Mentoring and Professional Development
Create an Individual Development Plan (IDP) and/or Mentoring Plan to establish mutually agreed-upon goals and communicate expectations clearly in writing. Find resources here.
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 that are 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, a Postdoctoral Mentoring Certificate, and/or a Postdoctoral Teaching Certificate.
Policies and Guidelines
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).
Follow the guidelines for Appropriate Treatment of Research Trainees. A supportive and inclusive training environment is critical to creating an excellent postdoc experience.
Awards
Consider nominating your postdoc for an award. This could be an award offered through a professional/scientific organization or the Outstanding Postdoctoral Scholar Award offered through the University of Arizona. You can also sign up to serve on review committees for Postdoctoral Affairs awards and grants.