April 2025

Welcome to the monthly Office of Postdoctoral Affairs newsletter! To learn more about our office and to see a complete events calendar, please visit our website. We also invite you to join our listserv to get timely communications about upcoming events. Feel free to email us at postdoctoralaffairs@utexas.edu with any questions.

News
Upcoming Events
Article: Women Shattering Research Norms
Professional Development Tip

News

New Community Building Committee from the Department of Molecular Biosciences

The Community Building Committee is a new committee in Molecular Biosciences dedicated to promoting connections amongst the local and academic community. Their new webpage is now online. Nayeli Reyes-Nava, a postdoctoral researcher in the MBS department is the first trainee highlighted by the committee. L earn more about Nayeli and her work in her interview for the committee.

Postdoctoral Scholar Mentoring Award Winner

Congratulations to Patience Epps, professor of linguistics and anthropology in the College of Liberal Arts, for being awarded this year's Postdoctoral Scholoar Mentoring Award. This award honors and celebrates a faculty member (tenure track, tenure, and professional track) who demonstrates outstanding mentorship of postdoctoral scholars.

Early Career Scholars Postdoctoral Fellowship Program Fall 2025

We are seeking applicants for the Early Career Scholars Postdoctoral Fellowship Program Fall 2025 cohort. This program is aimed at postdoctoral scholars who will be pursuing academic careers. While this program does not provide salary support, we are offering all aspects of our training program to promising early career scholars (current and/or incoming) from all disciplines and atypical backgrounds who would benefit from our programmatic offerings and from a campus-wide community of scholars that are pursuing similar goals.

ARL Distinguished Postdoctoral Fellowship

The Army Research Laboratory (ARL) invites exceptional early career researchers to apply for an ARL Distinguished Postdoctoral Fellowship that provides recipients the opportunity to pursue independent research of their own choosing that supports the mission of ARL. Candidates must display extraordinary ability in scientific research, show clear promise of becoming outstanding leaders, and are expected to have already successfully tackled a major scientific or engineering problem during their thesis work or to have provided a new approach or insight, evidenced by a recognized impact in their field.

Upcoming Events

We invite you to join us for these upcoming events in May.

“Being a Lighthouse: Navigating the Ripple Effects of a Cancer Diagnosis,” A UT EAP Presentation from the Strengthening Relationships Series
Monday, May 12, noon-1 p.m., Zoom

Please join the UT Employee Assistance Program for this presentation by Becky Morales, LCSW-S, CSWM, Chief Mission Office of the Flatwater Foundation

Hearing the words “you have cancer” can create huge waves of uncertainty in one’s life. The ripple effects of the diagnosis then spread quickly to others - partners, kids and co-workers just to name a few. This presentation will be a helpful resource for gaining insight about the impact of a cancer diagnosis and the unique aspects of this occurring within the workplace community. Attendees will receive information and resources to bolster their ability in being a lighthouse for others who are navigating the disease. Visit the UT EAP website for the full calendar of presentations in their Strengthening Relationships series.

More information

Open Scholarship Crash Course
Tuesday, May 13, 10 a.m.-2 p.m., PCL Scholars Lab

Join the UT Libraries and UT Open Source Program Office for an in-depth discussion of open scholarship. We will be covering all of the major facets of open scholarship from open data and open source software to open access publishing. Join us in the PCL Scholars Lab from 10:00am to 2:00pm to learn about open scholarship resources, relevant services available to UT researchers, and best practices. Lunch will be provided.

Register

Federal Policy Changes Impacting Research Sharing: What You Need to Know
Friday May 15, 1-2:00 p.m., Zoom

Join UT Libraries for a virtual Zoom session about federal funding agency policy changes going into effect in 2025 that may impact your research. We will cover the expanded sharing requirements for publications and data resulting from federally funded research, describe where researchers can find more information, and highlight the resources that are available at UT Austin to assist with compliance. We will discuss the commonalities and differences among individual research funding agency plans, and we’ll be able to answer questions about specific funders.

Register

Article: National Postdoc Association

Women have faced immense hurdles in the research field, often defying all odds to reach their discoveries. Check out this recent article in the Postdocket by scholars Smirithika Subramani and Aswathy Shailaja on how women have shattered the glass ceiling and made their mark on their discipline. Subramani and Shailaja share their insights on how what factors contribute to gender inequities in STEM and how researchers can fight against these often overlooked barriers to success.

Professional Development Tip

It’s annual performance review time! At UT Austin, the review period for annual evaluations is June 2024-May 2025. As postdoctoral scholars at UT Austin, your supervisor should schedule a meeting with you to review their evaluation of your performance and to give you an opportunity for feedback. You may be asked to complete a self-evaluation by your supervisor prior to their completion of your annual review. Now is a great time to begin to prepare for your annual performance review.

Here are some self-evaluation questions to help you prepare for your annual review.

To effectively prepare for an annual review, start by reflecting on your performance against your goals, gathering evidence of your accomplishments, and identifying areas for improvement. Review your Individual Development Plan and/or job description and any previous review or feedback from your supervisor. Consider how you've advanced the research goals of your PI as well as your own research goals. Prepare for a two-way conversation, be open to feedback, and think about your career aspirations beyond your postdoc appointment.

You can find more detailed information on preparing for annual performance reviews here.

You can find Individual Development Plan templates here.

Remember: If you need additional guidance, you can always reach out to the Office of Postdoctoral Affairs to schedule an individual appointment!

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Table of Contents

News

Upcoming Events

Article: National Postdoc Association

Professional Development Tip