Hosted by H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute, Florida International University, University of Central Florida, University of South Florida, and Florida State University, the 2019 NPA Annual Conference will feature Bahija Jallal, Ph.D., president of MedImmune and the 2017 Woman of the Year according to Healthcare Businesswomen’s Association, as our keynote speaker.

Our first plenary speakers will be Angela Byars-Winston, Ph.D., a professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison Department of Medicine, Division of General Internal Medicine, director of research for the University of Wisconsin Center for Women’s Health Research, and faculty affiliate of the Center for the Improvement of Mentored Experiences in Research. Joshua N. Weiss, Ph.D., the cofounder of the Global Negotiation Initiative at Harvard University, will be our second plenary speaker.

New Conference Features for 2019

We are very excited to announce a brand-new feature at the 2019 NPA Annual Conference — a career fair! Available on Sunday, April 14, after the closing Town Hall, all conference registrants will have access to an onsite opportunity to meet with hiring representatives from academic institutions, industry, nonprofits, and government. This is a can’t-miss opportunity to hand out your CV/resume and make connections with those specifically looking to fill positions.

Other new opportunities in 2019 include:

• a capstone workshop the day before the conference, April 11, for new PDO administrators who have participated in a six-session myPDO webinar series on mentoring;
• an enhanced exhibit table opportunities throughout the conference to find out more about organizations with postdoctoral resources;
• two nights of dine-arounds;
• an expanded and restructured poster and networking session on Friday night; and
• lots of opportunities to connect with other attendees, both online through the Whova app and in-person during conference networking breaks.

Silent Auction and Raffle Opportunities

We are still accepting donations for the Annual Conference silent auction and/or raffle, proceeds of which will help fund travel awards for postdocs to attend future NPA Annual Conferences. This year, the NPA will host a silent auction from November 19 (registration opening)–March 19 (housing close date), and an onsite raffle from Friday, April 12– Sunday, April 14 at 10 a.m. eastern time. With a variety of items to fit every interest, career level, and budget, and with both online and in-person bidding options, these opportunities offer a great way for everyone in the NPA community to get involved, even if they can’t make it to Orlando.

Registration for the exciting event opens November 19.

Thank you to all our current sponsors — without your generous contributions, it would be impossible to host a conference that provides invaluable resources and connections to our members. If you are interested in making a donation, please contact us.

Stay tuned for more updates and continue to check out our 2019 NPA Annual Conference Web page to stay abreast of the latest sessions, networking opportunities, and much more.

We look forward to seeing you in Orlando next April! 

Kerry Kauffman is the senior program coordinator of the Associate Member Council for the American Association for Cancer Research and NPA Meetings Committee co-chair.

Focus on Wellness During NPAW

The 2018 NPAW showcased an increasing trend of wellness programs. Yoga, the most popular wellness option, was offered at:

• Stanford University
• University of Pittsburgh
• The Gladstone Institute
• University of Michigan
• University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center
• The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center

The continued addition of programs that feature community and family, relaxation, and recognition for work outside the lab, make it clear that we as a community continue to grow and improve.

Other institutes had unique takes on wellness programs. The University of Waterloo had a Thai boxing class and the University of Southern California offered hiking, kayaking, and snorkeling on Catalina Island. Team sports were the focus at Clemson University, which offered bowling, and University of Kansas Medical Center where soccer was an option.

From Professional Development to Fun During NPAW

Most institutions provided an array of programs to foster professional skills development including:

• grant writing
• networking
• job talks
• research statements
• LinkedIn
• CV and resume workshops

One reported highlight was Albert Einstein College of Medicine’s “How Not to Die in the Public Speaking Arena.” This levity was seen in social programs as well, including PostDoctoberFest— celebrated at Duke University (where is originated) and John’s Hopkins School of Medicine, it is a night of postdoc community fun, German beer, and sausages—and the University of Maryland School of Medicine’s Hogwarts-themed banquet.

Successful NPAW Programs Spread

It is wonderful to see how successful programs can spread to other institutions. For example, the University of Alabama at Birmingham was featured in Science and our own POSTDOCket for their whimsical Postdoc Achievement awards, featuring a personal favorite, the Dr. Congeniality award, and this year Cornell and Boston University have announced their own inaugural Postdoc Achievement and Service Awards. This spread of ideas is one example of many of how coming together as a community improves the postdoctoral experience.

