Faculty should work with their department’s administrative staff to initiate a postdoctoral search. Please notify the administrative staff in your department as soon as you identify a candidate whom you plan to hire (via search or pre-select). Depending on the candidate’s need for a visa, the hiring process may take as long as 6 months. Postdocs transitioning from one title to another (e.g. Postdoctoral Research Associate to Postdoctoral Fellow) require at least one month, and sufficient time for the postdoc to seek consultation from OUPA on their associated benefits changes. Appointments are typically made for 1 year and renewed annually, though appointments up to three years are possible.

The minimum compensation for postdoctoral appointments is based on years of postdoctoral research experience (including experience at prior institutions), and is posted on the OUPA Compensation page. University policies prohibit postdoctoral appointments beyond the fifth year, unless required for their fellowship. Faculty interested in promoting their postdoc should consult with BioMed Faculty Administration regarding faculty and affiliate title options.

Please notify your department administrator in advance to request a re-appointment. Postdocs are asked to submit an updated IDP annually, which they have reviewed with their faculty mentor. The IDP is intended to facilitate discussions regarding progress, expectations, and plans for career and professional development. Raises are provided at re-appointment (or on the anniversary date for multi-year appointments), and should meet posted salary minimums.

1. If a faculty member does not plan to re-appointment their postdoc, this should be communicated in advance (preferably 3 months). The department administrator should be notified that the appointment will not be renewed. Note that the Faculty member is responsible for paying out any unused vacation balance if the postdoc is eligible. Once PECP is notified of the termination, the postdoc will receive exit materials, including an exit survey.
2. Appointments may be terminated prior to the end date due to (1) the postdoc resigning, (2) promotion to another title (3) poor performance, or (4) loss of funding to the faculty mentor.

Poor performance may be exhibited by lack of attendance in the research setting for extended periods of time and without adequate explanation; repeated failure to abide by university lab safety procedures; or concerns about research competence. As per section 14.3.2 of the Handbook of Academic Administration, if the faculty mentor cannot resolve the performance issues informally through discussions with the postdoc, they should contact Dean Van Wart directly. The PI will be asked to outline to the postdoc the ways in which they are not meeting expectations, listing explicit steps required to resolve the problem, and setting a deadline by which performance should show significant improvement. It should be clear that failure to meet these expectations may result in termination.