Postdocs are an unusual breed of campus citizen:
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:
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.
Michael Stoner Co-Founder and Co-Owner Was I born a skeptic or did I become one as I watched the hypestorm gather during the dotcom years, recede, and congeal once more as we come to terms with our online, social, mobile world? Whatever. I'm not much interested in cutting edge but what actually works for real people in the real world. Does that make me a bad person?