Postdoctoral Associate Faculty

The position of postdoctoral associate is intended to be a limited-term traineeship, during which the individual works under the supervision of one or more faculty mentors in preparation for a career in academe or research.

Funding is usually from a grant, contract, or a postdoctoral fellowship. Postdoctoral associates are considered temporary or short-term appointments by definition and are always on restricted on appointments. Eligibility is a maximum of five year, including prior experience in a postdoc position at another university. Generally, eligibility is calculated from the date of conferral of a terminal degree.

General

Qualifications
Recent Ph.D.

Approval requirements
Department head, dean, Office of the Vice President for Research and Innovation.

General expectations
The position of postdoctoral associate is intended to be a limited-term traineeship, lasting 2-4 years, during which the individual works under the supervision of one or more senior faculty mentors in preparation for a career in academe or research. Such training may include an opportunity to prepare grant proposals for which the scholar may serve as co-principal investigator (with justification and special approval may serve as principal investigator). If the employee remains at Virginia Tech, he or she should move on to another role or rank, e.g., Research Scientist or Research Assistant Professor.

Typical Job Responsibilities

• Eligible or expected to be Principal Investigator?
  May serve as a co-principal investigator with name listed second on contract or grant. In special cases with appropriate justification, post-docs may serve as principal investigator if approved by department head, dean, and research division.
  
• Design and initiation of research: conceiving the research project, interacting with stakeholders/committees, developing funding source(s), communicating results to stakeholders, defining unit goals, allocating resources
  Role designed to enable individual to continue studies in a specialty training program while gaining practical experience in the field.
  
• Project management: setting priorities, acquiring resources, monitoring budgets, measuring progress, preparing reports, problem-solving
  Limited responsibility for project management.
  
• Supervisory: assigning tasks, monitoring activity, performing evaluations, recommending personnel actions, personnel management
  May supervise undergraduate or graduate students in laboratory.
  
• Conducting research: collecting data, applying standard methods, writing reports, communicating results, developing new methods
  Typically conducts research under supervision of one or more faculty members.

Time in Rank

Appointment to this faculty rank is usually for persons who have been awarded a doctoral degree no more than four years prior to the effective date of the appointment with a minimum of one year of eligibility remaining. Continued appointment beyond five years requires a promotion in rank. Exceptions for extenuating circumstances may be made by the Office of Research and Innovation.  Inquiries may be made with the Research and Innovation Human Resources team at ovpr-hr@vt.edu.