When postdocs report their favorite events of NPAW, the strength of their community is paramount. From pizza parties, picnics, trivia, dance parties, or coffee, the events most loved are those that bring the community together. We at the NPA are proud of our part in this community and hope the camaraderie of NPAW will continue all year. We applaud and appreciate postdocs and the efforts that institutes and universities put in to care for, thank, and appreciate their postdocs. The continued addition of programs that feature community and family, relaxation, and recognition for work outside the lab, make it clear that we as a community continue to grow and improve.

Next year will be the 10th anniversary of NPAW; with your help we hope to report events at more universities all over the world and moreover to see reported events across all 50 states!

*If you don’t see your institution’s NPAW events on the NPA webpage please contact us and we will add it!

Jennifer Aumiller, M.Ed., is director of the Office of Postdoctoral Scholars at the University of Maryland School of Medicine. Catherine Brooks Zander, Ph.D., is a research fellow in the Department of Pathology at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. Dolonchapa Chakraborty, Ph.D., is a postdoc at New York University Langone. They are the Outreach Committee co-chairs and vice chair for the NPA.

“The NPA is doing an outstanding job—thank you for everything!”

Giving back to postdocs and postdoc administration

In 2018, with the dollars raised during the last campaign, we were able to conduct and publish Supporting the Needs of Postdocs: 2017 National Postdoctoral Association Institutional Policy Report, Parents in the Pipeline: Retaining Postdoctoral Researchers with Families, and provide programs for postdocs and postdoc administrators such as the myPostdoc Monthly and myPDO Monthly webinars.

“Giving Tuesday is one of the best ways that postdocs can engage with their community and help create change at a national level by providing monetary support to the NPA, which we use to directly further our research and advocacy work in the postdoc community,” said Tracy Costello, Ph.D., chair of the Board of Directors.

“It is also a wonderful opportunity for the NPA to demonstrate to funders, decision makers, and other critical stakeholders that our members are behind the work we are doing. Please join me this year in advancing the work of the NPA. No gift is too small to show your support,” Costello added.

A Postdoc Story

Monica Javidnia, Ph.D., studied pharmacology at Georgetown University where she received her doctorate degree. When she completed it she moved to the University of Rochester almost overnight and her world changed dramatically. Not only was she now studying how to cure Parkinson's disease but she was overwhelmed with the all of life’s changes.

In the midst of this stress, “I received nice email from her postdoc office which invited her to learn about all of the benefits the National Postdoctoral Association offered,” said Javidnia.

“Having the support of the NPA was comforting during a time I really felt like I was in such limbo,” she added. “It is nice to know that someone is looking out for postdocs and the challenges we face.”

Since that time, Javidnia has started to attend NPA webinars and read the The POSTDOCket. She participated in National Postdoctoral Appreciation Week, won a travel award, and plans to attend the NPA Annual Conference next April.

“The NPA is doing an outstanding job—thank you for everything!”

No gift is too small!

In this, the third year NPA has participated in giving Tuesday, we encourage you to consider donating towards the postdoctoral community. Giving Tuesday comes after Thanksgiving, Black Friday, and Cyber Monday to dedicate a day to charity and having an impact on making the world a better place. It transitions the spirit of Thanksgiving into a practical collective coming together in community and philanthropy. Giving to the NPA focuses your gift on improving the postdoctoral experience and giving us the ability to make the voices and circumstances of postdocs known.

As a small nonprofit organization, the NPA must continue to find support to be able to provide resources for and advocate on behalf of postdocs—we need your help! Your tax-deductible donation for 2018 Giving Tuesday campaign will help the NPA continue to:

• study the state of postdocs in the United States
• provide an expert voice in advocating for postdocs nationally
• provide ongoing professional and career development resources to postdocs

Please help send the message that the members of the NPA believe in the work it is doing. Donations can be made at: 2018 Giving Tuesday.

Julie Fabsik-Swarts, M.S., CFRE, CAP, is the executive director of the NPA.

