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Dear Postdoctoral Community,
As we head further into the semester, let us continue to support each other in our research endeavors. Remember it is our community that inspires us and helps us maintain high levels of proactivity. If there are ways that we can support you in the Office of Postdoctoral Affairs, please do not hesitate to reach out.
Additionally, there are several exciting initiatives on the horizon, including nominations for our upcoming Annual Postdoctoral Awards. Please see below for more information on these opportunities.
Best,
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C. André Christie-Mizell
Vice Provost for Graduate Education
Director, Office of Postdoctoral Affairs
Dean of the Graduate School
Centennial Professor of Sociology
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| | February 21: VPA Happy Hour
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| Annual Postdoc Awards Nominations are Open!
Nominations for our annual postdocs awards are now open. The awards ceremony will be held on Wednesday, May 21.
Awards to be presented include:
Postdoc of the Year
Postdoc Mentor of the Year
Postdoc Service Award
Faculty Mentor of the Year
Outstanding Campus Partner Award
For more information on the award criteria, to submit a nomination, or to view past winners, visit the OPA website. Nominations close on Sunday, March 16 at 11:59 p.m. CST.
To RSVP to the ceremony on May 21 at 3:00 p.m., click here.
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SAVE THE DATE! VPA 2025 Symposium
Mark it in your calendars! This year, the Vanderbilt Postdoctoral Association's Symposium will be held in the Student Life Center on Tuesday, October 14.
Volunteer Opportunity: The symposium is planned by the Vanderbilt Postdoc Association and the postdoc community. If you are interested in joining the Symposium Planning Committee, please complete this form.
Requirements include: attending a 1-hour virtual and some in-person monthly (February to July) and bi-monthly (August-October) meetings to assist with the planning/preparation of the 2025 Symposium, attending the full-day symposium event on Tuesday, October 14, 2025, and willingness to work in groups to support the Symposium event. This is a 9-month commitment.
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Join JoLS-Pub as a Postdoc Reviewer!The Journal of Life Sciences (JoLS) invites postdocs to join JoLS-Pub, a new platform where scientists share layperson-friendly summaries of their published research. As a reviewer, you’ll gain editorial experience, refine your science communication skills, and mentor graduate and undergraduate trainees while promoting accurate, accessible science for the public.
Key Details:
- Role: Review 2000-word summaries that explain PubMed-indexed research in simple terms, with optional illustrations and author bios.
- Team Structure: Reviews are conducted by a postdoc-led team, with graduate and undergraduate members.
- Benefits: Enhance your career development and showcase your profile on the JoLS platform.
Register now to join the JoLS-Pub editorial team and help bridge the gap between science and society! Encourage your trainees to register as reviewers too. You can register by emailing info@journaloflifesciences.org.
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| | English Language Center Course for Postdocs
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The English Language Center (ELC) will be offering an online Academic Communication for Postdocs during the Spring 2025 semester.
These modules are intended to provide the resources and space for international postdocs to discuss, practice, and ask questions about the postdoc experience in the US. Attendees will have opportunities to meet and interact virtually with other international postdocs, submit materials for individualized feedback, and receive supplementary materials online.The course content includes various aspects of oral communication in an academic setting, including making small talk with colleagues, joining group discussions, practicing job talks, and discussing research to different types of audiences. Postdocs will also learn about expectations for postdocs, cross-cultural considerations, and navigating professional relationships.
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| New VU SBER IRB
The Vanderbilt University Social, Behavioral, and Educational Research (SBER) IRB soft launch will begin on March 3. This new VU SBER will oversee the majority of human research conducted at the university, offering tailored support for SBER studies while enabling the VUMC IRB to focus on biomedical and clinical research.
More information can be found in the My VU story.
Start preparing now by taking advantage of the resources linked in the article, including:
- Monthly “Introduction to the VU Social, Behavioral and Educational Research (SBER) IRB” sessions held on the fourth Wednesday of each month.
