An Individual Development Plan (IDP) is a process through which graduate students assess their skills, reflect on their career plans, set near- and long-term goals, and identify next steps. IDPs support graduate students’ academic success and professional development, and they help students take charge of their journey through graduate school and beyond. 

The Graduate College encourages graduate students and faculty to incorporate IDPs into their mentoring relationship, and we have collected the following resources to support you in doing so:

FOR STUDENTS

The Graduate College has developed GradPLAN, an IDP specifically designed with University of Illinois graduate students in mind.

Other organizations have IDPs that could also be useful for students.

• American Association for the Advancement of Science/Science Careers myIDP
• American Chemical Society ChemIDP
• American Psychological Association Resources for IDPs
• Imagine PhD Career Exploration and Planning Tool for humanities and social sciences

FOR FACULTY

IDP Essentials for Faculty outlines the main features of IDPs, why they are a beneficial tool for mentoring graduate students, and the roles faculty can play in the IDP process.

The Faculty IDP Conversation Guide offers a recommended outline for a mentoring conversation after your graduate student completes and IDP.