Since then I have renewed my work permit a few times and completed an application for permanent residency. Immigration paperwork is stressful to complete, no matter how many times you do it. I know many families choose to use an immigration lawyer to relieve some of this stress, but I chose to forgo this option. My best advice for you is to do your homework in advance and be prepared, if not potentially over-prepared, before submitting your immigration paperwork. It is better to have extra documents to submit than to scramble for needed paperwork that must be submitted by a deadline.

Daily life, no matter where you move, is going to be different. Different does not mean bad; different just means not the same.

When I moved from the United States to Canada, I expected an almost seamless transition between the two countries. However, what I expected and what I experienced were very different. I still experience many moments of culture shock, even though I am in an English-speaking country on the same continent of North America. Obviously, the amount of culture shock you will experience may vary widely based upon your background and by the country where you plan to do a postdoc. I do not know whether my experience has been typical for someone moving to complete an international postdoc, but there were just some things I struggled with that I was not prepared to encounter with my move. As a result, I became very empathetic to immigrants who have endured a more difficult road than me when pursuing a postdoc abroad!

Moving Across Countries

In retrospect, my move went smoothly. If you had asked me about relocating to a different country in the middle of the move from the United States, I might have sung a different tune. I chose to have a very light move between Chicago and Calgary. I packed a small sedan with my two cats, my fiancé, and the items that would fit in my trunk. Driving for 36 hours with two sedated cats is less than ideal, but there was only one hour I was convinced the cats were going to pee in my backseat!

When I reached the border between the United States and Canada, I sat nervously in my car, expecting a painful interrogation from customs officials. I had a binder full of documents and evidence to help with the interview. When my name was called, they asked for two of my many documents: my postdoc offer letter and my passport. I was vastly over prepared for my border crossing. Nevertheless, I would do the same if I had to do it again.

Financial Planning is Important

I am paying back my United States student loans. The exchange rate from Canadian currency to United States dollars (USD) is currently making this a nightmare. While I am trying to pay off my loans in USD, the Canadian currency decreases my income as a postdoc by approximately 30 percent. The two main factors which makes this task difficult for me to complete are managing international bank accounts and dealing with an unpredictable or unfavorable exchange rate.

First, in order to maintain an additional discount on my student loan interest rate, the payments must be automatically deducted from a United States based bank account. This means I have to wire money into my United States based bank account quarterly to minimize international money transfer payments. The second hurdle I have to overcome is that I am having difficulty budgeting for the future with the current depreciation of the Canadian dollar. I have set up a monthly payment plan, but my costs can vary drastically from month to month. I tried to over budget when planning this move. However, if this pattern continues, I may not be able to afford to pay back my United States student loans with the paycheck I receive from my postdoc in Canadian dollars.

Hiraeth: A Homesickness for a Home You Cannot Return to, or That Never Was

Daily life, no matter where you move, is going to be different. Different does not mean bad; different just means not the same. Even though I moved to a country on the same continent, I still find myself pausing at times after some social interactions to mull over how something had just gone completely sideways from what I expected. Not understanding local customs can definitely make you feel like an outsider in a different country. I imagine this feeling is amplified when the culture in that country is significantly different than your own culture.

One of the biggest hurdles for me was city infrastructure. I strongly prefer to live in a walkable city; Calgary is not one of those places. My daily routine in Chicago included riding public transit to work and home, walking both for exercise and to go to the local grocery store. This type of lifestyle isn’t possible in Calgary due to the weather, the city infrastructure, and the transit systems. Honestly, I am still challenged with making the city work for me. What I have found helpful is focusing on the treasuring places I have found to love, such as a local coffee or cheese shop.

When transitioning between places, it is a good idea to get a social support network in place as soon as possible. Some labs are extremely social, while others barely speak to each other outside of work. Make sure you know what kind of environment you are entering and how that may affect your mental health. Schedule Skype dates or write letters to keep in contact with your friends. I have even played cards over Skype with my friends from high school. This may also be the perfect opportunity to adopt a furry friend into your life. I hope that if you are considering

pursuing an international academic position, this article can help you in some way!

Lauren Drogos, Ph.D., is an Alberta Innovates—Health Solutions (AIHS) postdoctoral scholar at the University of Calgary in the Department of Physiology and Pharmacology and the Hotchkiss Brain Institute.

