Reimaging the postdoctoral experience: the role of postdoctoral researchers in a changing landscape
Dr Anjali Shah - Co-Chair of UKRSA
On 10 and 11th September 2020, I was asked to speak on behalf of UKRSA at this scoping meeting on the topic of What is a postdoc for? which was hosted by the Research on Research Institute (RORI). From the outset it was recognised that a diverse, inclusive and innovative research workforce is vital to the future of society. The aim of the meeting was to broaden our shared understanding of the postdoctoral experience to enable researchers to thrive and be their creative best.
The Research on Research Institute (RORI) was founded in September 2019 by the Wellcome Trust, Digital Science, and Universities of Leiden and Sheffield. It is an international consortium of research funders, academics and technologists working to champion transformative and translational research on research. Worldwide, interest is intensifying in how research is funded, practiced and evaluated, and in how research cultures and systems can be improved. But research on research (RoR) is often poorly joined-up. By analysing research systems and experimenting with new tools, indicators and evaluation frameworks, they aim to advance more strategic, open, diverse and inclusive research. Its’ website is here: http://researchonresearch.org/
The meeting was truly international and the variation in definition and experience of postdocs was astonishing. It was interesting to hear that in many developing countries people undertake a PhD to get promoted and that the postdoc is a new concept.
From the perspective of Principal Investigators or Managers of Researchers recruiting postdocs was seen as a way to strengthen the team, bring in people with curiosity, new skills, and additional collaborations, as well as postdocs providing more support with a range of research-related tasks.
From the perspective of the postdoc the expectations were about taking the next step to research independence, gaining experience in a new group or country, increased networking opportunities, broadening knowledge and skills, and learning to see the bigger picture.
Given the range of speakers the challenges observed were remarkably similar: short-term contracts, poor pay, long-hours culture, expectation to fulfil a large number of roles, pressure to publish, unclear rights and policies, limited awareness of other career pathways, work-life balance issues, mental health and wellbeing issues, managers not adequately trained to manage people, managers more focused on research outputs than on developing their team, and under-represented groups having a worse experience.
Also, the needs of postdocs around the world had much in common: a positive and nurturing environment, time to invest in professional development and networking, support and sign-posts to a range of viable careers, zero tolerance for bullying and harassment, more open-minded funders, and a supportive manager.
The data available on postdocs experiences are limited, but there was interesting research from the University of Toronto who followed more than 10,000 PhD graduates from 2000-2015, which found 51% remained in the post-secondary education sector of whom 26% had become tenure-track professors. 18% had transitioned to the private sector, 10% to the public sector, and 6% to the charity or self-employed sectors: https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article/comments?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0209898
A number of other organisations are surveying the experience of postdocs (e.g. Vitae, the Marie Curie Alumni Association and the Young Academy of Europe) on a range of topics. However, everyone recognised that more comprehensive data are required.
The final session of the meeting was about the implications of COVID-19 on postdoctoral experiences. It is clear that the current pandemic has magnified issues and disparities. Researchers are facing uncertainties about current and future funding, issues with access to labs and libraries, and some have been diverted to COVID-19 research indefinitely. Many have experienced negative consequences such as reduced productivity, increased isolation, accentuated mental health concerns, and increased caring responsibilities. Many researchers feel they have been left out of the decision-making processes at their institutions.
Some of the initial projects RORI intend to undertake are looking at how grant application criteria may influence inequalities in research funding, how to fairly judge the range of outputs from research, and an international investigation into the career pathways of researchers.
Overall, I believe the creation of RORI is a promising and timely development that I believe will help improve the world-wide postdoc experience.
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