- The new vu.edu/irb website that provides comprehensive guidance for Vanderbilt researchers, including submission procedures, timelines and policy updates.
- Daily office hours every weekday, Monday through Friday, from 1 to 2 p.m. starting Feb. 3.
- Contacting the VU SBER IRB team at irb@vanderbilt.edu with questions, feedback, or to request a tailored outreach session for your school or department.
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| U.S. Tax BasicsAnd What You Need to Know About Tax Return Filing
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The Vanderbilt International Tax Office and BRET International Trainee Support team are excited to host an online information session on US taxes:
- U.S. Tax Basics: What You Need to Know About Tax Return Filing
- Presented by Margaret Jackson, Sr. International Tax Analyst, International tax Office, Vanderbilt University
- Thursday, February 13, 2025 | 11:30 a.m. – 12:45 p.m. | Online on Zoom
The session will cover the basics on US taxes, most common payments made to our international postdoc employees and their tax implications, a review of tax return filing basics and resources for preparation assistance.
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| L'Oréal USA for Women in Science Fellowship Program
The L’Oréal USA For Women in Science program awards five women postdoctoral scientists annually with grants of $60,000 each for their contributions in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) fields and commitment to serving as role models for younger generations.
The program has awarded 105 postdoctoral women scientists over $5 million in grants to advance their research and careers.
The L’Oréal USA FWIS Program is seeking five exceptional women scientists to advance their research and serve as role models for the next generation of girls in STEM.
Applications will remain open until February 14, 2025 at 5:00 p.m. EST.
Candidates must have completed their PhD and have started their postdoctoral research position by the application deadline. Must be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident to apply.
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| | BCC: Black History Month Events
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The Bishop Joseph Johnson Black Cultural Center is proud to present a comprehensive list of opportunities for the Vanderbilt community to participate in as we celebrate Black History Month. You can find a full list of events here.
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The VPA is looking for current Vanderbilt Postdocs to serve as mentors for their new Postdoc BuddyProgram!
The goal of this program is to systematically match new, incoming postdocs with current Vandy postdocs based on multiple factors that the buddies deem fruitful for a match to help build a supportive, welcoming community! As a current postdoc, your insight about Nashville and Vanderbilt will serve as a key resource to those who are transitioning into new positions. Remember that one hour of support/advice from a peer is worth more than 100s of pages of Word documents with lists of resources!
This is an excellent way to gain mentorship and academic leadership experience. We encourage our buddies to meet at least once during the new postdoc’s transition to Vanderbilt (virtually or in-person at one of the VPA sponsored events!). Otherwise, the mentor buddy will serve as a point of contact for incoming postdocs for any informal questions, advice, and support! The VPA will check in with mentor buddies each quarter to give volunteers the opportunity to recommit to an additional semester.
To get started, please complete this quick survey located here.
The VPA team will notify you as soon as possible, when you have been matched with an incoming postdoc!
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Graduate and Postdoc Academic SuccessThe Graduate & Postdoc Academic Success (GPAS) are here to support graduate students and postdocs with anything that keeps them from doing their best academic work. They provide strategies to address concerns around progress and productivity, as well as, navigating academic relationships. They address your needs through 1-on-1 consultations and success planning sessions. Additionally, both of their staff members are Gallup-Certified Strength Coaches and able to give you access to the CliftonStrengths Assessment to help you accomplish your best work utilizing an authentic approach to who you are and how you show up. If you are interested in meeting with one of the staff members, you can schedule an appointment here. If you ever feel like you are “stuck” in your writing and/or research, we hope that you will reach out and connect with them.
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| | Spring 2025: Weekly "Co-Working" Sessions
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The GPAS staff will also be offering weekly 'co-working' sessions through the Spring 2025 term on Thursdays from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. in Alumni Hall Graduate Student & Postdoc Lounge (Room 100) for anyone to come by and work alongside them. This time can be used for writing, planning or other academic projects. Stacey or Nick will be there to discuss any goals setting or accountability questionsdd you may have. If you are looking for a quiet space to work on projects in the company of colleagues, this is the place to stop in. They will also provide free coffee (and sometimes snacks)! See you there!