Postdoc positions provide extra tweaks to training -- opportunities to practice independent research separate from one’s adviser and to switch one’s focus. Just two decades ago, very high-achieving Ph.D. scientists could get tenure-track academic research jobs without such training. While that is not the case today, a broader perspective on the value of graduate education and of postgraduate career choices now pervades the job scene. New trends in NIH predoctoral training redirect the purpose of training from research productivity and academic career preparation to skills development for myriad fields.

These changes are especially aimed at decreasing time to degree. Ideally, as students become more intentionally focused on career choices and personal fit, the time to complete a postdoc will lessen and fewer postdocs will be sought overall. While many postdocs pursue additional training because they are confident in their desire for academic research positions, others are uninformed about their options and simply default to postdoctoral training as a logical next step.

Unfortunately, such an exploratory postdoc approach proves an illogical option for those seeking careers in fields outside bench or academic research science. That is not to say that postdoctoral training hurts candidates outside academic research fields; it still develops, among other things, independence and professional connections. For those seeking paths such as business, policy and communications, however, internships, fellowships and postgraduate jobs -- even short term -- offer more effective exploration and specialized connection opportunities.

While some resistance to immersive career experiences exists in graduate school, far more difficulty occurs during postdoctoral training, when trainees are employees in labs and not strictly students. Furthermore, given pay gaps between postdoctoral appointments and traditional employment, trainees cannot afford to take these positions without an intentional, future direction. While exploratory postdocs must attempt to fit career events and courses between experiments and manuscripts, their working colleagues are contributing to a 401(k) and gaining hands-on experience.

Intentional career decision making is a process: it requires knowing personal interests/skills/values, comparing these with various options, and then using connections and resources well enough to tailor applications. Time and fear of facing resistance from their adviser often prevent graduate students from beginning this process until it is too late. Once in a postdoc, time crunches and institutional pressures still exist, decision paralysis sets in and, before too long, training extends beyond the three, four or five years planned. Or, once set on academic research positions, trainees struggle to find other positions, so they stay. Then they stay longer. And longer. And longer.

Avoiding Fear-Based Decisions

The question of whether or not you have to complete postdoctoral training to get a job is not a good starting point. You should decide if you want to do one in the first place. Ideally, around the second or third year of your doctoral training, use myIDP, other assessment tools and informational interviews to both understand yourself and the activities and values of various career options. Pursuing a postdoc because you might regret leaving academe later is fear-based decision making, not intentional. Remember, something is pushing you away from academe in the first place. Lean into that fear and work with a coach to define and explore options.

Figure out exactly what you want and how the postdoc, specifically, leads to that path. Finally, if a postdoc seems ideal, choose the right one.

Second, be specific about your desired career options and the benefit a postdoctoral experience provides. Many people erroneously dichotomize options as academe versus industry, two very broad terms. A research postdoc is not ideal preparation for academic teaching-focused jobs, for example, and industry’s business side may respond better to a corporate postdoc or none at all. Figure out exactly what you want and how the postdoc, specifically, leads to that path.

Finally, if a postdoc seems ideal, choose the right one. A postdoctoral position at universities like Stanford or Harvard does not guarantee success, and it can even prove to be detrimental if the environment, research area and/or mentoring approaches misalign with your needs. Get references from potential labs, and ask potential principal investigators questions designed to assess fit with your interests, skills and values.

You may decide the postdoctoral experience fits your needs. If you decide it does not, or if you change your mind halfway through training, you can find myriad more direct options to get you to your ideal career of choice. Choose a postdoc because it fits -- not because you do not know what else to do.

Stephanie K. Eberle is assistant dean of the Stanford University’s BioSci Careers community, which serves doctorates, postdocs and MDs in the medical and biosciences fields. They are also an adjunct faculty member at the University of San Francisco and vice chair of the board of directors for the NPA, as well as a member of the Graduate Career Consortium—an organization providing a national voice for graduate-level career and professional development leaders. The views presented here are the author’s own.

