The Postdoctoral Experience Revisited (2014) / Chapter Skim
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Pages 67-78
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From page 67... ...
: "An individual who has received a doctoral degree (or equivalent) and is engaged in a temporary and defined period of mentored advanced training to enhance the professional skills and research independence needed to pursue his or her chosen career path." Although the individual postdoctoral experience varies significantly depending upon a number of factors such as location, field, or funding source, as examples, there is little debate about the potential value that the general postdoctoral experience provides to either the postdoctoral researcher or to his or her host institution.
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From page 68... ...
The mismatch between the expectations and outcomes of the postdoctoral experience causes disappointment and disillusionment for some postdoctoral researchers, and may discourage undergraduate students and graduate students from continuing to pursue careers in research, thereby reducing the pool of talent on which the research enterprise depends. Although there have been a number of improvements since the release in 2000 of the National Academies' report Enhancing the Postdoctoral Experience for Scientists and Engineers, postdoctoral researchers at many institutions continue to lack adequate mentoring, recognition, status, and benefits.
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From page 69... ...
Given the current levels of total research spending in the United States, the practice of hiring postdoctoral researchers to staff laboratories has created a situation where the number of postdoctoral researchers is out of equilibrium with the number of available positions that require advanced training, and there is no reasonable correlation between the change in the total number of postdoctoral researchers and positions that require postdoctoral training. Significantly fewer than half of all postdoctoral researchers continue into academic tenure-track positions and an increasing fraction end up in nonacademic or non-research careers that do not require the years of advanced research training provided by the postdoctoral position.
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From page 70... ...
When the appointment period is completed, the postdoctoral researchers should move on to a permanent position externally or be transitioned internally to a staff position with a different and appropriate designation and salary. This recommendation requires action primarily by the funding agencies and the host institutions.
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From page 71... ...
The postdoctoral position should not be viewed by graduate students or principal investigators as the default step after the completion of doctoral training. This recommendation requires action by all the different members of the research system: the funding agencies, the host institutions, the professional societies, the mentors, the postdoctoral researchers, and even the graduate students before becoming postdoctoral researchers.
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From page 72... ...
While they believe that institutions need flexibility to accommodate particular circumstances, they also firmly believe that a postdoctoral researcher's salary should be fair and fit rationally within the spectrum of salaries for researchers in that discipline, at that institution: for example, well above that of a graduate student and significantly less than that of an entry-level, career-track researcher, that is, permanent staff scientist, research track assistant professor, or tenure-track assistant professor.
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From page 73... ...
Host institutions and funding agencies should take responsibility for ensuring the quality of mentoring through evaluation of, and training programs for, the mentors. This recommendation requires action by the funding agencies and the host institutions, with supporting actions by the professional societies, the mentors, and the postdoctoral researchers themselves.
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From page 74... ...
The use of a common identifier system for each postdoctoral researcher is a possible approach. 6.2 Host institutions should assist in the data collection efforts by remaining consistent with their labeling of postdoctoral researcher, keeping track of new hires and departures, and conducting exit interviews to determine career outcomes of their postdoctoral
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From page 75... ...
PDOs need to continue sharing experiences to help one another fulfill their potential to train mentors, organize career development activities, be a one-stop source of information for domestic and international postdoctoral researchers, manage postdoctoral researcher grievances, oversee data-gathering efforts, monitor institutional compliance with salary and benefits policy, and track the career progress of former postdoctoral researchers. Although currently these offices are often embedded within a larger graduate student affairs operation, they are essential for improving the visibility and recognition of postdoctoral researchers in their host institutions and deserve specialized recognition.
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From page 76... ...
Therefore, mentors, with the assistance of their institutions, would also provide postdoctoral researchers with substantial protected time to pursue career development activities. In addition, because of the ever-increasing globalization of the science and engineering enterprise, mentors would be attuned to the special needs of temporary visa holders pursuing postdoctoral research, and consult with or provide referrals to experts within their institutions, including international offices.
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From page 77... ...
In addition, and because of the critical role of mentoring in the science and engineering enterprise, all funding agencies would place an emphasis on mentoring as a key criterion in evaluating grant proposals and the performance of principal investigators. Professional Societies Professional societies would recognize postdoctoral researchers as a distinct class of membership within their organizations and help postdoctoral researchers create a sense of community by facilitating postdoctoral researcher activities and networking at their meetings.
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From page 78... ...
To this end, professional societies would help make broadly available information about job markets, career trajectories, and salaries for postdoctoral researchers and graduate students in their disciplines (e.g., through bulletins, or special sessions about career opportunities at meetings)
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