Before your Postdoc Arrives
The following steps are suggestions to ensure your postdoc's arrival is as smooth as possible.
Refer them to the Postdoctoral Affairs website to be sure the new postdoc is aware of university-wide resources and support, including information on campus life and housing.
Point them to the National Postdoctoral Association (NPA) website to view all of its valuable resources, and the Postdoc Academy, a free comprehensive program built on the NPA core competencies to support skill development throughout postdoc training.
Introduce your postdoc to other postdocs in the department/unit. Also inform the new postdoc about the UA Postdoctoral Association, an organization that represents the UArizona postdoc community.
If your postdoc is international, point out the International Faculty and Scholars section of the Global Initiatives website.
Keep in touch after hiring your postdoc and before their arrival at UArizona.
After your Postdoc Arrives
Establish open and regular communication. It is often a good idea to set a regular meeting schedule to be sure the postdoc gets off to a good start and stays on track throughout the postdoc years.
Provide professional development opportunities. These should be applicable to your discipline and your postdoc’s career goals. Examples include opportunities to write and submit grants, give oral presentations, teach, mentor students, develop an effective CV/resume, and refine interviewing and networking skills. You may want to suggest that your postdoc earn a Postdoctoral Professional Development Certificate.
Consider creating an Individual Development Plan (IDP). Although the UA does not require postdocs to create and submit an IDP as some other universities do, we recognize that this can be an effective strategy for establishing mutually agreed-upon goals and communicating expectations clearly in writing. You can find resources for creating an IDP here.
Outline university, departmental, and/or laboratory rules, policies, and benefits. Different laboratories are overseen by different agencies and have different compliance regulations (see RII compliance policies). Some may require responsible conduct in research (RCR) training (learn more about the RCR certificate), and some may have their own rules and policies in place. Because postdocs can be hired into different types of job positions, these positions may carry different university benefits. See our human resources page. If your postdoc is required to be appointed as a Designated Campus Colleague (that is, not allowed to be a university employee), please contact Postdoctoral Affairs for information on benefits (postdoc@arizona.edu).
Mentoring Toolkits, Guides, and Other Resources
UArizona Mentoring Toolkit: Guidelines on how to create the best mentoring experience.
MENTOR Institute Online Training: Online course for faculty, postdocs, and graduate students on how to build and maintain mentoring relationships
Appropriate Treatment of Research Trainees (AToRT): It is intended to highlight the importance of supportive and inclusive training environments for postdoctoral researchers.
NSF Sample Template of a Mentoring Plan
Writing a Mentoring Plan for Grants - by University of Notre Dame
Entering Mentoring Curricula Series and more!
Developing Shared Expectations (form) - University of Michigan
Inclusive Mentoring - Sheridan Center for Teaching and Learning
OITE Youtube Channel: Leadership, Mentorship, Management
Postdoc Mentoring Series: Watch the recordings of the panels presented at the Postdoc Mentoring Series 2021.
Training Grant Resources
If you are preparing a training grant that will fund postdocs, or if your postdoc is working on their own individual training grant, you will probably need information about campus resources and support. Here, we provide some documents that may be helpful.
- Principal Investigator, Project Director, Co-Principal Investigator (PI, PD, Co-PI) Eligibility
- The Institutional Environment section of a training grant may require information about the UArizona environment for postdocs. General information about what is offered by Postdoctoral Affairs can be found here. A list of typical UArizona workshops offered for postdocs each year can be found here. Note that postdocs are also eligible to earn a teaching certificate and a responsible conduct of research certificate.
- National Institutes of Health (NIH) may require a Career Development Plan (CDP) for the F32, K awards, and other training grants. Here are some guidelines for creating a CDP.