Transcript MUSC Postdoctoral Researcher Town Hall February 12, 2007 Edward Krug, PhD Associate Professor of Cell Biology & Anatomy Assistant Dean for Postdoctoral Affairs College of Graduate.

MUSC Postdoctoral Researcher
Town Hall
February 12, 2007
Edward Krug, PhD
Associate Professor of Cell Biology & Anatomy
Assistant Dean for Postdoctoral Affairs
College of Graduate Studies
Acknowledgements
Stewart Mixon
Philippe Gresle
Patricia Kelly
Wendy Littlejohn
Rhonda Richardson
Velma Stamp
Dana Tumbleston
David Welch
Beth Gladden
Joe Gough
Susan Mappus
Debbie Shoemaker
Dodie Weise
Today’s Progress Report
• Adopting a definition of “postdoc”
• Standardization of appointment process
• Clarification of fellow tax obligations
• MUSC postdoctoral statistics
• Benefits for postdocs
• Aids for improving the postdoc-PI relationship
• Creation of a “staff scientist” classification
• Career resources on the web
Administrations at research-intensive
institutions have been overwhelmed
by growth in the number of postdocs
in the last 30 years.
http://www.aamc.org/members/great/meetings/h_garrison.pdf
http://www.aamc.org/members/great/meetings/h_garrison.pdf
The initial goal was to identify
the postdoctoral research
population at MUSC...
but what is a “postdoc?”
NIH & NSF Definition of a Postdoctoral
Researcher
“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.”
Postdoctoral Classifications
Temporary Grant Position
(MUSC Employee)
(Payroll - Salary)
Training/Fellowship Grant
(not an MUSC Employee)
(Accounts Payable - Stipend)
POSTDOCTORAL
SCHOLAR
POSTDOCTORAL
FELLOW
STANDARDIZATION OF POSTDOCTORAL
APPOINTMENT PROCESS
1. PI seeks confirms with business manager that sufficient
funds are available to support a postdoctoral trainee salary per NRSA schedule commensurate with
experience.
2. PI recruits postdoc via networking, direct contact or
advertisement.
3. Any VISA issues directed to Sally Young or Emily Brown
(http://www.musc.edu/internationalsupport)
4. Submit FOC approval form, candidate CV, offer letter to
the College of Graduate Studies for approval.
5. Route PEAR to Human Resources along with supporting
documents.
Postdoctoral Fellows …..
• are not MUSC employees
• receive stipends through Accounts Payable
• will not receive any official notification of the
amount of their stipend
• must submit estimated taxes quarterly - both
federal and state
• declare their stipend amount on line 7 of Form
1040 as other income - denote as “SCH”
• do not pay FICA and Medicare taxes
MUSC Postdoc Statistics
• Currently 218 postdocs across 4 colleges
• 143 internationals
• 75 US citizens or permanent residents
• 32 supported by research grants
• 42 supported by training grants
• Average age = 36 years (SD, 6 yrs; range, 25 to 65 yrs)
• Average duration at MUSC = 3.1 years (SD, 2.7 yrs)
• 91% have been at MUSC for 5 or fewer years
• Maximum duration at MUSC is 16 years
• Average salary
• MUSC = $39,162 (SD, $5,434)
• National = $39,267 (SD, $9,282)
How do MUSC postdoc policies compare nationally?
Parameter Assessed
Sigma Xi survey
MUSC scholars
MUSC fellows
He alth ins urance
ye s
(97% re s ponde nts )
ye s
ye s - as of Fe b. 2007
De ntal ins urance
ye s
(77% re s ponde nts )
ye s
ye s - as of Fe b. 2007
Vacation and/or s ick le ave
ye s
(39% re s ponde nts )
no (propos e 15 days no (propos e 15 days
paid tim e off)
paid tim e off)
Fam ily le ave
ye s
(36% re s ponde nts )
ye s - as of Jan. 2007
ye s - as of Jan. 2007
Re tire m e nt plan
ye s
(40% re s ponde nts )
ye s
no
Profe s s ional de ve lopm e nt
ye s
(17% re s ponde nts )
no
no
ye s
Lim its on duration of appointm e nt
(74% re s ponde nts )
no
(propos e 5 ye ars at
M USC)
http://www.sigmaxi.org/postdoc/all/benefits_services_short.html
ye s - 3 ye ars
What are the characteristics of a
“good” postdoctoral training
experience?
Sigma Xi Postdoc Survey 2005
An Individual Development Plan for
Postdocs
The mere process of having a written plan
for the training objectives and milestones of
a postdoc correlates with significantly
greater productivity and career satisfaction.
40% more publications per year!
What are the career options for a
postdoc?
• The majority want faculty jobs…
• but there has only been a 32%
increase in tenure-track faculty
positions since 1975 …
• while the number of postdocs has
increased more than 400%.
