 | Ilsa Schwartz and John Alvaro, co-directors of the newly created Postdoctoral Office. |
New initiative designed to give postdocs a 'home' at Yale
Ilsa Schwartz and John Alvaro know from firsthand experience how easy it can be to become isolated while conducting postdoctoral work.
"It's very possible to go into a research laboratory, office or a library and barely set foot out of it," says Schwartz.
In their roles as directors of Yale's new Postdoctoral Office, however, Alvaro and Schwartz want to ensure that current and future postdoctoral appointees at Yale don't travel that route, but instead have a rich, varied and fulfilling experience during their time on campus.
The Postdoctoral Office was established in July -- with branches on both the central and medical campuses -- to help postdoctoral associates and fellows make the transition to Yale and to assist them in becoming full members of the campus community.
"We're basically giving those who are engaged in postdoctoral work here a 'home' -- a place to come for information or if they encounter problems," says Schwartz, a professor of surgery (otolaryngology and neurobiology) who directs the central campus office.
"Our goal is to help them take advantage of all of the resources at Yale and to help them feel a part of the Yale community," adds Alvaro, a lecturer in psychiatry and the administrative director of the Combined Program in the Biological and Biomedical Sciences, who heads the Postdoctoral Office's medical campus branch.
Some 1,300 individuals currently hold postdoctoral appointments at Yale as they conduct research or further their educational training. Casually called "postdocs," their status on campus is unique, point out Schwartz and Alvaro.
"They are neither students nor faculty members, and are sometimes considered employees but sometimes not," notes Alvaro, who was himself a postdoctoral appointee at Yale in the mid-1990s after completing his doctoral work in Yale's Interdepartmental Neuroscience Program in 1995.
The Postdoctoral Office on the central campus also oversees unpaid research affiliates and visiting fellows, such as the 18 Yale World Fellows, international campus guests who hold positions of prominence in their nations and who are visiting the University this fall under the auspices of the Yale Center for the Study of Globalization.
On the central campus, the Postdoctoral Office is now responsible for processing the admissions of all postdoctoral appointees in conjunction with their departments or programs (a task that was previously handled by the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences) and for tracking their progress while they are on campus. At the medical school, the Postdoctoral Office will work in conjunction with the Faculty Affairs Office to administer postdoctoral appointments. In addition, the offices on both sides of campus will assist with orienting postdocs to Yale, New Haven and the surrounding area.
Approximately 80% of Yale postdocs hold appointments at the School of Medicine, and about half of them come from countries abroad. Many are conducting research under the guidance of a faculty mentor. Postdoctoral appointees can spend up to four years on the campus.
"For many postdocs, their arrival at Yale is their first introduction to the United States," says Alvaro. "So in addition to helping them with their orientation to American culture, we can also assist international postdocs with their language skills and in finding housing, which is particularly difficult for those who come mid-year."
Schwartz, who earned her Ph.D. in molecular biophysics at Yale in 1969 and did postdoctoral work at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine, notes that there are now numerous resources at Yale that the Postdoctoral Office can "plug into" to acquaint postdocs with the campus community.
"The good thing is that in creating this office, we don't have to re-invent the wheel," she says. "We can introduce postdocs to such resources as the Office for International Students and Scholars, the McDougal Center, the English Language Institute and student-run organizations such as International Spouses and Partners at Yale, through which postdoctoral appointees can both deal with practical issues, such as taking courses in English-as-a-Second Language, or make social connections with each other and other members of the community.
"Essentially, our function is to supplement what various departments, schools and programs are doing while also serving as a central contact for postdoctoral appointees and helping to foster a sense of community among them," she adds.
A particular focus for the office is helping postdoctoral associates and fellows with career development. Workshops are being planned on topics ranging from cover letter and grant writing to lab management. Sessions have already been offered on academic careers and University benefits.
Cheryl DeFilippo, an administrator in the Postdoctoral Office's central campus branch, assisted in setting up the central campus office and has also worked with Schwartz and Alvaro to put together a list of both Yale and external websites containing information that may be useful to postdoctoral appointees. They are also creating an electronic "listserv." which will provide postdoctoral appointees with up-to-date information regarding campus events and activities that may also be of interest. A Postdoctoral Office website is currently in development.
In addition, the Postdoctoral offices will work closely with departmental postdoctoral advisers in all affiliated schools, departments and programs that have postdocs to enrich their experience at Yale.
"While many of our postdocs work closely with mentors or with their advisers, there may be occasions when problems arise where they would feel more comfortable talking with someone from outside their particular program, and we are here for that, too," says Schwartz.
Because postdoctoral associates and fellows work in a wide range of fields, Alvaro says that "one of our biggest challenges is to accommodate the needs of such a diverse group."
The two directors note, however, that all of these temporary employees and campus visitors share one thing in common: They are at an important intersection in their professional careers.
"For all the postdocs, their time spent at Yale is a critically important part of their training," Alvaro says. "It is a time that has to be spent wisely, whether in the laboratory or conducting other research. Our primary objective is to help them make the most of that time, to assist them in making it as enriching and valuable as it is meant to be."
The central campus branch of the Postdoctoral Office is located in Rm. 316 of 1 Hillhouse Ave. The medical campus branch is in Rm. L200C of the Sterling Hall of Medicine, 333 Cedar St. Staff in the central campus office can be reached by e-mail at postdoc.central@yale.edu or at (203) 432-9075 and in the medical campus branch at (203) 785-3735.
-- By Susan Gonzalez
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