Recent replies to "How to Succeed as a Post-Doc"

Reply from Tania Hansen

Tania Hansen — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 12:43:00 -0000

As someone who left their first post-doc because it just didn’t work for me, my advice is not to be scared to leave if it is not working out.

Sure, I had 6 months of job-hunting whilst still in my first position and 2 months without a job, but now I am in my second post-doc and much much happier.

Reply from Lisa B. Marshall

Lisa B. Marshall — Sun, 20 Apr 2008 20:00:36 -0000

Postdoc is the time to polish both technical skills and professional development skills (writing, speaking, networking, team building, etc.). Take advantage of all programs offered at your institution and if your does not offer much watch online videos from places that do (e.g. NIH).

Developing professionally is just as important and often overlooked. The postdocs that reach out beyond the lab and develop ALL skills tend to be more successful.

I write a blog on professional development for those in the sciences and have been an invited speaker at institutions like Stanford University, Harvard University, Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, University of Pennsylvania, Genentech, etc…

Check out the blog at http://www.artofspeakingscience.com

I hope you’ll join the conversation there.
lisa [AT] lisabmarshall [DOT] com

Reply from Hesham Nawar

Hesham Nawar — Sat, 19 Apr 2008 01:36:07 -0000

Honestly I do not know why I’m facing such struggle during my postdoc. It was much better as graduate student. I’m trying to get a fellowship but as I’m not citizen my choices are very limited. I have to do what my PI ask for even I do not agree as he always says we need to satisfy the grant. I do not know how I’ll mature to be independent and to be an assistant professor.

Reply from Sandip Kuthe

Sandip Kuthe — Sun, 23 Mar 2008 10:35:14 -0000

Its good that you have decided to work as a Post-Doc. Well I tried few years before and had a tele-interview with one of the prof from Rice University. He offered me the position and then …what happened? One fine morning suddenly he said he has plans to relocate to some other university .. and there he had no funds to take me as Post Doc?—Amazing?
well I was really shocked to see that because I was waiting more than six months for this offer to get materialize and so I gently denied other offers..and finally I was jobless for a session .. and…. still answering the question of the interviewer ..What I was doing all this session?

Be careful while choosing the offer and follow up all the issues related to your fellowship, stay etc, etc.
All the Best.

Reply from Hans-Joerg Schneider

Hans-Joerg Schneider — Sat, 01 Dec 2007 09:53:48 -0000

How to choose and to apply to a group:
As ~~now retired~~ Professor of Organic Chemistry I had the great pleasure to work with many postdocs, none of them left without at least one paper in good journals, several have faculty positions; also I got ~~too many~~ rather hopeless applications.
My advise:
a) carefully check recent publications of the group you want to join
b) for your application make it clear why you want to join that particular group
c) do not be afraid of foreign environment / culture /language !

Reply from mark tummers

mark tummers — Tue, 20 Nov 2007 09:26:35 -0000

Am doing my second post doc now. To be honest i think I have made all the wrong choices. And so far it doesn’t seem to matter much.

It seems to me that you can’t plan a post doc. There are too many external things that can go wrong. Events you have no control over.

And that leads me to my advice.

1. Don’t do impossible projects. You don’t have time for that. Concentrate on pumping out a paper each year.

2. Do something you like doing. Motivation is everything and sometimes not even enough.

Just hang in there.

Reply from Pilar Nava-Parada

Pilar Nava-Parada — Fri, 21 Sep 2007 22:11:03 -0000

Hi,

I have read these articles about post-doc “life” and have found some good ideas.

http://www.jhu.edu/%7Ejhumag/0299web/postdoc.html

http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?artid=1307586

http://www.nature.com/doifinder/10.1038/447791a

http://www.jimmunol.org/cgi/content/abstract/159/10/4645

Reply from Tanja Ninkovic

Tanja Ninkovic — Mon, 10 Sep 2007 14:34:42 -0000

How do you distribute work between you and your phd student? Sometimes you have a great idea and it’s hard to get the work out of your hands, as it’s also not going to be your first autor paper, but you had an idea. And you are also not the last autor, becasue your PI is…. What’s the clever way to make this work for all participants?

Reply from anonymous

anonymous — Mon, 16 Jul 2007 14:05:59 -0000

In addition to the topic it is important to identify the dynamics in your potential new group.
An interesting topic is worthless, if it doesn’t easily fit into the lab (technically or funding wise), or if there might be opposition from the old-established colleagues.
The PIs hardly object to novel ideas, though only good group leaders know how to integrate them into an existing group.

Reply from Mark Ffrench

Mark Ffrench — Thu, 24 May 2007 09:36:14 -0000

Viola! is a brilliant replacement for that original stuffy old french exclamation – though apologies for the off-topic post.

Reply from Sri Ramulu ELLURU

Sri Ramulu ELLURU — Fri, 30 Mar 2007 06:45:16 -0000

First, read a lot about the topic you are interested and identify the researchers in your interest.
Develop a rapport with the researchers and discuss your interest.Try to develop new ideas even before you join the lab.
Many researchers would appreciate if you give them novel ideas.
Think of a suitable paper that can come out of your idea and develop experimental methods for the paper.
Viola! you got a good milestone in your research.

Reply from Kannan Krishnamurthy

Kannan Krishnamurthy — Fri, 16 Mar 2007 13:27:13 -0000

the recent issue of The Scientist magazine lists the best places to post doc.

http://www.the-scientist.com/2007/3/1/49/1/