No registration required.
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Career CenterThe Career Center supports VU postdocs with the non-academic career exploration and planning of postdoctoral fellows in non-biomedical STEM, Humanities, and Social Sciences disciplines. At the Career Center, students and postdoctoral fellows learn and explore professional opportunities through internships, career coaching, workshops, career panels, on-campus recruiting, job fairs, and industry-based treks. Currently, Jessica Abner, PhD and Whitney Taylor, PhD serve as the Senior Career Coaches for the postdoctoral population. If you're interested in taking advantage of any of their services, please check out their website for more information and to make an appointment. Additionally, you can attend some of their upcoming events listed on Handshake.
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BRET Office of Career Development ASPIRE Program The BRET Office Career Development ASPIRE Program provides career and professional development services and enrichment activities for PhD students and postdoctoral fellows in the biomedical sciences at VU and VUMC.
Upcoming Events Hosted by the BRET Office of Career Development:
CV/Resume Drop-In Clinic:
Tuesday, February 11 | 11:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. | Light Hall 340
Tuesday, February 18 | 11:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. | Light Hall 340
Tuesday, February 25 | 11:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. | Light Hall 340
Tuesday, March 4 | 11:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. | Light Hall 340
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| The Margaret Cuninggim Women's Center is an on-campus office and resource to help celebrate and empower women in both their professional and personal aspirations, helping to boast their overall lives as they navigate through their time at Vanderbilt University. You can read more about the Women's Center on their website and by attending some of their upcoming events below!
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Each spring, the Women’s Center presents awards in three categories: the Margaret Cuninggim Women’s Center Leadership Award, the Mentoring Award, and the Mary Jane Werthan Award. Please consider nominating a colleague, student, instructor, or administrator for one of these awards. The deadline for nominations is Friday, February 28, 2025, at 11:59 p.m. To nominate someone, please fill out the form at this link. A list of previous award recipients can be found here. Please read on for more information about the three awards.
Margaret Cuninggim Women’s Center Leadership Award
The Margaret Cuninggim Women’s Center Leadership Award is presented annually to a student (undergraduate, graduate, or professional) who demonstrates leadership in activities that contribute to the achievements, interests, and goals of women or that promote gender equity. The nomination should demonstrate the candidate’s leadership of initiatives focused on empowering women and/or creating a more inclusive and equitable environment. The activities referenced in the nomination should have taken place while the student was enrolled at Vanderbilt.
The Mentoring Award
The Mentoring Award is presented annually to an individual of the Vanderbilt community who has helped to support women on campus through professional and intellectual development. The nominated individual must have demonstrated a sustained, long-term investment in mentoring women at Vanderbilt by creating an inclusive and supportive environment; connecting mentees with broader networks; and showing active involvement in mentees’ progress. This mentoring can entail academic or career guidance as well as personal guidance.
The Mary Jane Werthan Award
The Mary Jane Werthan Award is presented annually to an individual who has contributed significantly to the advancement of women at Vanderbilt University. It is named for Mary Jane Werthan, the first woman member of the Vanderbilt Board of Trust. The award honors three qualities characteristic of Mary Jane Werthan: vision, persistence, and extraordinary skill in interpersonal and institutional relations. It recognizes the debt that women at Vanderbilt University owe to those individuals who have had the vision to see how things ought to be, the courage to persist in their hopes over time, and the skills necessary to bring new attitudes and practices into being. The Mary Jane Werthan Award offers tribute to the humor, intelligence, and graceful determination of those individuals whose work has enhanced our entire community.
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| Now Leasing: The Broadview at Vanderbilt
The Broadview at Vanderbilt's ideal location on Broadway and 20th Avenue in midtown Nashville puts you just 2 blocks from the Vanderbilt campus and half a mile from VUMC, making your commute a breeze!
