postdoctoral fellowships in polar regions research the newest nsf postdoctoral fellowship program...

Postdoctoral Fellowships in Postdoctoral Fellowships in Polar Regions ResearchPolar Regions Research

The newest NSF postdoctoral fellowship program

Kathleen Flint

AAAS Science Policy Fellow

• Support innovative research• Foster next generation of polar

scientists • Broaden participation in polar science

• Encourage best practices in the community for a postdoctoral research experience

Program GoalsProgram Goals

Fellowship OverviewFellowship Overview

• Independent postdoctoral research in polar science

• Up to 3 years

• Includes: Salary, health insurance, research budget, fieldwork support

• U.S. host institution under mentorship of specified host scientist

Program InnovationsProgram Innovations

• Travel grants: independent award opportunity, supports travel to 1-2 prospective host institutions during fellowship proposal development

• Health insurance: the first NSF postdoctoral fellowship to provide an explicit health insurance allowance

• Fieldwork: fellowship proposals can include a fieldwork component, logistics funded in addition to standard stipends

• Mentoring Plan: host scientists must detail a mentoring plan for the postdoc as part of their letters of support

Latest DevelopmentsLatest Developments

• Travel grant deadline changed to rolling deadline

• Increasing publicity & outreach of program – but more work needed

• Developing an information handbook for use by Fellows and OPP

• 2nd competition is underway; 70% increase in number of proposals

The Faces of The Faces of OPP’s 1OPP’s 1stst Postdoc Postdoc

Fellows: 2004Fellows: 2004

Gregory Balco• Cosmogenic-nuclide geochronology

of glaciated surfaces in the upper Dry Valleys

• Sponsor: Howard Conway, Univ of Washington

Matthew Wallenstein• Seasonal variability of the soil

microbial communities responsible for decomposition of the arctic tundra carbon pool

• Sponsor: Josh Schimel, UC Santa Barbara

Nate Bickford • Habitat use and life

history of fish in the eastern Bering Sea

Kenia Whitehead • Global patterns of gene expression and regulation

in response to UV radiation and low temperature stress

• Sponsors: Nitin Baliga, Institute of Systems Biology & Ferran Garcia-Pichel, Arizona State Univ

• Sponsor: Brenda Norcross, Univ of Alaska Fairbanks

Brook Nunn • The effects of iron supply on the size,

composition and bioavailability of dissolved organic carbon from Phaeocystis antarctica

• Host: David Goodlett, Univ of Washington

Bradley Buckley • Genomics of Antarctic notothenioids, an

extremely cold-tolerant group of perch-like fish

• Host: George Somero, Stanford

Program EvaluationProgram Evaluation3-year review period Decide renewal

late 2006

• Should we continue beyond Year 3?

• How do we evaluate its success?– Will it have met its goals?

• Changed community overall? (e.g. broadened participation? new polar scientists?)

• Individual Fellow successes? (e.g. jobs? publications?)

– Other metrics?