Can you define what a PostDoc
is?
- "a temporary appointment the
primary purpose of which is to provide for continued education or
experience in research usually, though not necessarily, under the
supervision of a senior mentor. Included are appointments in
government and industrial laboratories which resemble in their
character and objectives postdoctoral appointments in
universities. Excluded are appointments in residency training
programs in the health professions"
-- National Research Council,
1981
- "a postdoc is a student who
has completed a Ph.D. and who is doing full time research under
the general oversight of a senior professor for a year or two
prior to taking a permanent position in academe, industry or
government."
-- Stephen Sample, President of
USC, 1993
- "a postdoc is someone who has
recently received a Ph.D. and who views the postdoc appointment as
prerequisite training or experience for a post in academia,
government or industry"
-- William Zurneta, author,
1985
- Criteria for a postdoctoral
appointment:
- the appointee was recently
awarded a Ph.D. or equivalent
- the appointment is
temporary
- the appointment involves
substantially full-time research
- the appointment is viewed
as preparatory for a full-time academic and/or research
career
- the appointment is not part
of a clinical training program
- the appointee works under
the supervision of a senior scholar or a department in a
research university or similar research institution (e.g.,
national laboratory, NIH, etc.)
- the appointee has the
freedom, and is expected to publish the results of his or her
research during the appointment
-- John Vaughn, Association of
American Universities
- "The postdoctoral appointment
is a temporary appointment in academia, industry, government or
nonprofit research organizations primarily for the purpose of
allowing individuals to obtain additional education and training
in research"
-- National Research Council,
1994
PSA home page