Postdocs showcase work at annual research symposium

They work in labs, centers and institutes across UB, conducting mentored research that helps prepare them for full-time careers in academia or research.

These postdoctoral scholars — it is estimated that there are anywhere from 150 to 200 postdocs on campus in any given year — are invaluable to the research enterprise in many fields, according to their faculty mentors.

While they often work behind the scenes, these “employees in training” recently took their place in the spotlight at the Eighth Annual Postdoc Research Symposium. The symposium, held on June 10 in the Center for the Arts, featured 40 poster presentations, 11 of which were showcased in the event’s first three-minute presentation competition. In this competition — similar to an “elevator pitch” — the postdoc presenters described their work to an audience in non-expert terms, using only one static slide as a visual aid.

This annual research symposium provides a “unique atmosphere to showcase the work of UB’s postdoctoral scholars,” says Luis Colón, A. Conger Goodyear Professor in the Department of Chemistry and associate dean for graduate and postdoctoral education for the UB Graduate School. “For some postdocs, this may be one of the few places — if not the only one — where they can personally present their work.

“The setting is conducive to the exchange of ideas and networking with fellow postdocs and faculty,” Colón says, noting that postdocs from Roswell Park Cancer Institute also take part in the event. “It offers the opportunity to learn about the recent research advancements and developments accomplished here in our own back yard.”

Postdocs, who hold a PhD or the terminal degree in their field, are not students, Colón stresses. “They are employees of UB, or of their particular institution, with the main role of advancing research,” he says. The appointments are temporary in nature — typically no more than five years — and are beneficial for both parties, he says.

Postdoctoral training allows a researcher — usually a recent PhD graduate — to mature in his or her field under the tutelage of an established researcher, better preparing the postdoc to become an independent researcher. “A postdoctoral experience is basically a ‘must have’ to pursue an academic position in a research-intensive institution,” Colón says, adding that the experience also gives individuals an advantage when pursuing job opportunities outside academia, such as with national laboratories or industry.

And the institutions employing the postdocs reap substantial benefits as well, Colón says, as postdocs “perform research at the forefront of their field. In many fields, they are invaluable to the research enterprise.”

Five postdocs were specifically recognized at last month’s research symposium.

Winners in the poster competition were Christopher Rates, Center for Educational Innovation, first place; George Nimako, Pharmacy Practice, second place; and Thomas Hohle, Biochemistry, third place.

Ying Liu, Electrical Engineering, was awarded first place in the three-minute presentation contest, while Jaime Orejas, Chemistry, received the second-place award.

Also recognized was Mira Edgerton, research professor in the Department of Oral Biology, School of Dental Medicine, who was named the recipient of the 2016 Distinguished Postdoc Mentor Award.

The award was established by the Office of Postdoctoral Scholars in the Graduate School in 2009 to recognize UB faculty members who excel in the mentoring of postdoctoral scholars.

Nominees are submitted by postdoctoral scholars from UB, Roswell Park, UB’s Research Institute on Addictions and Hauptman-Woodward Medical Research Institute.