The James H. Quillen College of Medicine seeks to recognize and formalize the role of postdoctoral fellows in the growth and development of the research enterprise within the College. The policies described in this document are modeled after the system for the appointment and training of medical residents.
The underlying premise is that postdoctoral fellows are non-degree seeking trainees who are advancing their post-graduate scientific training in preparation for an independent scientific/ scholarly career. For the fellow, the primary goals of postdoctoral training should be an opportunity to further professional preparation, advance their research skills and to be exposed to new ideas under the mentorship of a faculty sponsor. For the faculty sponsor, mentoring postdoctoral fellows should be a unique didactic training experience. For the College and University, postdoctoral fellows should be a vital part of the growing research enterprise and they should contribute to the intellectual vitality of the academic environment.
The following define a postdoctoral research fellow:
Consistent with the definition above, the postdoctoral appointment should be a temporary (term) appointment with a primary purpose of providing additional research or scholarly development and training for a career in science.
The Associate Vice President for Research and the Postdoctoral Review Committee should have responsibility for monitoring postdoctoral policies to assure consistent application of those policies within the College of Medicine.
All postdoctoral fellows will be appointed on a temporary (annual) basis with the overall intention that a research fellowship should not exceed five years, except under special circumstances to be approved by the faculty sponsor, the department and the Postdoctoral Review Committee (these might include illness, child birth or a need to conclude a project which is at an advanced stage). The first appointment should be for a one year period, with annual reappointment thereafter.
Application for postdoctoral study is made directly to the advertising faculty sponsor in the academic department involved. Faculty sponsors are expected to respond to all correspondence regarding possible postdoctoral status. The determination that the area of interest is appropriate for study at East Tennessee State University and whether there is sufficient office/laboratory space is made by the faculty member and the department Chairperson, with input from the Postdoctoral Review Committee.
A Postdoctoral Review Committee will be created to assist in the postdoctoral review process. The committee will insure: i) that fair and objective hiring practices are observed and ii) that postdoctoral candidates meet the minimum requirement of the position advertised, i.e. appropriate background, degree, training, etc. The committee would also serve in an advisory capacity for faculty attempting to recruit qualified postdoctoral fellows. Of greater importance, the committee would serve as an advocate for postdoctoral fellows within the College. At his discretion, the Dean may also wish to appoint a departmental chair to serve as a non-voting, ex-officio member of the committee on an annual rotating basis.
The committee will be composed of no fewer than three and no more than five faculty. The committee Chair must be a tenured faculty member. The majority of the committee should be drawn from the tenured faculty. The Chair and at least two members of the committee must have previous experience mentoring postdoctoral fellows within the last five years prior to their appointment. It is recommended that one member of the committee be drawn from the junior faculty, preferably a junior faculty member who had undertaken a postdoctoral appointment no more than five years prior to joining the committee.
When it is decided by a faculty sponsor, a sponsoring department and the Postdoctoral Review Committee that it is appropriate for an individual to come to East Tennessee State University as a postdoctoral fellow, a letter is sent to the fellow from the faculty sponsor (or department Chairperson). This letter should contain the following information:
The letter is not an offer of a job. It is a statement of the terms and conditions of the position. The applicant will indicate his/her acceptance of the terms by signing the letter and returning the signed original to the faculty sponsor/mentor. The applicant should keep a copy of the signed letter for his/her files. The fellow is required to submit a copy of his/her diploma or transcript (with translation into English if it is in a foreign language) showing final doctoral degree conferral. If the final degree has not yet been conferred, a statement of completion of studies from the fellow's home institution (Registrar's Office or equivalent) is required for conditional employment. This statement should indicate the date on which all requirements were/will be completed and the expected degree conferral date.
Upon acceptance of the terms and conditions of the position, the applicant will be sent a one-year contract from East Tennessee State University which includes all of the information described above. Upon signing and acceptance of the contract the Postdoctoral Fellow would be ready to begin their research program at the College of Medicine.
The James H. Quillen College of Medicine is strongly committed to an affirmative action program for admitting qualified minority applicants for fellowship positions. The College strives to prepare under-represented minority applicants for positions of leadership in all branches of clinical, social, investigative and academic science/medicine. It is our goal to see their representation in academia increased at all levels. Therefore, minority candidates will be particularly encouraged to apply. To achieve this goal, the faculty sponsor and the sponsoring department will advertise the position in appropriate minority oriented professional publications as well as contact minority oriented science organizations (such as the NIH Black Scientist Association) to solicit applications from qualified applicants.
In view of the role of the fellow as trainee, the faculty responsibilities are an extension of those provided to other trainees (graduate students, medical students, medical residents), though with a much greater emphasis on the development of scientific independence. Mentoring should involve detailed advice and assistance in the development and execution of a specific research project, but in addition mentoring should include education in research protocol issues such as ethics, objectivity and conflicts of interest. In addition, the faculty sponsor/mentor is expected to assist and advise the fellow with regard to career opportunities and advancement within science and academia.
Annual reappointment and salary level will be determined by recommendation of the sponsor/mentor and the Postdoctoral review committee. Salary levels for postdoctoral fellows should be consistent with those promulgated by the National Institutes of Health guidelines. In the case of extramural funding, it is recognized that annual salary level for fellows may be subject to and dependent upon the salary line provided/recommended by the funding agency.
The faculty sponsor/mentor will provide at least two semi-annual evaluations of the fellow's performance. This evaluation will be used by the postdoctoral Review Committee to recommend the fellow's promotion into the next year of training. Evaluations are particularly important if the fellow's performance has been unacceptable. To eliminate ambiguities and misunderstandings, it is especially important for the sponsor/mentor to outline, in writing, all expected performance benchmarks to the fellow at the beginning of the appointment. This should include the fellow's specific responsibilities within the laboratory as well as laboratory requirements for: i) authorship, ii) determining priority of research projects; iii) ownership of projects; iv) ownership of data; v) patent rights; and vi) policy for the fellow taking projects with him/her when the fellow leaves the laboratory.
Fellows who are not to be re-appointed must be notified in writing by their sponsor/mentor and given reasonable time (at least three months advance warning) in order to arrange alternative plans. The Postdoctoral review committee and the Department Chair will also be informed and will receive a copy of the letter given to the fellow by the faculty sponsor of his/her decision not to reappoint the fellow. The reasons for not re-appointing the fellow must be clearly delineated in the letter, i.e. loss of funding, poor performance, poor scholarship, etc.
In the event that a postdoctoral fellow believes that he/she has suffered a grievance which might negatively impact their career, they should follow the procedure described below to have the grievance investigated and if proven, to provide a means of rectification. First, the fellow should discuss the issue with his/her sponsor and solicit advice. If the issue of contention involves the sponsor/mentor, the fellow should contact the Department Chair and the Postdoctoral Review Committee. If the Department Chair and/or Review Committee feel that sufficient cause is present, the fellow will be asked to submit a written account of the grievance. The fellow may request that the Postdoctoral Review Committee recommend how to deal with the issue(s).
In the event of allegations of misconduct it is recommended that the University policies on investigating such allegations be followed. In this case the Department Chair and/or the Postdoctoral Review Committee would contact the University Associate Vice President for Research who is responsible for conducting such investigations.
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Last modified on June 14, 2000