When Health Policy Changes are Allowed

It can occur that a postdoc learns there are other policy options available to them that they would prefer to have. Thay decide one day that they want to make changes to their current health insurance coverage, so they go to their plan administrator only to find out that they can’t. The administrator tells them that they need to wait for something called a “Qualifying Event” or “Open Enrollment.” What are those, they may wonder?

Well, there are very specific times that an individual can make changes to their coverage. These include:

Period of Initial Eligibility (PIE)

PIE might sound delicious, but in this case it is referring to the period of initial eligibility, that is the period (typically the first 31 days) following the date the postdoc become eligible for coverage. For instance, if a postdoc became eligible for coverage on 5/1/2018, they are permitted to enroll and make changes to their benefits until 5/31/2018. Beginning 6/1/2018 they are no longer allowed to make changes and would need to wait until they or a dependent experience a qualifying event, or for the annual open enrollment period.

Qualifying Event (QE)

A Qualifying Event is a significant life event that grants the postdoc a unique 31-day window to make changes to their coverage outside of their PIE or Open Enrollment. The 31-day window begins on the date of the qualifying event, and documented proof is often required. Qualifying events typically include:

• Marriage
• Divorce
• Birth of a child
• Adoption
• Loss of prior coverage
• Relocation
• Entrance into the United States

For example, if a postdoc got married on 7/1/2018, they would be permitted to enroll or make changes to their benefits until 7/31/2018. Beginning on 8/1/2018, they would no longer be allowed to make changes until another qualifying event or the annual open enrollment period.

Open Enrollment (OE)

Open Enrollment is an annual period, typically several months before that start of the new plan year, where everyone eligible for coverage is permitted to make changes to their plan(s). This is the time of year where the postdoc can change their plan from the HMO to the PPO (or vice-versa), enroll themselves or dependents they previously waived, waive coverage they no longer want, or make any other allowable change. The Open Enrollment period is typically only a few weeks long, and the changes made take effect at the start of the new plan year.

Knowing this information can help postdocs carefully weigh changes to their coverage and assists them with planning for their specific needs in the future. But the postdoc should not stop here in their quest for knowledge about health coverage. Contacting a qualified representative at Garnett-Powers & Associates before open enrollment or a qualifying event will help them better navigate their choices to plan for the strongest possible future.

Dane Pisano is an account manager at Garnett-Powers & Associates, Inc.

Advocacy Committee:

The Advocacy Committee has begun establishing campus representatives who can be a point of contact at the postdoctoral level for the NPA in that institution. Currently they have met their first goal of 10 campus representatives and are moving forward to increase this program.

Advocacy has published an article in The POSTDOCket entitled “NSF and NIH Take Initial Steps to Combat Sexual Harassment in Academia.” on the NIH and NSF response to National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM) released their report on sexual harassment in academia.

Advocacy is currently working on creating a toolkit addressing mental health issues in academia.

Diversity Officers:

Diversity has updated the fellowships database and included new fellowships geared towards diverse populations, as well as updating the diversity website with this fellowships list; these resources will be available to members when the new NPA website goes live.

Diversity has published a piece in The POSTDOCket entitled “Community and Career Development: LATTICE for Early-Career Underrepresented Minority Women in Engineering.” Diversity officer, Claire Horner-Devine, Ph.D., spoke at the NIH Blueprint meeting for Diversity Specialized Predoctoral to Postdoctoral Advancement in Neuroscience (D-SPAN) scholars about transitioning to a postdoc and how to have a successful postdoc.

International Officers:

The International officers have established a task force to work on website updates. In addition they have been establishing a vision and specific goals for the coming year and working with Meetings Committee to review abstracts for workshops focused on international postdocs at the Annual Conference.

Meetings Committee:

The Meetings Committees has announced the keynote and both plenary speakers for the 2019 NPA Annual Conference at the Rosen Centre Hotel in Orlando, Florida. Now approaching its 17th year, the Annual Conference remains the largest national conference and networking event dedicated to the postdoctoral community.

The Meetings Committee have opened and closed the combined call for workshops and posters, as well as travel and childcare awards. They have shared a new formal prospectus for fundraising for this year’s conference. Please enjoy the article above about the 2019 conference!

Registration starts on November 19 for the Annual Conference. Be the first in your institution to register! We once again will be using a Whova app, to improve your conference experience, which you can download.