Table 1. Biomedical Workforce by Classification
Classification
1975
1997
%
change
% total
1975
% total
1997
acade m ics
te nure d or te nure -track
non-te nure track
22,230
668
29,300
6,822
132%
1021%
61%
2%
35%
8%
2,615
1,706
9,620
7,296
368%
428%
7%
5%
11%
9%
profe s s ionals
pos tdocs
5,273
53
21,643
561
410%
1058%
14%
0%
26%
1%
gove rnm e nt
profe s s ionals
3,785
7,212
191%
10%
9%
245
1,437
587%
1%
2%
pos tdocs
othe r
indus try
pos tdocs
“Addressing the Nation’s Changing Needs for Biomedical and
Behavioral Scientists”, National Academy Press, Washington DC, 2000.
http://www.aamc.org/members/great/meetings/h_garrison.pdf
Proposed definition of an MUSC postdoc:
• the appointee was recently awarded a Ph.D. or equivalent
doctorate (e.g., Sc.D., M.D.) in an appropriate field; and
• the appointment is temporary (limited to 5 years at MUSC,
with a 6th year by petition to the College of Graduate
Studies); and
• the appointment involves substantially full-time research or
scholarship; and
• the appointment is viewed as preparatory for a full-time
academic and/or research career; and
• the appointment is not part of a clinical training program; and
• the appointee works under the supervision of a senior
scholar; and
• the appointee has the freedom, and is expected, to publish
the results of his or her research or scholarship during the
period of the appointment.
(based on AAU, AAMC, and FASEB definition)
Why limit the term of postdoctoral
training?
• Productivity decreases with increasing
length of the postdoctoral period
(publication rate drops 6% each year)
• Lack of adequate benefits
• Feelings of hopelessness
Limiting the duration of the postdoctoral
training period also requires the evolution of
new types of career options.
STAFF SCIENTIST CLASSIFICATION
• Assistant investigator - designs and
executes experiments, writes manuscripts,
assists in grant applications, supervises
research of others in lab, develops new
methodologies and experimental models
• At least 2 years of postdoctoral training
• A research grant position - no FTE
• No limit of duration
• Staff benefits
• Salary range of $40-80k
• Not PI-eligible
MUSC POSTDOCTORAL CAREER PATH OPTIONS
POSTDOCTORAL POSITIONS
HR Clas s ifications
Postdoctoral Schol ar
(50106)
Position Title
Goal/Career Expectation
Postdoctoral Fell ow
(sti pend)
FACULTY OPTIONS
STAFF OPTION
Staff Scienti st
Training f or an academic/f aculty or non-f acult y career
Research Associate
(50100)
Assistant Investigator
Non-T enure T rack
(50100)
T enure-T rack
(50100)
Principal Inv est igat or
HR Adm inis tr ation Is s ue s
Employment qualifications
PhD, MD or equiv alent doctorat e
PI recruitment and/ or HR
posting
Hiring protocol
Temporary MUSC
employ ee with limit ed
benef it s
Appointment designation
Duration of appointment
PhD, MD or equiv alent
doctorat e, plus 2 y ears
postdoct oral t raining or
equiv alent
Internal compet itive
recruitm ent (T32) or
HR post ing/ research grant
indiv idual f ellowship award
Not an MUSC employ ee
PhD, MD or equiv alent doctorat e
In accordance wit h guidelines in Faculty Handbook (Facult y Contract )
Faculty FTE
MUSC employ ee - no FTE
Term of f ellowship (NRSA Limit ed by av ailability of
[Proposed: 5 y ears at
MUSC/6th y ear by pet ition] has 3 y ear limit ) count ed f unds and perf ormance towards postdoc duration
no griev ance rights
Evaluation criteria
Y rs of experience, PI assessment of perf ormance
PI assessment of
perf ormance
Benef its Eligibility
Health/dental/ sup.lif e &
disability /ret irement/f amily Health/dental/ f amily leav e
leave
[Proposed: 15 day s PTO]
[Proposed: 15 day s PTO]
Staf f benef its,
commensurat e with
percent ef f ort
US Citizenship or VISA
Restrictions
US citizen, permanent
resident, or VI SA (F1 wit h
EAD, J-1, H1)
Primary Job Duties
min. BS degree
requirement
US citizen or permanent
resident
Limit ed by av ailability of f unds and perf ormance - has f aculty griev ance right s
Chair/PI assessment of perf ormance
Chair assessment of
perf ormance
Faculty benef it s, commensurat e with percent ef f ort
US citizen, permanent resident, or VI SA (H-1B)
Research & Career Training
Clinical/
Research/ Educat or
(1 t o 3 Missions)
Research
Funding Is s ue s
Funding Source
Salary Levels
Any source of f unds
NRSA pay scale (pending
appropriate qualif icat ions)
Fellowship/t raining awards
(e.g. NRSA, AHA, et c)
NIH (NRSA pay scales)
Non-st at e f unds - t ypically
grant s, endowment , etc
Dept f unds or grants - Dept discret ion
$40-80K
Based on experience
26. 4%
26. 4%
Based on rank & experience
Gr ant Manage m e nt Is s ue s
Grant Overhead Rates
Grant Eligibility
19. 90%
0.00%
Cannot apply f or any independent f unding except f or
postdoc f ellowships awards
Not PI -eligible f or grants or f ellowship
Varies based on source of
f unding
26. 4%
PI-eligible f or any f unding mechanism
Web Resources
Science Alliance for Students and Postdocs
http://www.nyas.org/sa/index.asp
Science Careers
http://sciencecareers.sciencemag.org/
National Postdoctoral Association
http://www.nationalpostdoc.org/site/c.eoJMIWOBIrH/b.1
388059/k.DBBE/NPA_Home.htm
Postdoctoral Life
http://www.phds.org/postdoc
Sigma Xi Postdoc Survey
http://postdoc.sigmaxi.org/
What are your concerns or needs?