about you altogether.
Create a positions page so potential group members know what to do to join.
The second tip is to create a positions page so potential group members know what to do to join. So one of my pet peeves is when professors post a screenshot of an ad that lists a position opening in the group with an application link. But since it’s an image, we can’t click on the link that’s in the photo. And so at that rate, you’re better off just sharing the direct link to the application.
Right now, you probably have a section somewhere on your website that encourages prospective researchers to email you if they’re interested by sending you their CV or resume. But one thing that you may have encountered is that you might get emails from people are just sending mass emails. And it is not very specific to your group, and it’s just like wasting your time.
To improve the quality of the inquiries and to save yourself time and frustration, you might want to consider creating a page specifically for open positions, which will serve as a central place to announce an update on whatever positions you have open.
It can have short sections for each type of applicant, whether it’s a postdoc, grad student, or undergrad, along with a job description. And so then you can kind of skip the whole email, of “what does this position entail?” You can also add any qualifying questions in that job description, things that people should basically address in their application or their initial email to you, like, “Why are you interested in my group or working with us?”, or whatever other questions you want to ask to filter out people who potentially would not be a good fit. And the purpose of this is just to be very clear on the page about who would be a good fit to join.
Additionally, you may want to consider providing some guidance to potential applicants about how to reach out to professors and groups, because not everybody has the same opportunities to learn or to know what is proper etiquette in academia. So this could be one way to make it more equitable for potential applicants.
For example, on my lab’s website, it says prospective students should apply directly through the UW Madison chemistry department. So that means that if you’re a prospective student, like after you’ve applied, maybe then you can email but if you haven’t yet applied to the chemistry department, like emailing the group where the professor is not going to increase your chances of getting in.
It could also be as simple as linking to an external resource or writing a few sentences about what you expect to see from applicants when they apply. For example, you may want to encourage potential applicants, like undergrad researchers to send follow-up emails by replying to their initial inquiry email.
The reason why I say this is because a lot of first-gen students or students of other cultural backgrounds might feel like they’re bothering you if they send double emails. This would put them at a disadvantage compared to those who do know to follow up and this part of the hidden curriculum and academia frustrates me as someone who was a former undergraduate researcher. And I see that current undergraduate researchers also have this kind of trepidation about approaching faculty more than once. But especially when faculty some faculty have the opinion that Oh, if they didn’t, if they didn’t email me more than once, then they are not really that interested. It’s like no, maybe it’s because they didn’t know or they felt like it was improper to to email more than once. And so having those types of statements, or guidance on that web page could be really beneficial to them.
Add a “Frequently Asked Questions” section to reduce email exchanges.
If you find yourself answering the same questions over and over, then you can add in frequently asked questions sections on the same page as the contact form. And this will reduce the time that you spend in your inbox. Even if there are no positions open in your group, you can still keep the page open and say there are no positions at this time, please check back later.
So you can avoid getting random solicitations, especially when you’re not looking for any new members. So by being clear about what you expect from all applicants, you will make it easier to find good-fit applicants who will also feel more welcome to join your group.
Add your group’s personality to the website with real photos.
And the final tip is to add your group’s personality to the website with real photos. So a lot of academic lab websites, they’re pretty standard, they have, you know, the about the research members, contact, and all these pages are important information to have. But sometimes it’s just like all business. And that’s just like really intimidating to someone who wants to join your group. And, you know, adding your group’s website, your group’s personality to the website can help the student kind of get a vibe for how your group is and kind of feel more at ease see if they’re like, they could see themselves being in the group.
So for example, in addition to listing, you know, the group members names, emails, research interests, everyone could provide a short bio to share about their background, interests or experience. And so this could provide an opportunity for connection for prospective students. They could identify someone be like, oh, this person, you know, is also from the same state as me, or they have similar hobbies. That can be like a conversation starter. And so they’re not going in without knowing anything.
Do a group photo shoot.
Another way to add personality to your lab website is to do a group photo shoot. And I love doing group photo shoots, because it’s an opportunity to get a cohesive look for the website. And you know, everyone dresses up, and it’s really fun. You don’t need a professional photographer or camera to do this.
All you need to do is find a scenic location around campus with good lighting, and use the camera on your phone to snap some group or individual photos. Definitely helps if you have a tripod, otherwise, you’ll just need to find somebody else to take the photos for you. So in our group, we decided to come up with a theme for the dress code.
And so this will depend on your group. It would depend on your group’s overall vibe. And so just some examples could be neutral, school color, professional, beachy, casual, the outdoors, whatever. But in our group, our theme was coastal grandma. And so if you’re not familiar with coastal grandma, it’s like, think of like Diane Keaton, like Martha Stewart, you know, like white linen, long, like short sleeve long pants, like tan, big floppy hat walking down in the sand Martha’s Vineyard type of vibe.
That’s, that’s basically it. And so, you know, we my my group mates, and I thought it would be fun. And so we just got we just got into it. One of my lab mates was very specific, very enthusiastic about this theme. And so she sent out a Pinterest board with inspiration with like the color palette. So like light blue, navy, white tan. So if you’re interested, you can check, check out what the final product looks like on our website.
Tips for taking a lab group photo
We took the photos in a garden area across from the chemistry building. And my two top tips for taking photos in a group.
- Make sure that everyone finds their windows. What are windows? That means that when you look at the photo, nobody’s faces are in front of another, and nobody’s blocking anybody. So usually you’re kind of staggered. Taller people should probably stand in the back, shorter people should stand in the front. And then just make sure that you know, you have like if you have two people like this, and you have someone in behind them in between
- Ensure that the sunlight is good, where it’s not like giving a shadow to the face. Also it’s not too bright, where people would be squinting or it would affect their facial expression and the photo.
So after we got our group photo, I offered to take portraits of each lab member to update their individual photos. And so the bonus was that everyone in the group could use these photos for their own headshots if they needed it. And honestly, it was just fun to dress up a little bit and get out of our normal lab wear.
Take candid photos from group events.
And finally, another way to add more personality is just add real photos from group events and celebrations like truly candid photos. And the only thing is that you’ll just need to remember or have someone in the group remember to take photos of the events or of the celebration.
Yeah, candid photos are great. Not everything has to be posed. And it’s just like an in-action shot. This could give students a sense of what they could expect and it will help them visualize their own experience when they join the group.
In conclusion, the purpose of your lab website is not only to share your work, but to also help prospective researchers visualize the type of experience they can have if they join your group.
By doing these three things, you’ll not only improve the experience for prospective researchers on your academic lab website, but you’ll also increase the chances of getting better-fit applicants. If you implement these tips, I would love to hear about it or see the website the final result.