nibot ([personal profile] nibot) wrote2012-07-25 02:52 pm
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postdocs

Here's something to tape to the wall to remind myself what I'm supposed to be doing:

Postdocs are scientists who have completed their PhD research and who continue to develop their scientific skills by working for a few years at a university or other research institution. Postdoctoral research positions give these scientists the opportunity to broaden their knowledge and to gain more research experience, without taking on any teaching responsibilities. At the same time, postdocs are often the primary source of manpower—and womanpower—to advance research projects.In experimental particle physics, postdocs hired by universities commonly work at national laboratories, where most of the large-scale particle experiments take place. There the postdocs work at the forefront of particle physics research, leading groups that focus on data analysis or on detector- and hardware-related tasks.Theorists use their postdoc years to begin new collaborations and to learn about new areas of research. Experimentalists usually spend their postdoc years working on experiments different from their PhD research.During their time as postdocs, scientists have the chance to develop leadership skills and to become good science communicators, describing their work to colleagues and presenting results at conferences. Quite often, postdocs also supervise and mentor students. All these skills are necessary to reach the next level of a scientific career, such as a faculty position at a university.Eva Halkiadakis, Rutgers University

source: http://www.symmetrymagazine.org/cms/?pid=1000416
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[identity profile] gstef.livejournal.com 2012-07-25 08:17 pm (UTC)(link)
I've been a postdoc for 4 years. The essay is useless to me because it is too theoretical. Postdoc positions exist because of the large number of PhDs and small number of faculty jobs. The author concludes saying that once you've been a good postdoc and have achieved all the things she describes you might be able to reach the "next level". So, 50 years ago when postdocs almost didn't exist professors were not as good as they are nowadays, I guess...

[identity profile] nibot.livejournal.com 2012-07-25 10:22 pm (UTC)(link)
I appreciate (and largely agree with) your cynicism! However, I did find it comforting to stumble upon this succinct explanation of my "purpose".

I also found it funny that a magazine feature dedicated to succinctly explaining things like "Cerenkov radiation" or "neutrino mixing" had an entry for "postdocs". (-:
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