November 19 also is the first day of the pre-conference silent auction.

Outreach Committee:

Outreach would like to thank everyone for an extremely successful National Postdoc Appreciation Week (NPAW) 2018! With more than 400 reported events across the United States, Canada, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, New Zealand, Indonesia, and the United Kingdom, this was the largest NPAW ever. Please see our article above for some highlights from this event. The Outreach Committee is working in creating NPAW awards for programming during NPAW; expect details to follow in the coming months.

The POSTDOCket Committee:

The POSTDOCket would like to welcome three new associate editors to the editorial team, and thank all the other postdocs who took the time to submit applications.

Avanti Dey, Ph.D., is currently a postdoc at the Center for Vital Longevity at University of Texas at Dallas. Her work examines cognitive aging and the factors that contribute to different behavioural and neural trajectories across the lifespan, including the role of bilingualism. She believes strongly in the NPA’s mission to foster a sense of community amongst postdocs, and hopes to contribute relevant content as an editor. Her goal is to pursue a career in scientific editing/publishing, and being able to contribute to the NPA as an editor will be a significant milestone.

Kayla Herball, Ph.D., R.N., is a distance-mediated postdoc of the University of Missouri Sinclair School of Nursing. Herbell works clinically as a psychiatric mental health nurse and her research is focused on uncovering behavioral mechanisms which may buffer the effects of violence against women. Herball states that the NPA has been an amazing resource for her at a distance because it makes her feel engaged despite being hundreds of miles away from her institution and other postdocs.

 

Camile Castilho Fontelles, Ph.D., is a postdoc in oncology at Georgetown University. Born in Brazil, she is a bookworm, passionate about science communication, and she loves to share her knowledge. She has published several journal articles and has created a blog where she translates scientific topics for lay audiences.

The POSTDOCket Committee is looking forward to working with these new editors! They are also working on updates to their webpage.

Resource Development Committee:

The Resource Development Committee has finalized webinars for the coming months and has created a draft for a proposed faculty resources project.

myPostdoc webinars are held at 1:00 p.m. eastern time on the first Wednesday of the month. The topic for the December myPostdoc webinar will be “How to Choose (or not choose) a Postdoc Position,” a discussion with Keith Micoli, Ph.D., assistant dean for postdoctoral affairs at NYU School of Medicine.

NPA in the Community:

2018 NPA Board Election Results Announced

The NPA has elected three individuals to the Board of Directors for the three-year term of service beginning on January 1, 2019: Tracy Costello, Ph.D., Natalia Martin, Ph.D., and Claudia Spani, Ph.D.

The directors were elected from a field of three candidates during the 2018 election, which ran from September 17, 2018 through October 1, 2018. The newly elected directors will join the following members of the Board: Andrew Bankson, Ph.D.; Tullia Bruno, Ph.D.; Stephanie Eberle, M.Ed.; Josh Henkin, Ph.D.; Barbara J. Natalizio, Ph.D.; Shakira Nelson, Ph.D.; Kristen Scott, Ph.D.; and Yvette Seger, Ph.D.

Leader Wanted to Serve as Co-Chair of the Meetings Committee

The NPA is currently seeking a motivated and committed leader to serve as the next co-chair of the Meetings Committee. If you know someone who can fill this position (including yourself), please let us know.

Nationwide Events Honor Contribution of Postdoctoral Scholars‎ During Annual Celebration

In 2018, a record 410 events were hosted at 104 organizations in 76 cities in 31 states. NPAW continues to grow beyond the United States, with events being reported in Canada, Germany, and the United Kingdom.

NPAW is coordinated by the Outreach Committee, which works to promote the mission, values, goals, and business objectives of the National Postdoctoral Association. In 2019, NPAW will be held September 16-20. For more information about NPAW and to view events across the nation, visit this page.

Second Plenary Speaker for the 2019 Annual Conference Announced

The NPA has confirmed Angela Byars-Winston, Ph.D., as plenary speaker at 2019 NPA Annual Conference. The conference will take place April 12 - 14, 2019, at the Rosen Centre Hotel in Orlando, FL.

Sustaining Members: Use your 10 free job posts on the NPA Career Center by December 31, 2018!