Pizza Party Alfresco Celebrates Contributions of UCSD Postdocs

Paul K. Mueller | November 9, 2009

If you had business near the Leichtag building on campus recently, you might have noticed a gathering of distinctly diverse people on the lawn above the Biomedical Library. Around tables, under awnings, or clustered in conversational groups in the sunlight, a good number of UCSD’s postdoctoral professionals enjoyed the first-ever Postdoc Appreciation Day. An equally good number of faculty members and grad students added their individual thanks.

The appreciative pizza party alfresco reminded participants and passers-by alike of the significant contributions made by postdocs – and helped them enlighten the uninformed.

Although they occupy a unique niche in the university community, postdoctoral scholars often get lumped in with students. “We’re not students,” several participants said. “We have graduated; we’ve earned our doctorates. We’re professionals – scientists, scholars, and researchers.” Others noted that about 2,000 postdocs are employed on campus – a major part of the research enterprise.

Jennifer Oh, director of the Postdoctoral and Visiting Scholars Office in Research Affairs, confirms that. “Postdocs here at UCSD and elsewhere constitute a major portion of academic researchers, particularly in medicine and the life sciences,” she said. “They start new projects, test new hypotheses, and broaden the perspectives of their laboratories.” The postdoc experience, she says, is a kind of high-level preparation for very challenging positions in academia, government, the health fields, private business or industry.

According to Hady Felfly, a postdoc in the department of pediatrics and chair of UCSD’s Postdoctoral Association, beyond the expected research and academic duties, he and his colleagues also make major contributions to their discipline’s journals, and help write numerous grant applications.

“Postdocs play a vital role in training grad students,” he says. “We’re intermediaries between graduate students and faculty, and we help grad students launch projects and see them through to completion. That assistance frees faculty for work on their specialties, and maximizes the use of lab resources.”

As valuable as they are to campus research, says Felfly, postdocs don’t always get the support and recognition they merit.  He would like to see some kind of honor award for outstanding postdoc contributions. “That could increase motivation,” he says, “and help strengthen resumes. After all, the postdoc period is also a curriculum-vitae-building experience.”

In addition to their research or academic pursuits, Jennifer Oh says, postdocs should sit on journal review boards; give talks to groups other than co-workers; and contribute to books in their fields. “Although some faculty offer these kinds of opportunities, she says, most do not. “Encouraging faculty to help expand the breadth and depth of postdoc participation  would really benefit these members of the campus community.”

Although he’d like to see some improvements, Felfly says his own two-year experience – working with Dr. Gabrial Hadded in the department of pediatrics, where they study stem cells and neuro-regenerative medicine – has been positive. “My training has been quite rewarding,” he says. “I very much like the collaborative spirit at UCSD, the presence of outstanding researchers, and the amazing availability of different high-tech facilities that let us perform virtually any experiment. And campus life is enjoyable.”

Felfly was elected chair of the campus Postdoctoral Association after serving as vice chair for external relations and finance.  He interacts with both on-campus and regional and national officials and services – which gives him, he says, “the opportunity to view the postdoc training from a perspective that most postdocs don’t get, and I try to translate this for my colleagues.”

He especially credits Oh for her work directing the Postdoctoral and Visiting Scholars Office in Research Affairs. “She organizes regular seminars and workshops, and helps us acquire the skills we need to win grants and advance our careers. And her office helped pay for a big part of this first Postdoc Appreciation Day, including collecting and distributing the day’s many prizes.”

Oh says her goal is to overcome the perception of some on campus that postdocs are simply trainees and temporary help. “Highlighting the important and ongoing contributions of our postdocs should encourage the university to provide more services for them,” she says.

In most universities and research institutions, postdocs are organized in groups commonly known as Postdoc Associations (PDAs). Each PDA fosters interactions, networking, career development and advocacy for its members. The National Postdoctoral Association, an umbrella organization that provides services to postdocs at the national level, encompasses more than 150 different universities and institutions.

The inaugural Postdoc Appreciation Day was initiated by the National Postdoctoral Association and sponsored by the UCSD Postdoc Association, the Postdoctoral and Visiting Scholars Office, the Biomedical Library, and the Rady School of Management.