Postdocs: The New “Alumni?”

Postdocs are an unusual breed of campus citizen:

• They aren’t students (they’ve completed their doctorates and are doing further research)
• They aren’t faculty (as they don’t have academic appointments)
• They are officially staff members (but live and work as researchers and academics)

In short, they occupy a seldom-charted academic Bermuda Triangle somewhere among students, faculty and staff.

On my campus the number of postdocs is comparable to the number of undergraduates. In recent years the postdocs have formed an official governance organization, the Postdoc Association, which has ex officio representation on the Alumni Association Board of Directors, alongside reps from the undergraduate and graduate student governments.

In fact, we invite current and former postdocs to join our membership-based alumni association with the same privileges as alumni members. Apparently this is radical, and has raised a few eyebrows (and caused some data management challenges). Nonetheless we feel it’s a smart investment that will benefit the institution in the long run. 

Five of the positives are:

• Many postdocs are on campus longer than undergraduates are, and form strong bonds of loyalty to the institution
• They are a networking resource for students, alumni, and other postdocs
• Postdocs can feel marginalized in terms of community and desire recognition as permanent members of the campus community
• Many postdocs attended overseas universities which do not engender the same loyalty as North American institutions do, so we can become de facto alma maters (pardon my Latin)
• Some unknown number will certainly be donors in the future

One officer in our Postdoc Association says he thinks this trend is a no-brainer for all parties and will benefit everyone in the long run. “It represents a sea-change in alumni relations” he says.

We’re glad they support our efforts – but that’s a bold claim he makes. Are we wrong to welcome postdocs into the lifelong campus community, as long as doing so does not detract from our ability to serve alumni? Or do they represent a new audience for advancement?

Note: This post is by Andy Shaindlin, executive director of the alumni association at Caltech and author of Alumni Futures, who will be our guest blogger until mid-April.