The Broadview offers brand-new studio, one- and two-bedroom apartment. Each home is outfitted with upscale features and finishes including a fully equipped kitchen, stainless steel appliances, wood-style flooring, in-unit washer/dryer, and private bedrooms and bathrooms.
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| | Connect with the Office of Postdoctoral Affairs (OPA)
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| | Connect with the Vanderbilt Postdoc Association (VPA)
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| Postdoc Spotlight: Sara Frederick, Ph.D.
Sara is a postdoc in the Physics & Astronomy department within the College of Arts & Science at VU. After completing her graduate studies, Sara joined the research lab of Professor Jessie Runnoe in 2021, where she continued her studies of active galaxies using spectroscopic data from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. Having previously discovered a new observational class of flares in low-ionization nuclear emission-line region galaxies (LINERs) using the Zwicky Transient Facility survey, she continues to leverage large data sets to explore new classes of extremely variable objects associated with high rates of accretion onto supermassive black holes in active galactic nuclei (AGN). In addition to her scientific interests and through the continued support of the Frist Center for Autism and Innovation, Sara has had a unique opportunity to devote her time and efforts into projects related to neuroinclusion. She currently serves as the instructor for the Neurodiversity Inspired Science and Engineering (NISE) course, which offers training to graduate fellows to develop innovative approaches and technologies to support neurodiverse populations. She is also a postdoctoral affiliate of the Wells Fargo Center for Neurodiversity and Inclusive Employment at the University of Connecticut. Her work with the center focuses on expanding employment for neurodiverse job seekers in STEM industries and beyond through academic research and employer education. Read more about her work in our February postdoc feature here.
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| The Career Center is proud to present their free, self-service photo booth. Just step inside, pose, and share!
Located in the Student Life Center, this resource is free and available to the entire Vanderbilt community. The photo booth is available for use anytime the Student Life Center is open. Check out this flyer for more details!
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| Holy Days CalendarAs a reminder, the Vanderbilt Holy Days Calendar provides a broad list of major holy days throughout the year and includes recommended accommodations for community members observing each holy day. For more information, please read the communication here.
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National Postdoc Association
NPA SmartSkills: Applying a Project Management Lens to your Job Search
In this session, the NPA will take on the daunting task of job searching with you. To help make the process of finding your next position more manageable, the NPA will help you learn more about project management principles and how they can be applied to finding and securing a job. Specifically, you will learn to treat job search as a “special project" and map the search to the five stages of project management: initiation, planning, execution, monitoring, and closing. Register here for the February 25 virtual course.
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| Join VPA Slack Channel!
The VPA has revamped the VandyPostdocs Slack channel to foster a vibrant postdoctoral community, with dedicated channels for all general announcements, calendar events for all postdoc-related activities, job postings, social events (both formal and informal), and discussion about anything and everything!
*Must re-signup even if you have previously signed into the former Slack because this is a brand new channel!
How to sign into VandyPostdocs Slack:
- Visit the Vanderbilt Postdoctoral Associatiion website.
- Click the link at the bottom (vandypostdocs.slack.com).
- Sign up with your VU or VUMC email.
- Launch Slack in your browser or download the app.
Then you should be all set! Feel free to post a message in any of the channels or request to start a new channel based on an interest you may have.
Important Note:
Must be signed in with VU/VUMC email to access VandyPostdocs Slack workspace.
Explore the VandyPostdocs Slack Channel today and connect with your fellow postdocs. For any assistance, contact the OPA (opa@vanderbilt.edu) or the VPA Community Building Co-Chairs (alicia.cronin@vumc.org or ilkin.safa@vumc.org). Let's build a stronger, more connected postdoc community together!
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| Nature Masterclass
Nature Masterclasses are developed by Nature Research and provide professional development training for researchers by drawing on the expertise of Nature Research journal editors and experts. Faculty, staff, postdocs, and students of Vanderbilt University and Vanderbilt University Medical Center are free to sign up at https://masterclasses.nature.com/.
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