Annual Report 2008.pdf - SAMSI

B. Postdoctoral Fellows
This section includes the postdoctoral fellow selection and mentoring processes at SAMSI,
synopses of the activities of the postdocs from their own perspectives, evaluations of the SAMSI
postdoc experience, updates on the careers of previous SAMSI postdocs.
1. Overview
The SAMSI Postdoctoral Fellowship experience is designed to bring together Statisticians and
Applied Mathematicians in formal integrated research settings (e.g., Working Groups), informal
settings (e.g., Lunches, seminars and events for undergraduates), and in opportunities for
collaborations with researchers in other scientific disciplines.
Focus on integrating statistical and applied mathematical aspects in SAMSI programs begins
with the Postdoc selection process. During the 2006-07 grant year, candidates applied to
participate in the 2007-08 SAMSI Programs (Risk Analysis, Extreme Events, Decision Theory,
Random Media, ans Environmental Sensor Networks). The recruiting process involved SAMSI
researchers, the SAMSI Directorate, and advertisement in AMSTAT News, ISM News,
Mathjobs.com, and the SAMSI website. The 2007-08 Program Leaders and Scientific Advisory
Committee were invited to assist in bringing SAMSI opportunities to the attention of promising
doctoral candidates working in program-relevant areas of research. Final decision to rest with
the SAMSI Directorate following either on-site interview at SAMSI or interview via Webex
Teleconference. However, the careful assessment by the Program Leaders was invaluable and, in
this case at least, led to happy consensus decisions.
When Postdocs arrive they become part of a Postdoc Community that, in addition to SAMSI
Postdocs, includes NISS Postdocs and other young researchers in the NISS-SAMSI complex.
This lively Community has monthly Postdoc Lunch Seminars with the Directorate where topics
often include the practicalities of an academic or a research career (how to interview successfully
for a position, how to plan and write a research proposal, how the publication process works in
the mathematical sciences from journal selection through interpretation of written reviews to
successful revision). A Biweekly Seminar series for Postdocs and Graduate Students provides a
forum for “practice job interview” presentations of research results, serves to refine presentation
skills and, serves an interdisciplinary role to inform Postdocs coming from different disciplines
and/or working on different SAMSI Programs. Other shared activities within this Community
include participation in the SAMSI Education and Outreach Program particularly the
Undergraduate workshops, where Postdocs continue to be the most effective presenters for
students of this age.
Effective mentoring of Postdocs is an essential part of SAMSI’s mission; therefore each Postdoc
acquires two mentors. The Research Mentor, commonly the Working Group Leader of the
Postdoc’s principal Working Group, and the Administrative Mentor, a member of the
Directorate to provide knowledge of local issues and SAMSI information. This second
mentorship also connects the Directorate in a personal, non-evaluative way to Postdoc Life at
SAMSI. In their comments, SAMSI Postdocs have continued to report that they feel well-